9ct Gold

This is my selection of 9ct gold Jewellery. Many of these designs are available in  Sterling Silver and can be viewed in some of the other collections on the website. Here in Ireland and the UK, the most popular type of gold for jewellery is 9ct although is is less well known in other countries. 

As a maker, 9ct gold has major advantages to other higher carats for one main reason. The alloy added to create it renders it so much more resilient than others. It is much tougher to mould and shape into jewellery, but once it is made, it is practically indestructible. Much harder and therefore resistant to damage and wear and tear. I personally love it for a piece of jewellery which will be worn every day for a lifetime. It will stand the test of time. I'd highly recommend it for wedding and engagement rings which are worn together. 14ct or 18ct can wear off each other and reduce the rings weight considerably. This won't happen to any great extent with 9ct as it is an excellent material for wearable jewellery.

Gold is the most wonderful material in existence to craft and the very sad situation is that the vast majority of it is cast into gold ingots and stored in vaults. Its value makes it unavailable to goldsmiths and jewellers to make it into beautiful artifacts and treasures.

In ancient times, gold was readily available and in abundance which is why we have in Ireland, the tara brooch and other treasures and of course, in Ancient Egypt, hoards of pure gold. It was during a visit to the Cairo museum that I became aware of the treasures of the tomb of tutankhamun and just how much gold was in that tomb is staggering. Now, in the present day, we will have to settle with a fraction of gold being made available to the jewellery industry and inevitably, the price of gold is almost unattainable to most. 

I suppose the most serious implication of this is the curbing of the creative process. There is very little real opportunity to take a chance with an unusual design or an unconventional approach. The investment in the raw material is much too high to gamble that it might only suit a unobtainable client. I try to make gold pieces that have solid cultural heritage but within that limitation, be as creative as possible and i am very proud of the gold pieces I have included in this collection. I have based them on much loved sought after iconic designs but included in them, some of my own personality and preferences.  The greatest satisfaction in this process is the final polish. This is where gold takes on the lustre which sets it aside from every other material. It is purely breathtakingly beautiful.