Diamond Designers Visit and Educate

Sparkly rings, earrings and necklaces were on display underneath glass coverings waiting to be discovered. Diamonds and engagements go hand in hand at Emerson & Farrar Fine Jewelry Store in downtown Redlands and interested members of the community were invited to visit the store last Friday to look at the collections of two guest designers; Christopher Designs Crisscut and Alishan. The Emerson & Farrar jewelry line, Van Craeynest was also on display for guests to look at. Paul Emerson III is a bench jeweler who works at the store under the master jeweler. He was working on a ring in the back of the store and explained that each piece is made with designs created from the 1920s. The store is referred to as a "working museum" and the jewelers at Emerson & Farrar recreate antiques with techniques and equipment from the late 19th century to create one-of-a-kind pieces. For guests who are walking in the downtown Redlands area, there is a window allowing people see the jewelers at work. The event was created to educate the public and help them find their specific style, by looking at the ring, metal, and the four "C"s that make up a diamond: cut, color, clarity, and carat, to find the perfect ring or helping them design a custom-made ring. Christina Johnson was visiting that afternoon in search for that perfect ring to wear for her engagement to fiancée, Noel. She said, “I’m 50 and I’m marrying a 63-year-old and I love him and he loves me and we’re tying the knot after 8 years. We’re getting married in Oakland in November with our family.” She was looking at the rings designed by Christopher Designs Crosscut. Alishan is a designer who brought his jewelry to showcase to the community. He has been in the jewelry-making business since traveling to the United States from Armenia in 1970. He stumbled into the jewelry industry while attending the College of Art and Design in Los Angeles. He came from a drawing background and taught himself goldsmithing and in the late 1980s, he took the collection under his name and has been selling them to individual stores. Alishan has won more than 30 awards and his collection sells in the United States and Canada. Kyle Cummings is the CEO of Emerson & Farrar and shared, “Paul is my father in law and my wife Kerry and I own Fox Dance Studios in Redlands. The Cummings were invited to help run the family-owned business in January 2014." Cummings said, “The jewelry made here is made with old style techniques that are still used today such as die striking, piercing, hand carving and chasing.” Cummings said clients can come into the store and create custom made pieces from a sketch they have brought in and they will work with them to create it. He said, “we want people to enjoy themselves and see it [the jewelry] and try it on for themselves.” Sean Green came with Dianna Woodrum for a consultation after surprising Woodrum with a ring he wanted to design from his grandmother’s ring. He said, “I wanted to incorporate it into something she wanted” and include features from my grandmother’s ring. They have been together for almost 10 months on June 8th, after meeting at the Branding Iron in San Bernardino. He said, “We love each other, she’s the best girl I’ve ever met and it was love at first sight.” Jonathan Seals was in the store with Raquel Urquizu and Alexander Seals and they were both looking for engagement rings. Urquizu said she found two rings she liked and told Seals to surprise her. Seals said, “ I figure I shouldn’t give her a bottle cap or a pendant.” Johnson walked out of the store that day, “feeling wonderful and happy”, with her new ring.