Diamond Jewelry

Diamonds in the Sky Gala

The much awaited benefit “Diamonds in the Sky” soirée took place on October 5th at the elegant home of philanthropist, Elisabeth Thieriot. TV personality, of the Bay Area Back Roads fame, Doug McConnell was on hand to kick off the gala evening. I had acquired and designed the jewelry especially for this evening.  A small group of powerful woman from the Board of the Redwoods organized this event, Barbara Young, Jill Greenman, Joanne Spotswood along with the Executive Director , Barbara Soloman and Jeannie Elrod. Gary Morgret did the flowers and display and Joy Spicer (with Gary’ s help) was the official photographer for the evening. The 11 lovely ladies sold the jewelry with as much passion as I had in creating them, each donned in a silk sari! Craig Potter and Jim Prigoff were the cashiers.

Diamonds and gold jewelry was showcased from my collection in all its splendor. Over 80 guests came to celebrate and indulge knowing that their purchases would help renovate and refurbish the main auditorium at The Redwoods making a major difference in the lives of the community of seniors. The evening was a resounding success and could not have been possible without the support of Elisabeth Thieriot, who mingled with the crowd all evening and put her stamp of approval on the event. I am happy to say that Ed and I were able to not only donate all the profits from the sale, but also made a matching grant.

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Diamonds in the Sky

“'Diamonds in the Sky", an October 5th fundraiser for The Redwoods, a Community of Seniors, will be dedicated to bringing some much needed sparkle to the main auditorium at this revered retirement home in Mill Valley. The exclusive one-night, invitation-only event is being held at the lavish home of Bay Area philanthropist, Elisabeth Thieriot.

I will be offering my collection of especially designed diamond jewelry for sale at this gala and 100% of the profits will go to The Redwoods and the cost will be given back to the artisans. The funds raised will underwrite important improvements to the auditorium at The Redwoods, the activity center.

I was asked why I chose diamonds for this event.

The properties with which diamonds are associated with are enhancing relationships,(God knows we all need that), and increasing inner strength (who doesn’t in these days of constant turmoil in the world?).

Diamond is said to create balance, clarity and abundance on the wearer. All good things and much needed.

Although diamonds were first discovered and mined in ancient India, at least as far back as 5,000 years ago, today they are no longer the exclusive domain of royalty and the wealthy. By using silver where there was platinum and 14 karat or 18 carat where there was 22 K, I have made these precious gems more affordable, but keeping the look of the more expensive pieces. Many pieces take their inspiration from Victorian designs and the Royal jewel of India. But many are also designed by me for the contemporary woman who is looking for something to wear both during the day and in the evening.

Just like diamond set in a circular setting symbolizes eternity, we want this sale to have a long lasting effect on the health of the seniors at The Redwoods. I was happy to not only provide the jewelry for sale here but have also promised a matching donation of the profits from the sale. A guilt free shopping spree is hoped for on October 5th.

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Diamonds in the Sky

The Bay area is known for a lot of things…its sense of responsibility to its community, its sense of style and its love for the unusual and unique.  So what better way to celebrate the spirit than to kick off the capital campaign with a gala to benefit The Redwoods, a community of seniors.

“True to its Spirit, the Board, donors and attendees of this soiree will gather at a philanthropist’s beautiful estate to buy the stunning designs presented by Sudha” remarked a donor.

I will be introducing this unique collection of alluring jewelry of diamonds and gems created for the discerning American woman! When you hold one of these pieces you realize that art and history come together. The different eras of India, the Mughal Nizam’s, The British Royalty and the Indian Princely States all fuse together and are represented in my collection.

You just need a little black dress to look spectacular in the diamond necklace, earring, ring or bracelet. Each is set with uncut pave diamonds in 14K gold with touches of silver.  A look that has taken the world of the beautiful people by storm.

This year at the Cannes Film Festival there were several celebrities with diamond collars and drop earrings parading their wares.  Again at the 2010 Oscars, Mariah Carey wore the heaviest diamond hoops I had ever seen.  My customers would definitely think twice about wearing them. So to keep a balance between beauty and comfort, my earrings are lighter and more wearable. Also, I believe jewelry should be able to be worn from morning business meetings and transition easily to more formal evening events.

Check out the jewelry thatthe stars wore and compare it to how much easier and “wear-friendly” mycollection is with all real rose cut diamonds at a fraction of the cost! (click HERE)

One writer commenting on the Oscar night said, “Jennifer Lopez’s Armani Prive gown was so full it warranted its own red carpet. That meant in many cases, the jewelry focus shifted from the neck to the wrist. Sarah Jessica Parker layered on as many diamond bangles as her delicate arm could bear to accentuate her Chanel Haute Couture gown.
Amanda Seyfried wore three stunning brown, champagne and mint diamond geometric cuffs by Lorraine Schwartz totaling 250 carats along with her voluminous Armani Prive gown.  And Sigourney Weaver pinned a diamond and ruby brooch to the shoulder of herred Lanvin gown. Best Actress Nominee Carey Mulligan’s dark Prada gown with cutaway hem was perfectly accented with 19th century cascading diamond and diamond briolette earrings and a delicate Everlon Diamond Knot Ring” (ref)

With so much talk of diamonds this year at Cannes and at the Oscars, is it little wonder that I am getting all this attention for the diamond jewelry line I am introducing this Fall? People who buy the jewelry on October 5thwill be pleased to know that I will be donating 100% of the profits from this event to The Redwoods and in addition I will be making a matching grant.

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Nizam Jewelry Collection

 

The Nizam of the Royal family of Hyderabad in India, was declared the “richest man in the world” by Time magazine in the 1940’s. His legendary jewels, one of the most famous in the world consisted of a fantastic collection of ornaments, loose precious stones, especially uncut diamonds, rubies and emeralds.

This jewelry collection, which formed a part of his enormous wealth and prestige of his royal estate and was built over the period that the Nizams ruled from 1792 to 1948. They follow a mixture of Muslim and Indian craftsmanship with a distinct leaning towards the Southern ‘Deccani’ workmanship acquired from the ‘Vijaynagar’ Kingdom.

The pieces were in gold and silver work embedded with uncut diamonds and edged with silver ‘kundan’ or just gold and silver work with diamonds and tear drop emeralds with enameled work on the back; intricate designs with a mixture of western influence and indigenous style.

The Jewels have inspired many famous creations by famous designers like Cartier. I too derived inspiration to create a line of diamond jewelry that reflects the rich cultural heritage of this era and are presented here.


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Diamond Polki Jewelry

Until the late Middle Ages, diamonds were most prized in their natural octahedral state.. Around 1300, the flow of diamonds into Europe increased via Venice’s trade network, with most flowing through the low country ports of Bruges, Antwerp, and Amsterdam. During this time, the taboo against cutting diamonds into gem shapes, which was established over 1,000 years earlier in the traditions of India, ended allowing the development of diamond cutting technology to begin in earnest.



The Indians associated diamonds with divinity. The first Indian diamond jewelry was created for the purpose of decorating religious icons. According to Indian religious heritage diamonds were believed to be bearer of good fortune. Diamonds were considered to be so powerful and precious that the ownership of diamonds was actually controlled. Every caste was restricted to own specific colors of diamonds. Only the ruling king of the time was allowed to possess diamonds in all colors. This goes to show how exclusive diamonds were considered to be amongst the Indians.


The earliest recorded reference concerning Indian diamond jewelry has been found in a Sanskrit text known as “Arthashastra”. This was a historical Buddhist text dating back to 296 BCE.


Victorian jewelry is known for its exquisite ornate detail, often having laborious pave diamond settings or detailed filigree designs. The diamonds used in rose-cut jewelry or Polki jewelry are evaluated or graded in pretty much the same way as a regular round brilliant cut diamonds barring the last C which is for ‘Cut’.


More on how I have developed the designs for the contemporary woman in my next blog.

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