custom jewelry

Luxist Giveaway: GemKitty Madison Earrings

Filed under: Jewelry

The internet has made getting custom jewelry a snap. At GemKitty.com you can easily create a unique piece of semi-precious gemstone jewelry. The site offers an online designer that helps you select a style and then add semiprecious gemstones and choose a metal to make a necklace or pair of earrings that reflect your personal taste. As you choose the components the price changes to reflect your selections.

Kitty-in-Chief Arwa Jumkawala was born and raised in Hong Kong by two parents in the gemstone and jewelry trade and grew up surrounded by bright and colorful baubles and is a lifelong jewelry designer. In 2007, Arwa founded Gemkitty offering gemstones from around the world in simple, contemporary designs.

To celebrate the launch of GemKitty's online store we are giving away one pair of 14K gold-filled Madison style earrings with rhodonite drops valued at $58.

* To enter, leave a confirmed comment below.
* The comment must be left and confirmed before July 5th, 2010 at 11:00PM Pacific Time.
* You may only enter once.
* One winner will be selected in a random drawing.
* One winner will receive one pair of Madison earrings valued at $58.
* Open to legal residents of the 50 United States, and the District of Columbia, who are 18 and older.

See full giveaway rules here.

This contest is now closed. Thank you for your participation.

Tags: custom jewelry, earrings, gemkitty, jewelry, luxist giveaway

Gemvara - the First Website for Custom Designer Jewelry, Exclusive Interview

by Annie Scott (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Jewelry

Gemvara is "the world's first site for creating custom designer jewelry." You may have reservations about the possibility of ordering custom jewelry online. I know I do. I interviewed the VP of Content and Merchandising Cheryl Kremkow (former editor-in-chief of Modern Jeweler, pictured below) about how Gemvara works, curious about the first of what will surely lead to many online custom jewelry services. Does it save money? What if you don't like the piece? How can one be assured of quality? These questions and more are answered below.

Luxist: Do you think it's wise to have jewelry custom-made online? Why?

Cheryl Kremkow: What's different about designing jewelry on the Gemvara site is that it's interactive. You find a design concept you like, then you can click to change all the gemstones and metals to create exactly the look you want. You don't have to imagine how it will look, you can see it. Every design on our site can be made any way, which means you can create jewelry that suits both your style and your budget. We make pieces in platinum and diamonds and pieces in amethyst and sterling silver: or diamond and sterling and platinum and amethyst, if that's what you want. We've done both.

L: What if someone gets the final piece and doesn't like it, will you take it back?

CK: Yes, of course. We want to make sure people are delighted with their jewelry. Actually, we haven't had any returns yet. I think it's because our customers create exactly what they want themselves and see exactly how it will look. Most people tell us that the real piece looks even better than they expected. Fortunately, our customers have good taste, so the pieces really do look great!

L: Are there significant savings associated with buying online?

CK: We don't carry inventory since we make each piece to order, just for you, one at a time. So, we are able to offer a really good value, even if you don't consider the added luxury of having the piece made just for you just the way you want it.

Gallery: Gemvara Custom Jewelry