asterismdispersion
Shiny_Rock
- Joined
- Jul 8, 2020
- Messages
- 119
In the past year, I realized opals were like the final frontier in my gem collecting journey. Their play of color, created by the ordered mingling of silica spheres, was represented by a lone stickpin in my collection...so I naturally went down a rabbit hole and buying spree.
I envisioned an opal drop piece and found a suitable Australian black opal from Chroma (formerly Seda) Gems. There are a couple minor gray sand lines visible with magnification that I don't care about 'cuz the blue green pattern is so earthy and pretty.
I sketched my idea for David Klass and he promptly offered practical suggestions, with example images from his portfolio of prior pendant creations, to guide me. This was invaluable for me since I hadn't pieced together a custom pendant before.
After deciding on a filigree backing and adding a trifid motif lifted from the Lang Antiques archive I approved the CAD...until I didn't and had second thoughts within a few days. It was nagging at me that the diamond melee should be a bit larger by 0.2 mm for improved visibility. I summoned the inspirational spirit of @mrs-b and made a phone call to DKJ that I wanted the melee changed. This was as painless as possible, thanks to their clear communication, such stellar customer service. The initial casting was scrapped, Amy sent me an updated CAD to approve, and we were good to go.
See above, PS design enthusiasts, for the trifid/tri-lobed detail. The final piece evolved from my initial idea into a bit more organic look that I termed my opal eggplant pendant: 1.55 carat opal drop accented with 0.08 ct tw single cut diamonds in 14k white gold. Very pleased with the proportions, finish, and subtle sparkle of the single cuts. Ta da!
I envisioned an opal drop piece and found a suitable Australian black opal from Chroma (formerly Seda) Gems. There are a couple minor gray sand lines visible with magnification that I don't care about 'cuz the blue green pattern is so earthy and pretty.
I sketched my idea for David Klass and he promptly offered practical suggestions, with example images from his portfolio of prior pendant creations, to guide me. This was invaluable for me since I hadn't pieced together a custom pendant before.
After deciding on a filigree backing and adding a trifid motif lifted from the Lang Antiques archive I approved the CAD...until I didn't and had second thoughts within a few days. It was nagging at me that the diamond melee should be a bit larger by 0.2 mm for improved visibility. I summoned the inspirational spirit of @mrs-b and made a phone call to DKJ that I wanted the melee changed. This was as painless as possible, thanks to their clear communication, such stellar customer service. The initial casting was scrapped, Amy sent me an updated CAD to approve, and we were good to go.
See above, PS design enthusiasts, for the trifid/tri-lobed detail. The final piece evolved from my initial idea into a bit more organic look that I termed my opal eggplant pendant: 1.55 carat opal drop accented with 0.08 ct tw single cut diamonds in 14k white gold. Very pleased with the proportions, finish, and subtle sparkle of the single cuts. Ta da!
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