A life of passion and purpose
"Halee and I are both part of an intentional community in a lower economic region in the Mount Roskill suburb. We live with a group of passionate people whom some have given up their careers to live relationally and work locally with our immediate neighbours, in the local schools and with the youth. Over the years they have become some of our closest friends.
Halee and I got engaged on a rustic jetty overlooking a lake in Bethells. We are excited about the prospect of starting a family in hard neighbourhoods not so different from Roskill and out of the common love we have for God and for each other, provide a place belonging for young people in an increasingly isolating culture.
When looking for a jeweller, my categories for consideration were for one who is without individual agenda, who is approachable and personal, and most importantly who deeply loved their craft. As a student of architecture and practitioner in art, I was very impressed with both the final outcome and design and production process.
Alex was quick to answer my sometimes meticulous questions and quenched my curiosities for his workshop, the subtleties I deeply appreciated. When asking for changes to take place, Alex rose to it happily. When given a concept sketch foreign to what he had done before, he optimistically offered a clever way to resolve the structural weave with thin strips of gold and hidden welding.
SilverStone Jewellery were very flexible with my budget constraints and in the end completed a ring valued for almost a grand more than what I paid for.
I have never doubted Alex'a ability as a craftsmen and both Halee and I are stoked with his work. Halee couldn't stop giggling when I proposed.
We are amazed at both the craftsmanship of the ring and Alex's optimism in rising to the challenge of realising a thoroughly unorthodox design.
I recommend SilverStone Jewellery to both creative individuals and people who want high quality handcraft jewellery."
Good work.
Rui & Halee, Auckland
This beautifully artistic ring was designed by Rui who worked intensely with Alex to produce a ring that is beautiful, highly individual and speaks volumes of his love for Halee. The initial specifications went into great detail about what Rui wanted to achieve and gave us very clear direction.
The metal is 18ct yellow gold, the centre stone is a claw and bezel set Ceylonese sapphire, there are 8 tab and grain set diamonds of good commercial quality. The ring was handmade by Alex, the stones set by a qualified setter who we have been working with for many years and the ring was independently valued by GemLab.
Rui's notes:
"The work of the ring produced by the artist is essentially embodied in the main idea, that of the weaving and the coming together of two cultures, mutually supporting each other in symbiosis.
What I like is the idea of the craftsmanship and the seeming ability to make flax out of gold - the notion of materiality, texture and the natural weave gesture is what I would like to have in the final outcome of the ring.
There is to be one feature stone with small diamond sub features in the cavities of the weave - it would be ideal to have these appear natural, like jewels accidentally caught in the process of weaving."
Halee and I got engaged on a rustic jetty overlooking a lake in Bethells. We are excited about the prospect of starting a family in hard neighbourhoods not so different from Roskill and out of the common love we have for God and for each other, provide a place belonging for young people in an increasingly isolating culture.
When looking for a jeweller, my categories for consideration were for one who is without individual agenda, who is approachable and personal, and most importantly who deeply loved their craft. As a student of architecture and practitioner in art, I was very impressed with both the final outcome and design and production process.
Alex was quick to answer my sometimes meticulous questions and quenched my curiosities for his workshop, the subtleties I deeply appreciated. When asking for changes to take place, Alex rose to it happily. When given a concept sketch foreign to what he had done before, he optimistically offered a clever way to resolve the structural weave with thin strips of gold and hidden welding.
SilverStone Jewellery were very flexible with my budget constraints and in the end completed a ring valued for almost a grand more than what I paid for.
I have never doubted Alex'a ability as a craftsmen and both Halee and I are stoked with his work. Halee couldn't stop giggling when I proposed.
We are amazed at both the craftsmanship of the ring and Alex's optimism in rising to the challenge of realising a thoroughly unorthodox design.
I recommend SilverStone Jewellery to both creative individuals and people who want high quality handcraft jewellery."
Good work.
Rui & Halee, Auckland
This beautifully artistic ring was designed by Rui who worked intensely with Alex to produce a ring that is beautiful, highly individual and speaks volumes of his love for Halee. The initial specifications went into great detail about what Rui wanted to achieve and gave us very clear direction.
The metal is 18ct yellow gold, the centre stone is a claw and bezel set Ceylonese sapphire, there are 8 tab and grain set diamonds of good commercial quality. The ring was handmade by Alex, the stones set by a qualified setter who we have been working with for many years and the ring was independently valued by GemLab.
Rui's notes:
"The work of the ring produced by the artist is essentially embodied in the main idea, that of the weaving and the coming together of two cultures, mutually supporting each other in symbiosis.
What I like is the idea of the craftsmanship and the seeming ability to make flax out of gold - the notion of materiality, texture and the natural weave gesture is what I would like to have in the final outcome of the ring.
There is to be one feature stone with small diamond sub features in the cavities of the weave - it would be ideal to have these appear natural, like jewels accidentally caught in the process of weaving."