Sincerely, Your Fine Jewelry.

My Dear Sweet Owner,

I was a gift from someone who's totally into you.  I also happen to be very beautiful and worth quite a bit.  I know that you're gaga for me because you flaunt me to your friends daily, turning me in the light and cooing about my carat weight.  ooh la la!  Also, you nearly got into a car accident after staring at me too long while driving that one time.  Remember?  So I don't mean to be rude, and forgive me for asking, but if you love me then why you wanna treat me so bad?

I am a fine fine fine piece of jewelry, painstakingly created from precious metal and gemstones and toiled over for many hours by hand.  I've been seriously considered at every step of my evolution... am I the right size and shape?  Is my structure perfectly perfect?  Am I sparkly in the right places and smooth in the rest?  Am I unique and thought provoking?  You better believe it, buddy.

You know, if I were an actress, I'd be Meryl Streep for sure.  If I were a car?  I'll go ahead and say it, I'm the Aston Martin of fine jewelry.  I'm sure you agree, obvs.  So let me ask you, would you drive an Aston Martin every day and never change the oil?  Would you drive it through the steaming hot desert and not suds it up afterward? Get a dent and not fix it?  I think not. 

Just like an expensive ride, I need a bit of maintenance to stay fabulous and not break.   My prongs,  bezels and other tids and bits need checking twice a year please.  If you wear me doing glove-less manual labor (ouch) or while cleaning with harsh chemicals (yikes), or so help me, while you are lifting free weights (how dare you), I will become damaged.  So the next time you're laying bricks or doing dead lifts at the gym, cut me a little slack and put me somewhere safe for a sec.   You're the best.  You might even wash me up in gentle jewelry cleaning solution (one part ammonia to one part water) before you put me back on because you do not even want to know what can happen to your finger if you never clean me. gross.  Lotions, perfumes, sunscreens, and soap have chemicals in them that can be corrosive to soft gemstones and can seriously irritate me and you.  Metal is relatively soft and malleable and just like granny's ring, metal (be it on the prongs, tips, bezels, clasps or shanks) will wear away over time.  When this happens to me, it doesn't mean that I'm a an overpriced hunk a junk.   OMG!  Not at all!  It just means I'm normal and need care.  Lucky for you, I know a guy.

The jeweler who  made me is The Man.   He'll take care of all of my necessary cleaning and twice yearly checkups... at no cost!!!  You can prevent bad, bad things from happening to me!   And do you want to know what else?  If you maintain me, I will give you and your family joy for generations. How awesome is that?  Forget about me and it's possible I'll end up a wonky, broken down ol' mess after just a few years, causing you grief and expense.  major bummer.

Oh, and while we're on the subject, get a little insurance on me too... it's not expensive at all and can really come in handy if ever an unfortunate garbage disposal situation arises!   Thanks a bunch!

Sincerely,

Your Fine Jewelry

p.s. that friend you had coffee with yesterday? Totes jealous of me.  Snap!

18k rose gold with 1.3ct cognac diamond

Who Rocks the Party? Kenny.

Our brother in law, Kenny, wears many, many hats.  Yes, he's known as the fearless tattooed goldsmith who's a bit nutso for his little doggie Roxy, but did you also know that he's also a talented musician with a big heart? (awwwwwwww...)  Recently Kenny took a Saturday off from his jeweler's bench... he put down his torch and picked up his drum sticks for an afternoon of music for kids. 

Twice a year, Kenny partners with other musicians in the area to hold an afternoon jam session where anyone is welcome to try out an instrument and rock a little.  Kids of all ages and experience show up with nothing at all, the instruments and equipment are all provided for them, and by the end of the afternoon are on stage playing two songs with a pick up band.  The jam session begins and ends with a frank discussion about  drugs and alcohol where the message is; music is cool no matter what... you don't need to do drugs to rock in a band.  We agree. 

 

Lovely Tall Ring

Here's a lovely ring that we finished for a client recently.  It's derived from our "Flat Band" series, a style we're known for with hefty prongs and a single accent diamond to the side of the center stone. 

This gal is in 18k yellow gold and showcases a 2 carat round brilliant diamond.  Optically the ring appears very tall, but in reality it's no taller than  most rings that a fit a 2ct, we've simply cut way the area where, in most rings, the shank typically makes a gradual rise to meet the crown.  We then elongated the prongs slightly to show off the culet of the stone. 

Finishing touch... our signature single flush-set accent diamond.

New Logo for J.ALBRECHT

We started working on this project about 2 years ago. It began when we ran out of boxes.  Laina began pouring over packaging catalogs and websites.  She emailed friends for advice on shape and color.  She punched numbers into the calculator, compared swatches,  and argued with jay about hinges and foil stamping.  There were many many sleepless nights and even more nights dreaming of the perfect ring box.  And then...

the owner of Master Goldsmiths on Pearl Street decided to retire.   Laina's box project suddenly veered in a whole new direction... namely the direction of the shelves.  Box discussion became discussion of moving (house and business... that's a whole 'nother Oprah show) and of taking on the Master Goldsmiths history and somehow meshing their 30 year logo with our own.  We made a slight change to our name, adding Master Goldsmiths as a describer of what we do... but were too busy with a moving sale and servicing our clients in the new Pearl Street location to put energy into a shiny new logo.  We used up their leftover boxes (we're nothing if not practical) and called it good for the short term. 

Now that we're finally feeling settled into our new digs and Hawk is back, we've had some time to address "the box/logo dilemma."  To solve our logo anxiety we turned to Brad at Smokeproof Press here in Boulder.  Along with an appreciation for his amazing work, Laina covets his incredible tomato garden and portable typewriter collection. 

We are now the proud owners of this logo.Voila!

You like, yes?  We definitely think we've avoided a "GAP" situation here.  Thank you, Brad.

Other fun changes in the works:  we have gorgeous boxes in production and some exciting renovations happening inside the store over the next few months... we'll keep you posted. 

Stackers of the Day!

Stackers of the Day, Y'all!

14k white gold sandblasted diamond bezel ring +18k yellow gold and diamond eternity band + 14k white gold plain sandblasted band = perfection.

Just Finished.... jewelry for everyday.

This mini collection that we just finished is a mix of pink tourmaline, peridot, green sapphires, and aquamarines in 14k white gold. It's casually whimsical, yet minimalist without being austere. The collection in general reflects our attitude toward the common perception that "real" or "fine" jewelry cannot/should not be worn everyday and that it is reserved for "fancy" occasions.

We believe that fine jewelry can and should be worn all of the time. These pieces will look equally stunning with jeans & a sweater or as a colorful compliment to a Little Black Dress. In fact, we'd go as far to recommend that you only wear fine (gold, white gold, platinum , steel, natural gemstone) jewelry. Simply forgo other disposable jewelry altogether.

That's right. You heard us.

Guess you could say we've got opinions on "throw-away" jewelry. We dislike the general premise of throw-away anything. But we're not idiots, we understand that our culture thrives on disposable goods. We're also not above chucking the occasional pair of brown fake alligator stilettos that we bought on a stupid whim because they were so cheap and then found out they gave us blisters and came apart at the seams and totally not worth the price. ug. Okay, okay... so maybe don't go cold turkey on all your fun fake jewelry purchases. But perhaps you could just consider the following:

Coupla reasons to choose "fine" over "cheap trend" when you're picking jewelry.

1. Simple, classy fine jewelry is a no brainer.

Sure, you invest a little more into your initial purchase... but along with that comes your continual devotion to what you've spent your hard earned money on. Looking back at the past decade of cheap trend jewelry, how much of it do you still love, still wear, or still exists (hasn't been lost, lent or broken.) How about photographs? Embarrassed by that brass feather pendant you're wearing in front of the Christams tree in 1999? Or are you ageless on Easter Sunday in classic diamond stud earrings that you purchased to celebrate your promotion, a timeless yet unique solitaire pendant, and a custom designed ring made from your grandmother's old diamond?


Oh, and save yourself some time in the morning, never think twice about what jewelry you wear with an outfit! Fine jewelry is a classic compliment to everything. Diamond hoop earrings, tank watch and gold key pendant... yep... goes with all outfits.


2. Fine jewelry is customizable and repairable. Your $53 CuteChainStore beaded necklace is super cute and very fun, but it tells a similar story about the other 253,000 people who purchased it online too, and when it breaks... that's it.

When a piece of custom fine jewelry, nestled in it's little box all shiny and new, leaves us and enters the world, with it goes a point of view. A point of view specific to both designer (us) and the new owner (you). It has a past, a present and a future. It holds a place of value in the world because not only is it both beautiful and hand made, it's also purposeful. It holds the promise of being coveted through the generations as well as the assurance that we will help maintain it, inspect it and clean it through the years.

In short, we can pretty much guarantee that the feeling you have while wearing a quality piece of fine jewelry made by hand with love and attention... will be one of genuine pride and adoration. Why wouldn't you want to experience that feeling everyday?

Here's some of the new line.

Go CU

CU Buffs vs. Georgia Bulldogs today.

Sookie shows her Colorado Pride. woof.