I create my designs in both 14K and 18K gold, using hand-fabrication, the “lost-wax” technique, and most often, a combo of both.
Hand-fabrication involves working directly in the metal itself – cutting, sawing, hammering, sanding, forming, polishing, etc., before setting the stones and adding details. I use this technique for most of the earrings I make as I am able to create something very lightweight.
The “lost wax” technique, on the other hand, involves starting with a block of wax in which I sculpt the various components of the piece first, and then cast them in the desired metal(s). After breaking apart the ceramic investment to get to the metal components inside, the work of sanding, polishing, setting stones, soldering elements together, and adding finishing details begins.
The vast majority of pieces I create are “one-of-a-kind.” Even if I am recreating a design I have done before, the size and shape of the stone will probably not be the same and I need to sculpt around the specific stone with which I am working at that moment. Or perhaps the client would like me to recreate a piece, but make it a little more petite, or a little chunkier, a little shorter or taller, with more or with fewer diamonds, with an additional design element etc. etc. – the possibilities are endless, but of course that means it would be impossible to just use a mold. For that reason, I “start from scratch” with every piece I make.
