My First Test Flight as Designer...

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        As soon as I graduated college I got a job at Jared the Galleria of Jewelry.  The location in Indianapolis had just opened up and as much as I was new to the Fine Jewelry world, so was Jared to Indianapolis.  It was rough at first competing with Hofmeister Personal Jewelers and Reis Nichols.  They had been apart of the community for over 30 years.  Hofmeister was known as the store that created the most beautiful one of a kind custom pieces.  And Reis was known for carrying high end fashion brands.   After learning a lot about the high end jewelry world,  I started testing my wings as a designer.  I had made a few doodles here and there, that were sent off to be CAD designed and I felt like I wasn't getting the experience that I wanted.  Being a custom designer you should feel apart of the process.  Sit down with the customer, talk about what they are wanting and the history of the stones they brought in, and what the special event in their life is.  I did have one opportunity to work with a customer on this level.

First Design at Jared the Galleria of Jewelry

A man came in the store saying he was soon to be celebrating his 10 year anniversary.  They both loved collecting stones from the countries they had visited over the years.  He had brought in emeralds, tanzanites, and white sapphires.  He had an idea for a pendant that I elaborated on and this was the design that was to become the memorable 10 year anniversary gift she will remember for the rest of her life.  It was a great experience that I will always remember.  He came in often to check on the process and take pictures of the whole thing.  We became friends.  It's such an amazing feeling knowing that you are going to be a huge part in the most special moments in people's lives.  He gave her the pendant on their anniversary and she came into the store to thank me for helping her husband create the most memorable pendant she had ever received.  This was such a rush, I loved it!!  I wanted more, I wanted to be that hero in people's lives.  One day, I walked into Hofmeister to look around and ended up being there for over 2 hours.  I was hooked.  I had talked with the manager and the custom designer at the time there and it was fascinating to hear the stories of their custom pieces.   It's exactly where I wanted to be and thats where I finally ended up in September of 2008.  My life at that moment was about to change forever.