Italian Goldsmiths

[Sudio]

Hi All,
Been looking around a little bit on this forum and it''s been extremely helpful in learning a bit about diamonds. I''m not looking for a setting for a .5 carat stone and I''d be extatic if I could have something made for a reasonable price by a traditional Italian goldsmith. I''m sure that many must exist but I cannot find reputable-looking ones on google and imagine that most of them have only Italian-language websites, if they have websites at all. So I''m turning to the community for help. Does anyone know of an Italian jeweler who could craft a unique setting out of yellow gold? I am particularly enamored with Reinstein Ross'' and Carolyn Tyler''s work, and to a lesser extend some of the things that I have seen from Me & Ro. All of it is a bit pricey, however, and doesn''t quite have the old-world flavor that I am looking for. To give you an example of the sort of work that has really caught my eye, I''m including a picture of a jewelry set by a Greek jeweler. I think a similar ring would look spectacular with a diamond instead of the blue stone (opal? lapus?) that is in the setting in the picture. Any help is appreciated. Thanks.

 

[AGBF]

I cannot recommend Grunberger Jewelers highly enough. If you do a search on the name, you may come up with some examples of my mentioning them in the past. They are located in Stamford, Connecticut. The master goldsmith, Rupert, is from Vienna originally, but he can do anything. My original engagement ring was made in Italy. (It is pictured somewhere on Pricescope.) It is a tiny golden oval, like a nest, in which two 1-point carat diamonds sit. The shank is knife-edged. Being Italian, it is, of course, 18-karat gold. I love its elegance and simplicity.

When I wanted a solitaire set, I asked Rupert, who had made other jewelry for me, to make a band for the new stone that resembled the one on my original engagement ring. I said that I wanted a very thin band, almost like a thread. He executed a beautiful ring and matching jackets. He has also made many other pieces for me including a necklace with a bezel set diamond and a set of bangles made of 24-karat gold.

I recommend that you check the thread on gold jewelry if you have not already done so for more ideas. There are many gold lovers who post to that thread. The link to it is below:

https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/do-you-have-a-favorite-gold-designer.29197/page-16



Deborah

 

[Sudio]

Thanks Deborah,
Grunberger looks great although I may have a hard time getting up to Stamford. Do you know of a goldsmith in Manhattan that would be able to do that sort of work?
Also, I will be in Italy at the end of August and would be able to go to a jeweler there if you know of any good ones. Where did you get your original ring? Was it custom made?

 

[Harriet]

The blue stone looks like lapis.

There is a goldsmithing workshop on Madison and the low 70s, but I don''t know its prices. I''m also looking for goldsmiths in Manhattan.

 

[AGBF]

Date: 7/14/2008 12:08:00 PM

Author: Sudio


Also, I will be in Italy at the end of August and would be able to go to a jeweler there if you know of any good ones. Where did you get your original ring? Was it custom made?

I saw that Harriet gave you a lead in Manhattan. I am glad; I do not have one. It would probably be easier for you to get to Stamford, Connecticut from Manhattan (a 45 minute train ride) than to get to the jeweler in Italy where I got my original ring from wherever you will be travelling! I say that only because I got the ring in Genoa and no one ever seems to go to Genoa deliberately me (except my family and me).

The problem is that I do not recall the name of the store where we bought the ring, although I may have saved a ring box or some paper from the store in a wedding scrapbook somewhere! (It was not custom made.) It is also possible that the store no longer exists since we bought the ring in 1977.

I can tell you that we bought it in a jewelry store on the Via Venti Settembre. So if you go to Genoa (Genova) and walk down the Via Venti Settembre, you may see the store .

Deborah

 

[AGBF]

I tried to post a link here that did not take. Sorry.

Deb