Whiskey Beryl

If you’ve been in the store lately you are probably wondering why we have a bottle of numbered J. Mattingly single barrel straight whiskey in our jewelry display case. It’s there to accompany our Whiskey Beryl earrings.

In August. Melissa and I attended the Women’s Jewelry Association Awards For Excellence gala in New York. It’s a fundraising event for the WJA , a group that provides advocacy and education for women in the jewelry industry. There was a silent auction going on with a bunch of really cool items, including a lot that had 2 amazingly sparkly gem stones (beryl) and a bottle of whiskey of the exact same color.

For those of you who don’t know, Beryl is more commonly found in shades of green (also known as emerald) and blue (also known as aquamarine). I have seldom seen it in any color exhibiting the diamond-like brilliance of what I will lovingly refer to as the Whiskeys. I was excited about the color and brilliance of the beryls and their unexpected but perfect liquor pairing. Whiskey Beryl and Whiskey Barrel. Talk about marketing genius! Happy to report- we had the winning bid!

The earrings you see are the result of a wonderful collaboration. Lauren, Lindsey and I all worked on the design- our first together. We wanted to feature the Whiskey Beryls without overwhelming them. We also had to achieve some movement in the earrings to highlight the stones non-stop sparkle. Finally, we needed the detail of this simple design to be up to the task of showcasing these very special gems.

Once we were satisfied with the design it was up to our magician/jeweler Laureano to bring our ideas to life. He started, like all our in-house designs, with a pile of recycled gold and 6 diamonds. By the end of the following day we were able to see the Whiskeys set into their unique 12 prong settings. Because of the handmade construction each prong is actually a long wire that ends with the others in the center back of the stones. It makes the back of the earrings almost as interesting as the front. The 3 bezel set diamonds in each earring add the perfect amount of interest.

I hope you will come in to see the Whiskeys and try them on. Like all of our favorite pieces, someone will take them away. The difference is, for the first time in SQJ history,  this person will also receive a bottle of really good (and most importantly) matching J. Mattingly whiskey.

-Steve