Inside The Secret Compartment

Welcome Back!

I am often ask what my favourite pieces are in my personal collection and the answers might surprise you!

My personal collection is full of rings with stunning gemstones and design but more importantly to me they are full of stories and memories.

Most of you I am sure have a special piece of jewellery that reminds you of a wonderful moment in life or an important milestone. This is always what drives my personal collection, my family, my experience and my joy.

Today I am going to share three pieces with you from my personal collection and the stories of what makes them special to me.

Early Australia Quartz by Robert Rollason:

My love of history, Indiana jones and my childhood spent creek fossicking for quartz made this piece stand out straight away. It may seem very simple and plain to most but for me it is full of meaning and memories. This piece is by the early Australian jeweller Robert Rollason, however when I found it I didn't know anything about early Australian Hallmarks, all I knew was it was old, a lovely rosey gold and a cabochon of quartz just like what I spent my childhood collecting in our family farm creek. So this piece was a mystery I hoped to one-day solve. Fast forward a few years as I started this journey onto Instagram and selling and I discovered it's history and its maker who was around from 1888 to 1925. I like to think this was a sweetheart gift an early miner sent home to his loved one whilst he was off making his fortune at the Australian gold fields. The date and style fits and I cannot think of why someone would set something with no intrusive value unless it told a story of their journey (much like me). 

The Mystery Buy:

This piece is a reminder to trust your instincts and take a chance. This ring was on eBay and I stumbled onto it whilst looking for citrine rings. I had just started learning a lot about parti sapphires so the timing was fortunate. It was listed as 14k citrine, smokey quartz and peridot. I knew the green/yellow gems were parti sapphires and being sold in the US they may not have been as aware of these types of sapphires. So I thought it they are not peridot, what else had they gotten wrong. I thought the brown looked more coppery and golden and could be a zircon. The centre stone looked to have inclusions which is not common in citrine so I hoped it was something special. In the end I took an educated gamble and when it arrived I knew I had found a special piece! This ring is comprised of 18 ct gold, natural yellow sapphire, natural brown zircon and parti sapphires all natural. She cost me $490....yep! This piece reminds me of my personal and professional growth & confidence in buying online and just a happy day for my collection! I like to think someone collected these gemstones on their trip to Australian and had them set in this handmade ring to remember their adventure. She is a frequent friend to me!

Hardworking Nanna June:

Perhaps my most valuable ring whilst not being worth a lot intrinsically. This sweet ring was my Grandmother's or as we called her Nanna June. A big influence of independence as a women for me. She spent her life working physically hard on a farm with 5 children and this ring was around for all of it. The tomato picking, the early morning cow milkings, the cattle herding, the droughts and the simple baking of scones. She was also a teacher and an independent smart women with a love of jewellery that obviously impacted me. This ring originally had a diamond in it but in amongst the years of hard work it was lost. A few years ago we said goodbye to Juney at 96yrs old and my Aunty seeing this ring in the jewellery box knew what it would mean to me to have it cleaned and brought back to life. So we found a sweet Australian sapphire and now she is enjoyed and a reminder of my amazing Nanna! The back of the band is so thin and worn but I love it just the way it is.

So there you have it, I hope you enjoyed a trip down memory lane with me and my jewels, I will share some other pieces in future blogs too!

Thank you!