Sapphire Pharos Ring and gold Aswan Ring
I was recently at dinner with a friend, catching up and getting lost in my sangria, when sort of randomly she asked me, “Why gold?” Wait, what?
“Why did you make the sudden switch to gold?”
Her question reminded me that she (and also you!) don’t live 24/7 with me in my brain, and haven’t gone through the months (possibly years?) of deep thinking about jewelry and how or why I make it.
So maybe it’s time for some clarity. There are 3 main reasons why I’ve recently made the switch to making (mostly) solid gold jewelry:
1.
Because of the bigger investment, gold jewelry becomes more meaningful by default. The difference between solid gold and brass or silver becomes, “Do I love this so much that I can’t bear letting it pass me by?” vs. ”How fun!” I adore making big, fun pieces (I am Puerto Rican, after all) but I want my jewelry to be the thing you’d grab before fleeing a collapsing building, jewelry that lives rent-free in your heart. The higher cost of gold is a great filter for this question. Plus, gold’s value only ever goes up, and it’s most often passed down and enjoyed long into the future.
2.
I am forever on a quest to make jewelry that requires the least amount of maintenance and upkeep. I want you enjoying wearing my jewelry, not spending time cleaning or maintaining it. I —a jewelry designer with every tool at my disposal— don’t look forward to cleaning my own jewelry, so why would you? I find that gold is the easiest in this regard; silver loves tarnishing, brass can turn your skin green (though it’s not an allergy, just elements doing their thing), and god forbid you scratch through gold plating!
3.
Working in solid gold provides a better quality of life and more human pace of production for me. A few years ago I got a big order from UncommonGoods for my then-best selling, gold-plated necklace. Filling this order almost broke me — the quantities were insane, the turnaround time was too much, and I was stuck with so many imperfect pieces (no one’s interested in melting down and re-using brass, especially not gold-plated brass). This rate of production is often expected of jewelers working in less expensive metals, leaving less time for working through new ideas, proper problem-solving, and uniqueness. I’m aiming for quality instead of quantity, and focusing on gold jewelry lets me do that.
Douro Hoop Earrings in 14k gold
I can also admit, though, that I’ve spent too much time playing with only the bigger, heavier pieces that are a bit more out of reach. Turns out you can’t just make the same piece in gold instead of brass; the metal costs are exponentially higher and then that piece will just sit around forever, not being enjoyed or worn by anyone at all.
So I’m working on more jewelry that’ll bridge the gap while still being something you’d be excited to own and to wear forever and ever. Next month I’m releasing smaller-scale gold pieces that will (hopefully) become your new favorites while also hitting a wider range of prices. (I already want to keep all of them for myself, so I’m hoping that’s a good sign 😉)
Now that you’ve toured the inside of my brain, what about you? Are there metals you love to wear regardless of how “hard” they might be to keep looking like new? What makes you buy one piece of jewelry vs. the other? I’ve got my own ideas, but what do you think? Truly, sincerely, let me know in the comments!