5 minute read
DIAMONDS ARE FOREVER
In another life Mary would have loved to have been a jeweller or gemologist so really enjoyed talking to Stephen Wilkinson
IFREELY ADMIT, I love jewellery and am a bit of a magpie when it comes to trying on rings and necklaces. So much so that in another life maybe I would choose to be a jeweller rather than a journalist, but would have been useless as I’d want to keep everything. I am also always fascinated how people become what they are career-wise; do they fall into it or have a long held ambition to ful l o eeting tephen as a double whammy for me.
Now Stephen is one who would appear to have fallen into his chosen career by chance but I don’t think you become a skilled goldsmith without showing a little talent in the rst place
Stephen Wilkinson has had a jeweller’s shop on the High Street in Market arborough no for e years and you could say he has returned to his roots having gone to school in the town. This small independent workshop and showroom in a listed building is de nitely here you need to go to nd good uality often bespoke ell designed jewellery.
‘I lived in Kibworth where a goldsmith had a little shop and was looking for an apprentice,’ Stephen tells me. ‘I was 16 and not academic so wanted to leave school. And I liked making things and was a bit arty so decided to apply for it, and got it.’
This all sounds very simple and in many ways it was, with Stephen doing day release in ondon and ualifying as a gold ounter ho specialises in ne e ellery his eans that he effecti ely akes the e ellery himself, mainly working in gold, ready to have gems mounted, which he also does. He is not a gemologist though so doesn’t cut the stones himself but buys them from his supplier. But Stephen’s apprenticeship didn’t go uite to plan as the o ner of the shop died half way through it in an accident. He still carried on though and nished his apprenticeship before working in Leicester for many years.
Those of you who know Stephen and his shop know that as well as making bespoke jewellery he is your go-to for repairs and remodelling work and he’s a busy man. He combines running the shop front of house where he sells jewellery starting at about £30 up to and including engagement rings worth many thousands of pounds. And if he’s not selling jewellery in the retail part of the business he’s behind the scenes working in his workshop producing something beautiful.
Stephen had a shop in Leicester but decided many years ago that he wanted to be in arket arborough so spent uite a hile looking for the right premises. ‘I knew where I wanted to be so it was a matter of waiting for the right place to come up. I really like Market Harborough, it’s local to me and I knew that as a town it’s a pretty central hub to the nearby villages. I have customers who travel from Northampton and the surrounding villages as well.’
Virtually all of the gold sold in the shop these days is recycled and all wedding bands ha e been for the last e or si years his is a trend that is only going to increase and ts in with the ethos of Market Harborough which is a fair trade town. This use of
recycled gold is now common throughout the jewellery trade, upcycling at its best. It means that scrap gold is melted down and kept in this country and then remodelled so is good environmentally; rather than reduced food miles it’s reduced gold miles.
Stephen will also melt down customers’ gold but this is usually done for more sentimental reasons like wedding rings being made from inherited pieces.
Diamonds of course are not quite so environmentally friendly but these days rather than a mined diamond coming from South Africa you can have a manufactured one that is more ethical and with exactly the same properties as a mined diamond. It’s maybe not quite the same as being given a large diamond in an engagement ring, but who’s to know….
Stephen and I agree that we would not be too impressed to be given a ‘fake’ diamond in such a scenario (both of us rather tongue in cheek) but it seems that manufactured diamonds, which are hard to tell from real, are becoming more popular in necklaces and earrings – and as we said, who’s to know?
One of Stephen’s specialities is wedding rings. He sells them in all shapes and sizes and because of his gold mounting skills can ake the t around any engage ent ring If you have bought your engagement ring from him he will also clean that so it is gleaming and shining brightly before the wedding to match the new wedding ring.
A large part of Stephen’s time is spent remodelling jewellery. Customers regularly bring in old jewellery that they want either re-set or redesigned and Stephen is your man for this as he has great design skills. He will either design from scratch or work with the customer as they often have some sort of idea of what they want. Stephen will sketch designs, take images and make a model and it is ery uch a co bined effort bet een Stephen and the customer. To have a piece of jewellery remodelled from a family piece has huge sentimental value.
Gold bullion arrives in wire form, 3mm square, and Stephen then uses a rolling mill to shape it and his workshop is a fascinating place. And when you see some of the bespoke pieces that Stephen produces you will be very impressed. Beautiful pendants, stunning rings and you know that every piece is bespoke and unique.
Going back to engagement rings (as they are fascinating), diamond solitaires are still the most popular and Stephen can order one of them for you and have it in the shop within a day or so to accommodate impulsive declarations. But they are unusual. Wedding rings at short notice are more common and Stephen can help out there. nd hat about the prospecti e anc coming in to buy a ring of his choosing? I got a big grin from Stephen, ‘that’s pretty unusual. If he does come in alone he’s usually got a very good idea of what he’s after. There’s always lots of hints dropped beforehand!’
