Bless me Father for I have Sinned ...

a portrait of Gail Schwartz; is this what heaven looks like?

I probably never should have gone on the "behind the scenes" tour of the Schwartz Jewelers Art Studio in Parkmore in the first place.

I had gone minimalist since moving to Africa, remember?  I unloaded a ton of stuff in a long and very painful and cathartic process, paring down my lifetime of acquisitions to two extremely cramped pods. I left all my worldly goods behind in storage, in a friend's wine cellar, in a jewelry vault and in people's homes for safe keeping. I came to Africa with my memories and (figuratively) just the clothes on my back. Leaner, lighter, healthier.

Richard Burton & Robert Schwartz (paintings by Isa Schwartz Gesseau)

So why did I have to go back to my Achilles heal of consumption? High jewelry. With some serious Joburg street cred to boot. Schwartz Jewelers has been prominent in South Africa since 1924, one of the few South African firms included in the early closely-held De Beers syndicate. The family has worked with Sir Elton John, Lionel Ritchie (they love him), Richard Burton and Liz (not so much).

Oh, I can handle it, I told myself. I've changed. I'm cured. But being a jewel-aholic is just like all other addiction. You're never really cured. You're just managed.

Gail and Isa

Avoid temptation. The near occasion of sin. I'd managed to walk right past the Schwartz showroom in the Sandton City Mall as well as all the other glittering fine jewelry stores calling my name, hadn't I? (I'm talking to you Brown's!) I can handle it. Sure ... as long as I don't actually walk into the belly of the beast and saddle back up to the jewelry bar for just one peak.

But I did. And when Gail and Isa brought out the catalog of their award-winning designs interpreting art in fine jewelery, I knew I was in trouble. I was leaning out of the proverbial wagon. And falling ...







The pieces Isa showed us were mostly all  inspired by paintings and sculptures made by contemporary South African artists.

a slave bracelet and ring with Islamic designs in 24 kt filigree

an enamel and jewel "girl star" bracelet

Collaborating with a renowned astrophysicist from Wits University, some of the pieces even incorporated into their design actual volcanic lava and meteorite and the exact same stones formed by impacts we had just learned about at the Vredefort Impact Dome World Heritage Site.

The stones set on the face of this volcanic stone broach are trapezoidal cuts of pseudotachylite. The stones hidden on the back are diamonds.

alchemy ... black magic ... sorcery

But ogling was just a venial sin. My sin turned mortal when I took that next step and made the appointment to go back to the studio and meet with Isa to custom design an African Mask ring for me.

Yep, my name is Darlene and I am a jewel-aholic.