California Girl Jewelry promises to chase seasonal blues away with their rare gemstone jewelry, while maintaining reasonable prices.
Gray skies and falling leaves announce the arrival of cold weather as the days continue to get shorter.
California Girl Jewelry brightens our winter forecast with exquisite jewelry designs set with rare and brilliant gemstones, and unique designs with custom options.
We’ve been following California Girl Jewelry (CGJ) since discovering their trove of unique jewelry between their website and Etsy store.
CAUTION: Throughout today’s journey with California Girl Jewelry, click on the blue text to divert for more information on the pieces featured or for direct links to shop.
Treasured Jewels Become a Family Affair
A mother and daughter jewelry business located in San Francisco, the inspiration for California Girl Jewelry started on one coast, and was established on the other.
Ring with rare Bekily color change garnet & diamonds
“Jewelry Made by Women, For Women…”
Created around their motto, California Girl Jewelry, “Jewelry made by women, for women”, Mariel Baker and her daughter, Denise Forbes, work alongside a staff of female designers and goldsmiths to create a luxury selection of jewelry at value prices.
Violet Spinel & Diamond Pendant
Morganite & Diamond Rose Gold Ring
Unheated Aquamarine Raw Crystal Necklace
“…because we buy gemstones directly from the mines, we pass along the savings to you. We manufacture our settings and cut out a lot of layers of middlemen in our business model. We are an all-women business – designed and made for women, by women.”-Mariel Baker, California Girl Jewelry
New York Gem Treasures
As a senior manager for tech industry companies in New York from the early 1980’s, Mariel was required to follow a strict professional dress code.
Her draw to diamonds and colored gemstones began when she would visit the Diamond District just a block from her Manhattan office.
[bctt tweet=”He would show me gems, and I would buy them and then design jewelry that conformed to the dress code, but still rocked the bling.-Mariel Baker” username=”jewelrynavig8r”]
From frequent visits to a jeweler she befriended, Mariel learned more about the rare colored gemstones she loved collecting, and later, created designs to accentuate and display their beauty and brilliance.
Tanzanian Rose Zircon & Diamond Ring
Watermelon Tourmaline & Diamond Earrings
Burmese Hot Pink Spinel & Diamond Ring
Determined to wear the gems, she began with conservative styles to comply with her corporate dress code, then customized designs around her growing collection of unique and rare gemstones.
Spreading Gemstone Joy from Coast to Coast, and World Wide
In 2001, after retiring, her jewelry design efforts accelerated, and her designs began to sell.
With growing interest in her jewelry, she set up an online site to educate and guide shoppers who shared her delight in rare and unusual colored stone jewelry.
Mariel’s Jewelry Super Power
While still part of the corporate scene in New York, Mariel painted and took Classes at The Art Student’s League of New York.
The benefits of exploring color theory through painting served her ability for color memory, a talent she continues to call on for matching stones, and creating exquisite jewelry.
Before retiring, her career path relocated to the the San Francisco Bay Area.
Once settled, California captured Mariel’s heart, and within two years, her daughter, Denise joined her in The Golden City.
Mariel established the foundations of a specialized jewelry niche, through which she and Denise introduce the world to jewelry created to showcase rare and beautiful gemstones.
The circle of manufacturing at CGJ is small , and allows the women to pass on significant savings for the fine jewelry they create.
This 3.10 ct steel blue spinel is beautifully set in 18kt white gold ring, and surrounded by 1.02 ct diamonds, $3,699
Steel Blue Spinel & Diamond Ring
Mariel summarizes their mission, as stated on the website, “We offer custom jewelry to create engagement rings and gift jewelry that is within your budget to exceed your expectations on beauty and quality – without charging design fees.”
Mariel seeks, finds and procures the rare and beautiful gemstones from around the world. Together, she and Denise design the perfect setting to surround each gemstone.
Most pieces are set with 18 karat gold or platinum, and all are well made, worthy of many years of heirloom quality wear, and many of the colored gemstones make excellent alternatives to diamonds for engagement rings
.
Many of their jewelry masterpieces are surrounded with small, but high quality diamonds (G color, VS clarity), and often diamonds trace the basket, or head, directing more attention to the beautiful gemstone in the center of the piece.
Rare Paraiba Tourmaline & Diamond Ring
The name California Girl Jewelry is a tribute to the diversity of how high fashion seamlessly converges with the casual landscapes enjoyed by California’s lifestyles.
From one coast to another, and world wide, Mariel, Denise and their staff create jewelry treasures waiting for shoppers who appreciate rare and beautiful gemstones masterfully accented and set, ready for generations of enjoyment.
Where to find California Girl Jewelry
As mentioned above, California Girl Jewelry has both a website and an Etsy online store.
They also have a studio boutique where they welcome visitors and clients with iced champagne!
California Girl Jewelry
833 Market St
SAN FRANCISCO, CA
*California Girl Jewelry contributes to causes that help women and LGBT fundraisers.
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