The Gateway piece

[SparklieBug]

I always loved sparkly things...frost in the sunlight, ripples on the water in sunlight, the stars at night, etc. When I was a young child, a family friend stayed with us. She had gorgeous long fingers and brilliant red nail polish...and the most fabulous diamonds! HUGE white-white diamonds! A solitaire, a three-stone, and studs. I would stare endlessly as she talked and casually waved her hands about, diamonds sparkling. The diamond solitaire nearly covered her finger, and the three-stone hung over the edges of her finger. She was an average sized woman for that era.

I used to daydream that I would "inherit" them (they didn't have children), but that was a mere childhood fantasy. If it had happened, I would have been over the moon with excitement (and gratitude), as they were amazing diamonds. When I reflect on it now, they must have been old cuts (she was already quite elderly when I was a youngster) as they were such fireballs, especially in low light and sunlight.

Many years later, after another visit with my folks, when they went home, my mom found a little pouch under the friend's pillow. Mm-hmm. It had The Rings in it! I tell ya, I'd have been tempted to scuttle off into the great unknown with those in my little Gollum-paws! LOL! Naturally, my mom returned them to her.

 

[elizat]

I always liked jewelry. I used to go through my mom's teen jewelry box at my grandma's house. Most of it was costume. But I always liked it!

My first "big" purchase with money from my food service job in high school was from Service Merchandise. It was created sapphire and little diamond chips. I think it was 10k. This looks similar, but the diamond/white stones were set flush as little chips and much smaller. There were three marquise stones like the ebay ring. I think it cost around $125 and was a huge purchase for me then.

 

[lala646]

I still have it! When I was little, we frequently visited my maternal grandmother who still lived in the civil war-era farmhouse my mother grew up in. It was filled with all manner of mysteries and amusements for a kid. In particular, there was a huge old trunk full of old clothing and costume jewelry from the 20's through the 50's. We loved playing dress-up, and in particular I LOVED! the costume jewelry. Separately however, hanging on a nail in the cupboard under the stairs was this necklace. It was then, and still remains, one of my favorite things, because of the memories it carries. It's missing a tiny rhinestone, but that doesn't stop me from wearing it, including, not so long ago, to a Broadway opening.

 

[snotty_pie]

I went to camp outside of Kerrville, Texas, where James Avery started his jewelry career. It was a tradition at the camp to take our leftover commissary money to the JA studio and buy charms and friendship bracelets to give our friends. I didn’t know about this my first year, so only had $12 left, which was enough for a bracelet and 2 charms. The next year, I had saved much more, and bought more. I still love JA and can spot it a mile away at a pawn store. I always loved it because it was real, not plated.

I still have my JA charm bracelet! I remember when a boyfriend bought me my first gold charm from JA, and I was so impressed.

 

[snotty_pie]

I love this thread so much! I've always been obsessed with jewelry. In the 80's, my cousin and I would flip through the service merchandise catalog and pick out our favorite items on each page. I think my first mineral show was in 3rd grade, and I bought a labradorite rock and a geode of some sort.

I was lucky enough to receive two rings when I was in late elementary school: a green tourmaline 3-stone ring and a dark blue sapphire (Thai origins probably) with bead set diamonds along the shank. I forget which one I got first. I wore both through college.