FAQ

1. HOW DO I TAKE CARE OF MY PIECE OF JEWELLERY?

I have ensured that the box in which your piece of jewellery is mailed to you is sturdy enough to protect it in transit. I would recommend that you continue storing it in that box, if you can, in order to prevent it from being scratched by other pieces of jewellery. But, otherwise, it will require a minimum of care to maintain its original state.

If your piece of jewellery has a wooden component, this will only need a light rub with a clean soft cloth to remove any finger marks. The finish on the wood is water resistant so this will prevent marking should it get any moisture on it, like rain, for example.

Remember that silver is a softer metal than gold, and delicate designs are best handled with care.

Some of the pieces of jewellery have areas or lines of oxidation (i.e. dark/black areas) and this is integral to the design. However, the lively glow of polished silver is easily maintained by a gentle rub with a special silver polishing cloth and I would advise doing this after each time you have worn your jewellery and before storing it away. These silver polishing cloths can be obtained from any good jeweller.

2. HOW LONG WILL IT TAKE FOR ME TO RECEIVE THE PIECE OF JEWELLERY I HAVE ORDERED?

As many of the pieces of jewellery are bespoke, in that you will be selecting the wood or gemstone of your choice, these will be made up for you as I receive your order. It will then take 10 working days to craft your personalized piece of jewellery.

I will notify you when it is collected from me by the courier service. Due to the COVID 19 pandemic, the frequency and number of flights out of South Africa has been greatly reduced and as a result the time to delivery to your door could be longer than usual.

3. HOW WILL MY PIECE OF JEWELLERY BE MAILED/SHIPPED TO ME?

I will be using DHL as my shipping/courier service for deliveries within South Africa and all international deliveries. Please bear in mind the impact of the COVID 19 pandemic on these services and that there could be unexpected delivery delays.

4. WHERE DO YOU SOURCE THE WOOD FOR YOUR JEWELLERY?

All the wood I use is indigenous to South Africa. The timber-supply company in Cape Town, from which I buy my wood, vouches for their timber being obtained only from sustainable South African sources.

At present I am able to offer wood from the leucodendron argenteum i.e. Silver Tree which is only found in the Cape Town environs and is a protected tree species. I was fortunate to be given a branch that was blown off a friend’s Silver tree during a winter storm. Once I have used up that particular piece of wood it will be removed from the wood type choices offered, unless of course we have another severe storm in Cape Town this winter!

5. DOES YOUR SILVER COME FROM MINES IN SOUTH AFRICA?

While South Africa is one of the world’s main sources of gold it does not have any silver mines. The silver that I am using for my jewellery is from a metal refiner who guarantees that all his silver is recycled. His sources are from scrapped, damaged antique/vintage silver objects, old x-ray films and e-commerce. He has provided a certificate (which can be viewed on my website) from the Responsible Jewellery Council that audits his business every 3 years before issuing another compliance certificate.

6. WILL THE PIECE OF WOOD I HAVE SELECTED LOOK EXACTLY LIKE THE ONE IN THE PHOTOGRAPH?

Wood is a wonderfully warm material to use and one of its inherent qualities is its variability in grain and colour. Therefore no two wooden discs I use are identical and this means that the appearance of the piece of jewellery I make for you will differ somewhat from the images on my website. This makes each piece of jewellery that incorporates wood unique.

7. I NOTICED THAT YOU HAVE A MAN MODELLING ONE OF YOUR PIECES OF JEWELLERY. IS THIS A NEW TREND?

Over the past few years more and more men are using jewellery to complement their personal styles. I have designed a small lapel pin that sports a small gemstone and this can be worn with both formal and informal jackets, but the larger brooches are more suited to being worn on coats or jackets with lapels wide enough to accommodate their size.