The Village Goldsmith studio specializes in creating one of a kind pieces of jewelry; especially those designed in cooperation with our clients. Your story, experience, and ideas are what transform the simple metals and minerals into a treasured and sentimental piece to be handed down for generations.
In our studio you will work directly with the owners of the Village Goldsmith, Karen and Ron, to develop a truly custom piece. Through each step of the process we encourage you to be involved. Come in to see the different stages of production; select your specific stones, modify the wax-work, and learn about the casting and finishing practices. And if this isn't really your thing, we'll take care of the minutia so in the end you receive an enticing, one of a kind piece of jewelry without the stress or pressure applied by major and monotonous chain stores.
Now, let us illustrate what's involved in creating your exceptional new piece of jewelry.
Design
Your custom piece will begin with sketches or inspirational images to determine the form of the new piece. This initial consultation takes into account all design details and leads to the creation of a custom wax designed specifically to accommodate the stones you choose.
The wax production of the piece demonstrates exactly what you will see in gold or platinum. Thus, we encourage you to come in and review the work, even try it on, to determine if we may proceed with casting and finishing or if further modification is necessary to better capture the design you anticipated. We will not proceed from this chapter of the process until you are fully confident in the one of a kind piece that will be constructed.
Creation
Following approval of the wax model we will sprue the piece in preparation for casting. The piece will be encased in a plaster of paris mold and placed in our oven. As the plaster sets, the wax model will melt out and into the base of the mold leaving a negative impression of the piece within the plaster.
This mold is utilized for the centrifugal casting process. Casting grain of the your choice, yellow gold, white gold, rose gold, or platinum, is heated to its molten state and flung into the mold using centrifugal force. After a period of time the piece is excavated from the plaster and prepared for the finishing elements of the process.
The piece is lightly polished and the stones are securely set. After all settings are completed the piece receives its finish texture; either high polish, sand blasted, bright cut, et cetera. This process typically spans approximately 4 - 8 weeks.
Completion
Once your custom piece is complete we will contact you and look forward to your return to our studio for its reception. All that is left is for you to show off your one of a kind project!