Recently I took some time off to have my tonsils removed. Which allowed me to relax and take things slow. After recovering I made my way back into the studio. Things were slow to start, but my time away has brought up some new ideas. Here is one such design that has come to light . I still haven’t come up with a name for it yet, so in the time being  it will be ” Black Jade and Diamond cuff “. It started almost 13 months ago, when I was working on a cabochon of black jade, natural Royston turquoise and coral. Spending only a few hours to cut, slab and polish these stones to create the interesting cabochon above. It sat on my desk staring me down and wondering where it would lead too next.. As time passed it was shuffled from place to place, until last week. I began to work on a silver cuff, texturing, forming, sanding and polishing the piece. When I remembered one of my recent sketches, that incorporated a cabochon of similar shape and design. The decision was made, I would combine the two. I started on the setting for the cabochon and braised it onto the new silver cuff slightly risen and off center. This design element took advantage of the rule of thirds (which I use in a majority of my work), thought to me by another great artist, teacher and friend Mrs. Jean Thurow. Next I created the seating for the 6 diamonds (2mm, 0.24 tcw) and set them into the cuff. The final stage would be to set the cabochon, this would be done by chasing the silver bezel around the stone. After one last polish and cleaning all the elements had fallen into place. At last,  It was complete.

Thank you to everyone who assisted in my recovery and all who wished me well and a speedy recovery.