A Rare Email From Waylon!?

Dear esteemed friends and clients,

Since 2013, I have been having people sign up for my email list, but I never write you emails. Why? Honestly, I think it's because I don't want to be a "sales guy" per se, but personally I feel like people are already bombarded with enough advertising on a daily basis that I don't want to be perceived as another ad in your inbox. 

Because of everyone who has supported my work and my business, I haven't really felt compelled to do much advertising. I have always had enough work in my queue to support my business and my family. For that, I am eternally grateful to all of you!

Each and every one of you has allowed me to develop my jewelry making skills and has fueled my passion to create the most detailed landscape rings in the world and some of the most beautiful fine jewelry designs I see being made today.  I believe that 100%! July 5th, 2024 will be my 20th year as a professional goldsmith. I have done 42 laps around the sun, yet I feel I am just getting started. I am at that point where I am capable of creating great pieces of jewelry with a high degree of skill and execution of techniques.

My passion for jewelry making is deeply rooted in the belief that each piece should tell a story, evoke emotions, and become a cherished part of your family's history. With meticulous attention to detail and my strong commitment to the pursuit of excellence in craftsmanship, I strive to create the kind of jewelry that transcends trends and stands the test of time. And I want each piece to reflect a part of you and allow it to speak on your behalf as to how keen you are to finding the right jewelry designer and goldsmith to make your vision come to life. And as all of you know, I do everything in my studio from start to finish, with the exception of platinum casting. I use old world techniques, hand tools, and design everything with pencil and ink on paper to scale.  

I want to make 2024 my most prosperous and exciting year yet, and I want to make my most magnificent pieces so far in my career. Would you like to see that happen? If so, there are a number of things you can do to help me, without spending a dime. Tell your friends and family about me if you haven't yet. Follow me on Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, and Youtube. Share links from my website on your socials. Like, comment, and share my posts on socials. And of course, writing excellent reviews about me on my Google business page, Yelp, and making recommendations on my Facebook business page, are all things that help me get my name out there and shows my work to more people.

If you are looking to have something special made for someone or wanting me to make something special just for you, please fill out my custom order form on my website, and let's make something magical together!

What would really, really be awesome is to find a home for my three museum quality rings that I currently have in my inventory, "The Harvest of Ceres", "Juicy Indulgence", and the "Regal Request".  I have roughly 500 hours and so many thousands of dollars invested in these three rings,  so having such patrons would be a Godsend. I have faith that you exist! If it's not you, maybe you know someone that can be such a blessing. I only need three people to make this happen, and that would propel my business in such a positive way forward towards my goals!

Please get in touch if you would like to talk to me. You can call my studio phone at 217-209-0613.
You can call and text my cell phone at 217-209-7537. Or you can reply to this email, I think. 
My email address is waylon@rhoadsjewelry.com

I would love to hear from you! I hope all is well with all of you!

Sincerely,

Waylon J. Rhoads


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September Sales Event

The First 10 days of September are big for the Rhoads Family. My wife Justine and my daughter Emaline celebrate their birthdays on the 5th and the 10th, so we want to share these fun times with you and offer 20% of any purchase made in the online store from September 3rd until September 7th. There is no limit on the number of items you can buy with the discount code SEPTEMBER2019 with your purchase.

Be sure to share this with your friends and family on social media! Thank you all for your support over these last 7 years! You make this all happen:)

When Artists Work Together

Waylon Rhoads Fusion Concepts at Nashelle Jewelry

If you have ever been to my shop in downtown Bend, the first thing you'll notice is that my place is kind of hard to find.  It's in an upstairs suite, behind a tea house and a bakery.  It's not a traditional jewelry store.  It's my glorified work studio in a centralized location.  I have a small display area, a small meeting area, and a decent size work shop.  It was never my intention to have a retail location.  I wanted to take that baby step out of my house, but not go full on retail.  The initial costs of such an endeavor would surely bury my efforts to be an independent jeweler.  I feel like I did the right thing, even though it does have obvious set backs.  The complete lack of a store front deprives me of the impulse buyer, the last minute shopper, and the never ending stream of tourists visiting my beautiful city.  Luckily, I have a friend who understands where I am coming from, because she has been there.  Her name is Heather Nashelle.

Heather owns a successful jewelry company here in Bend, Nashelle Jewelry.  She started doing jewelry in her basement studio about 16 years ago, and now runs a company that has national recognition.  She has her own TV show, has a cosmetics line, two retail jewelry stores, a manufacturing shop, the wife of her best friend, and is the mother of six adorable children.  Heather is ambitious with her business goals, but also understands the importance of caring for those in need, by providing nearly 500,000 meals with the proceeds of her jewelry sales!

Earlier this year, Heather contacted me for a custom job for her.  She liked what I was doing with silver and gold fusion, and discovered that she needed some stacking rings for her fingers.  I was happy to create those for her!  

After completing this set of stacking rings, we began talks about having my jewelry featured in her Old Mill location.  Since March of this year, I've had a nice selection of my "Fusion Concepts" jewelry in that store.  The Staff there has been very enthusiastic about the line and have done well to ensure that I can continue creating this exciting line of jewelry.  Heather has helped me actualize my hard work and creativity by allowing my work to be in front of her fans.  When artists work together, they can achieve so much more than they could alone.  That is a lesson she learned early on in her career.  It's a lesson she is putting in to action with me, and it's a lesson that I will continue to pass on with those who are striving to become the artists they have always wanted to be.  

The next time you see yourself in Bend, be sure to visit all the great things going on in the Old Mill District, especially all the cool things at Nashelle Jewelry, including my unique silver and gold fusion jewelry!  You will be happy about it for sure!

A Confirmation of Love

There is something that happens in my mind when I get a custom order from another artist, and one who's work I have admired for a long time.  It's a mental game changer, in the way that feel the ring must me created.  When the eyes of another artists examine my work, I have to make sure that it looks exactly the way they envisioned it.  That's the way it goes with every one of my clients, but again, it's a mental perspective.

22k gold Waylon Rhoads Original featuring a 1.01 carat pear shape diamond and .18 cttw diamond melee.

I chose to make this ring from 22k gold, which is over 91% pure gold.  The metal shows off the beauty of gold more than the lower purity alloys of gold.  It's dense, heavy, and lustrous!  And it's also a dream come true to set diamonds in.  As you can see, the center diamond is set with a snag proof design, ensuring that it won't be a hassle to do all the things one would normally do with their hands.  The setting also protects the diamond without taking away from its beauty.  I bead set the side diamonds on the lower parts of the side of the ring, to ensure the longevity of wear, without taking away from their presentation.

As a personal jeweler for people of all types, attention to detail and customer satisfaction are my paramount objectives.  Keep me in mind whenever you are looking for unique, premium quality, and independently created jewelry works, for getting the one you love to say "Yes!"

Waylon

Blue Zircon Fusion Ring

Say Hello to the newest ring in the Waylon Rhoads Jewelry inventory!

 

A 1.25 carat Blue Zircon is the center of attention with compliments of .45 cttw. of round brilliant diamonds, making this sculpted fusion ring a statement piece for those of a particular fashion persuasion.

Blue Zircon is a fascinating gemstone.  It's most commonly known as the December birthstone.  For me, it is one of my favorite gemstones.  A crucial attribute of zircon is its refractive index, which is very similar to diamond.  And that is cool, because the light passing through the gem slows down in a way that breaks up the white light into color, giving the viewer a dazzling display  of color flashes, much in the same way you can see that with diamond.  

If you viewed the last blog post, you saw how I have began incorporating sculpted lines and features with the textured fusion look.  This ring is a continuation of that design concept.  This ring is made for a right hand ring finger or pinky, although I notice several people want to wear it upside down, which is just fine with me.  We all look at things a little differently, and I'm not one to force a perspective on other people.  Look at this as you want, wear it like you want, and be happy with wearing it.  

This ring will find its new home at The Wooden Jewel in Sunriver, Oregon.  But you can still order this ring from the website.

Further Developments in the Fusion Concepts Jewelry Line

To Become Bolder is to Become Better

Designing jewelry that makes an impression on the right person, is the goal for any new comer to the trade.  Finding that intersection of loving your own work and selling it to the people that love your work, can be a struggle in the beginning.  Often times, sacrifices of artistic expression, for making that which will sell, is common.  Other times, it is simply coming up with that unique concept or look that will separate you from every other jewelry designer.  For me, the struggle has been deciding which direction to go with my gallery work.  Today, I am pleased to share with you that I have found the path!

1.00 Carat Tsavorite Garnet with .45 cttw round diamond melee set in sterling silver with 18k gold fused accents.

The idea behind this design is to combine fine design elements, with the raw look of the fused gold on oxidized and textured silver, along with having a big center stone to establish the focal point.  There is a richness to the look of this ring that I enjoy very much.  And the unique look of it definitely sets itself apart from anything you can find anywhere else.   It has an aesthetic that I feel proud of creating.  

The view of the designated narrow side of the ring, to fit the finger on the narrow side of the finger.

Another key element to my ring designs, is the asymmetrical form for better ergonomics.  Look at either ring finger.  You will notice that the pinky side is longer than the middle finger side.  Wearing a ring that has this unevenness-of-the-fingers taken into consideration, is much more comfortable to wear and isn't prone to rotating around the finger, like some rings do.  Of all the complaints I've heard from customers, having a ring that spins, regardless of how well it fits, is the most common.  This ring is designed to hug the finger and to show its proper orientation.

This ring is being delivered to its new home at The Wooden Jewel in Sunriver, Oregon today.  The women there are a great group, and the store itself is one of the most beautiful in Central Oregon.  If you haven't been down there yet, you should do yourself a favor, and check it out!

The Road to recovery and revisiting past work.

The Road to Recovery

The last two weeks have been a little rough for me.  I had surgery to address the acute appendicitis that developed, but luckily, modern science based medicine has developed procedures that make these kind of surgeries far less invasive.  Science by praised!!  As of today, I feel back to my normal self and ready to rock and roll!

View fullsize

Top Ring: 14k white gold "Scrolls of Love" wedding ring featuring 1.25 cttw round brilliant diamonds

Bottom Ring: 14k white gold Cascade Mountain ring featuring 18k yellow gold sun and .05 ct diamond

Revisiting Past Work

One of the things I love about doing custom work, is getting to see my clients on a semi-annual basis for cleaning and checking.  Often times, they will share with me stories and experiences they have had since having them on their hands.  The wedding set featured above belongs to my very first Fall Festival customers from three years ago.  Kelly stopped by yesterday to have me clean these rings and catch up on how things have been.  The experiences Kelly and Steve have told me about literally bring tears to my eyes.  The compliments they tell me they receive are overwhelmingly positive, which in turn makes them feel even better about having them as the symbol of their love for each other.  I feel like these rings have been a source of happiness for these two, and I can't tell you how amazing that makes me feel!  I put my heart and soul into every piece I make, with the intention of making people happy.  Not a bad gig at all!!  Thank you to everyone that has come to me so far for custom work.  And I look forward to working with those who haven't had something made by me yet.  You won't be disappointed.

Putting the Final Touches on the Website!

As this website launches, I will be adding more of my work to the gallery and to the store.  This is a very exciting time for me and I cannot wait to see how this new platform performs.

My New Site Is Up!

Hey guy's check it out my new site is live.