A gem dealer's journal — jewellery

Hey Loungers,

As you may have noticed, we have had a fair few gem cutters coming through our columns recently. Today, we interview the newly appointed president of the South Australian division of the G.A.A. (Gemmological Association of Australia), Madame the President Laura Phillis!

Laura is a famed lapidary artist, whom is more widely known by her company name on Instagram: Tatum Gems, who’s made a name for herself for coming up with brand new gem designs as well as for being a gemmological teacher in her native Australia.

We had the opportunity of meeting her recently during the 2020 edition of the Tucson show where she agreed to answer to our questions.

Hey Loungers, In this interview, done during Tucson 2020, we will be having a three way discussion about western style gem cutting, the differences between hobby cutters and professional ones as well as to discussing about the main differences that one may encounter as they are looking at competition cutters VS commercial cutters. In this interview you will find Laura Phillis from Tatum Gems Australia, Marie Alice Bellard from Amaterra Gems USA and lastly, our pal Justin K Prim from Magus Gems Bangkok and your favourite question slinger of course: Myself! Hope you'll like it and see you soon in...

Hey Loungers, Today we receive a very special guest in our columns, today, we are graced with Nature’s most famous alchemist: the talented Paula Crevoshay! Paula has been dedicated the greatest part of the last three decades mesmerising the jewellery world with her unique creations and her seemingly endless energy. Inspired by nature, often copied but never equalled, Paula is without a doubt one of the most iconic high jewellery designer in the United States if not in the world. It is always a pleasure to meet her or to review her various public appearance in conferences. Be it at...

Just like most girls, I always liked jewellery. But I found it extremely difficult to find jewellery from stores that I liked and would've wanted to wear. This is the main reason why I decided to go and study how to create jewellery myself. I just wanted to be able to do things that I'd like.

To me, jewellery is conceptual – it tells a story or speaks of a feeling, often even when it wasn't intended. People make assumptions about others based on how they interpret the adornments seen. It's one of the ways jewellery is never really silent, nor meaningless. I find it important that the person who's proudly wearing a piece of jewellery is the first one who should know about it. And not just how to take care of it.

Combining my passion, skills, and knowledge about gems and jewellery not just gives me the freedom to do what I love, but also the ability to understand that vast world on much deeper levels.