Show me some Van Craeynest!
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by angeline » February 24th, 2008, 5:32 pm
Trouble is I don''t know what I really like or don''t like until I''ve worn it for a while.|
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Oh yeah! I like the way you think about needing sever diamonds Angeline  .That makes total sense, about wearing something for a while to see what you really like or don't like. I suppose sentiment plays more of a role in my jewelry life than anything. I'm impulsive and sentimental...and that means trouble too  !!
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I found the following video online and thought some of you might enjoy it. I really respect the craftsmanship and process involved with these pieces. How amazing!
http://sanfrancisco.citysearch.com/profile/875850/san_francisco_ca/van_craeynest.html#profile |
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Thanks for posting the video AnitaT! I watched it several times and it made me giggle. Last year hubby and I visited the factory and met Larry in person. In real life he actually speaks kind of slowly...I think the ppl who edited the video must have made Larry go in "fast forward" mode to make the clip shorter. Cracks me up! Van Craeynest also had a promo DVD from several years back and I have a copy of it. It was included when they sent my heart pendant and I'm not sure how many copies they have left. The movie shows in a bit more detail on the process of die-striking, carving, chasing, and saw piercing. There is a jeweler who works for VC named Stan...the movie shows him working on his masterpiece. It took him more than 12 years to finish it and it is I.N.C.R.E.D.I.B.L.E ! If I could figure out a way to upload the DVD I would...  |
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LIB--I absolutely would LOVE to visit the VC factory, but unfortunately I live all the way on the other side of the country. I envision it as some combination of visiting a museum and fun shopping. Thank you so much for describing your visit to the VC factory. I enjoyed reading about it and appreciated all the pictures you included. Your DVD sounds fascinating and I wish I was more of a techie-type person to help you figure out how to upload it.
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Thank you so much for the complements on my earrings Cushioncutnut and Addy! Van Craeynest earrings are a bit on the expensive side but the sapphire earrings were a gift . . . so that makes them priceless to me  .Anita T - You are so very welcome and I'm glad I could share my visit to San Francisco. The factory is just that...more a workshop than a storefront, although I found that it had its own charm. Visiting the factory and meeting Larry was definitely one of the highlights of my trip, but it was quite overwhelming to see so many interesting things and beautiful, artful rings in one place at one time. I wish I could time travel and do it all again (this time, paying more attention  !).Here's the link to my visit, in case anyone else is interested: http://www.pricescope.com/forum/show-me-the-ring/hey-diamondseeker2006-i-have-some-pics-for-you-t71471.html The very next day after we visited Van Craeynest we met some friends and walked around the fisherman's wharf all the way up to Ghirardelli Square. My mind was still spinning from the day before, and there is a quote buy Walter Cronkite that summarizes up how I felt about the whole experience. Here is a picture : |
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I also thought I would post some pictures of other PSer's VC rings. Hopefully they won't mind...
Hest88's lovely wedding set   : and a close up of just the band:  Here's the link to her post |
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LOL, me too Luvmyhalo!! Ya know, collecting wedding sets may not be such a bad idea... (in the mean time, thank goodness for being able to save pictures in a 'favorites' folder!)
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Poptart''s wedding ring  : On her lovely hand:  Link to Poptart''s ring (Hopefully she will come back and visit soon  ) |
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I have some pictures to share. Larry kindly sent me some settings to consider for an ering (you can read some more about it here ). I had fun
. The rings are beautiful. Okay, without further ado...This is 812. Larry suggested looking at the settings under loupe because "they can stand up to it"---I think that is how he worded it. And, my goodness, it was incredible! The flowers are tiny and yet impressively detailed.
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I totally agree! LIB''s and Mariposa''s have the perfect balance.
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Thank you Coatimundi! While I do agree that the chased rings look lovely with <1ct stones ala mine and Mariposa''s, after seeing the pierced rings in person I feel most of them look better (and were made for) larger diamonds, like this one (on the left):   I think Widget''s star ruby was about 3cts and she had oval sidestones over .80 cts each. To me her ring looks fantastic and is in perfect proportion with her larger gemstone and side diamonds . On the VC website there is a pierced ring 1024 with a 3.50ct diamond in it......I wish I could see more VC rings with larger center stones, especially diamonds.During my visit I remember asking Larry what was the largest stone he ever put in a ring. I think he told me it was a 36 Carat something. I wonder what ring that was  . |
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Hehe, it''s nice to have drool buddies Skippy! I''m glad you enjoyed my pictures 
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Holy cow AnitaT, that sounds like my kind of fun! LOL, that wording sounds just like Larry. I absolutely adore the language he uses when he talks about his rings. Thanks bunches for posting your pictures of those settings .ETA: I can't access the link from your post yesterday. Is there any way you can link it again? |
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Oh those are totally TDF!! Yes, I meant the chased rings. I just adore those with smaller stones.I love that his settings are so diverse. For my end-all-be-all upgrade/reset of all time, I''d love a Van Craeynest!  And what''s even better? Hubby loves them too! |
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Heehee, that always helps!  Do you think he would hubby would ever get a VC band? I always though my then hubby2B wanted a plain old plain plain band. But when I showed him a pic of the one with carved leaves similar to my rings, he just stared with a look of awe on his big brown eyes. So I decided to get it for him as a surprise . Thank goodness he loves it .
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