Waning Crowds and Warmer Days

What a marvelous island community we are lucky to be a part of! My islanders are people of deep faith and charitable. Crosses and Stars of David continue to be top sellers. My ladies are buying for themselves, walking out with a beautiful new necklace and gifts for others. These are such special and meaningful gifts that carry a lot of sentimentality. I love being your go-to jeweler for such memorable gift-giving events. My customers’ gratitude and generosity inspired me to run a Customer Appreciation Sale that has been very well received. I do have to admit that my father forbade me from buying any new inventory unless I sold some existing stock items first. It has worked out quite well for everyone!

Fortunately for you, I ignore him when he tells me not to buy anything new. I just can’t resist new sparkly things, and I figure if I love it, then you will love it too. We’re in the final stretch as far as season goes. I have observed many of my customers returning to buy the piece they’ve had their eye on for the last couple of months. Most have been in luck and have snatched it up, but the most exquisite and unique pieces tend to move quickly, so I urge you to get in here now if you are mulling something over. If you love it, someone else probably loves it too!

It’s always fun when I’m showing an item to someone and they’re a little uncertain about purchasing it. They ask me, “Is it pretty? Do you like it?” I always answer the same way, “Yes, of course I like it; I’m the one that picked it out for the store!” I do my best not to buy ugly things for the store, but everyone’s tastes vary. I try to keep an open mind when I am purchasing merchandise to sell. For instance, I love big jewelry. Some people may call it ostentatious or even gaudy but I do not care. I’m tall and I have long fingers. Someone a little more petite in stature may not be able to carry large jewelry without getting swallowed up by it! Diamond studs especially are an item that needs to be proportionate to the lady. Some women have tiny earlobes and the diamonds just don’t sit right. It’s good to come in and try them on. Your husband will appreciate knowing exactly what size to buy! One time, I asked a husband how big his wife’s earlobes were and he had to think a moment. He went home that night and observed her earlobes surreptitiously and reported back to me. He ended up with the 3-carat total diamond weight studs and had a laugh about never really noticing her earlobes before.

Chains can be challenging as well; a 16-inch chain on a tiny lady can look like a 20-inch chain on someone taller! It’s all relative. Most of my pendants that come with a chain have a stock 18-inch chain, but the manufacturers are getting smart and adding a couple of rings to adjust shorter. This is very convenient for women who change the necklines of their tops often. The cable chain is the most versatile chain for adjusting.

The color of choice is yellow gold. Yellow gold is outselling white gold by 100 to one. White gold was very much favored for decades, but yellow is having a moment. I leaned heavily into yellow gold inventory this year and a lot of my custom remounts have been done in yellow gold. An old myth I am trying to put to bed is that yellow gold makes your diamonds look yellow. I wholeheartedly disagree, especially when choosing a lab diamond; they are so white and sparkly, a little yellow gold isn’t going to dim that. In fact, lab diamonds are so perfect that some customers are looking for H or I colored lab diamonds just for the simple fact that they look more like natural diamonds (D- E - F and G are high color white).

Guys, lab diamonds aren’t just for the ladies! The South Florida lifestyle is a go big or go home kind of thing and I’ve been designing some over-the-top diamond rings for men and they are a knockout. If you’ve always wanted some bling, consider a lab diamond ring. The money you save on the large lab diamond can be spent on a heavy custom mounting in gold or platinum. Nobody will know it’s a lab unless you tell them. I think every man should have at least one piece of nice jewelry. Why not a statement ring? If you want to complete the look, just add a nice watch or a heavy gold bracelet for the total ensemble! All that’s left to do is walk next door to Island Trends for a new Tommy Bahama shirt, and you’ll be celebrity styling!