Happy New Year

A huge thanks to all of our customers, collaborators & friends for making this year so memorable - full of incredible growth & positivity in the face of change (new studio, new store). Lets hope 2017 brings us all closer together in new & inspiring ways! Wishing you all a happy, healthy & peaceful 2017.

much love, 

All of us at Rebekah Brooks Jewelry

Kyra & Austin

We've seen a surge in Holiday engagements this year so seems like the perfect week for these beautiful photos from some great customers nice enough to share them with us.

' I hope you and everyone at Rebekah Brooks are enjoying this holiday season. I just wanted to send along a couple wedding photos that feature the gorgeous jewelry you helped us select for our big day. We could not be happier with how our rings and my necklace/earring set turned out--they complimented our entire theme perfectly!! '

Saturday Snow - Open!

Beautiful snowy day here just in time to get everyone into the Holiday spirit! We are open in Cambridge & Northampton now, Charles St. will be open at noon - all three stores will be open late tonite - 8pm in Boston & Cambridge, 9pm in Northampton.

Holiday Web Orders

Holidays are fast approaching & our web store has been very busy! Shop with confidence as any orders placed by the 20th of December will be guaranteed to arrive by the 24th (or the 23rd, as that's a Friday). Orders after the 20th please email first & we can confirm - if we have it in stock we can likely get it to you on time. Thanks and happy shopping!

Holiday Stroll - Tomorrow!

Join us for our 'open house' as part of the Charles Street Stroll this Thursday from 6-9pm. We'll be serving cider & wine, playing music & showing off jewelry. Stop in & say hello while taking in all the festive holiday offerings this great neighborhood has on display!

Monday, Cyber Monday.

As a happy monday to all of our customers we're offering 15% off all online sales - now thru midnight. Get a jump on your holiday list with some great jewelry & support a local business at the same time. Win-win! 

Happy Thanksgiving

Wishing everyone a happy & relaxing Thanksgiving - important as ever this year to pause and be together. We're grateful for so much! Especially a persistence of hope. Junot Diaz in the New Yorker writes: '..but all the fighting in the world will not help us if we do not also hope. What I’m trying to cultivate is not blind optimism but what the philosopher Jonathan Lear calls radical hope. “What makes this hope radical,” Lear writes, “is that it is directed toward a future goodness that transcends the current ability to understand what it is.” Radical hope is not so much something you have but something you practice; it demands flexibility, openness, and what Lear describes as “imaginative excellence.” Radical hope is our best weapon against despair, even when despair seems justifiable; it makes the survival of the end of your world possible. Only radical hope could have imagined people like us into existence. And I believe that it will help us create a better, more loving future.'

Black Friday, Small Business Saturday, Cyber Monday

The Holidays are upon us! And while tomorrow we'll be enjoying the relative quiet with our families, Friday we'll be back at it getting into what surely will be a busy few days..

'The Underrated Pleasure of Wearing Jewelry Made Just for You'

'..and really, jewelry is at its best when it’s made for only you. When we wear a piece of custom jewelry, we are adding ourselves to a legacy as old as the Romans, the Greeks, the Persians — older. Very few traditions can be said to have remained unchanged over the history of time, but the act of announcing oneself to the world through jewelry is something that has endured through millennia and across cultures. We may no longer formally declare our tribal affiliations under flags or with particular hairstyles or colors, but we still do with what we choose to display on our fingers, our ears and around our necks and wrists.'

 

Above quote from an article in NY Times on the pleasures & treasures of custom jewelry. This is not news to us of course as we do this all the time - in fact our custom jewelry is one of the most rewarding aspects of our studio work. It presents endless opportunities to be creative & innovative with design and, equally important - never fails to offer the wearer a true sense of joy. 

Some pieces we've been working on above & below, link to article here.

96 Charles Street!

Today we are very excited to announce the opening of our doors at our 3rd location, 96 Charles Street in Boston's historic Beacon Hill. It's a very soft opening - no signs yet, lights barely on - but still! Rebekah will there all day with our manager Nellie & they'd love to show you around. Please come say hello if you're in the area. Thank you to all of our great customers that have supported us over the years & helped make this growth possible!

Thank You Charlie

 

For the past eight years, we have been truly honored to work with Charlie Hassler. He has set many diamonds, consulted on complicated jobs and worked on many antiques for us over those years. Many of these techniques take decades to master and are becoming lost with off shore and mass production jewelry taking over the market. Charlie is a true craftsman. Like me from my parents who are both craftspeople, he learned from his father as a teenager at his bench, an age old tradition. The kind of skill it takes to be a talented jeweler is a lifetime of work. Jewelers like Charlie are like alchemists, what they know they know with their hands not just their minds and it took so many years to get there. I have seen magic happen! The most important thing he has done is to teach me to be a better jeweler.

A year ago, when he officially retired from his own business, he passed down his amazing antique and hard to find tools, many antique gemstones, cameos and even a hand engraver from the 1920's. We had pleaded with him for over a year before that to spend the last few months before he moves to Florida with us in our studio in Northampton, and finally he gave in. We were thrilled and a year ago we moved his bench in! It has been such a pleasure, we have learned so much, had so many laughs and we are so lucky for this time. Of the many things Charlie has taught me, one of them stays with me and helps me on every hard day; 'When I was in my 40's, I used to worry like you, but you just have to learn to let it go'. Charlie has become like an uncle to me and I will miss him so much, we all will! We will always be grateful for all he has given us. -Rebekah

...

Ryan & Emily

A big congratulations to a great couple who got their ring at our Northampton store. They had a very public engagement after Ryan proposed at a Phillies game (while both wearing jersey's for the opposing team). It was broadcast over the video board, they got a standing ovation! Story was picked up by the NY Post, read the article here.

 

 

Memorial Day / Closed in Cambridge

Happy Memorial Day! We'll be closed at our Cambridge location today but open in Northampton - if you happen to be out & about pop in & say hello. Hope you're all enjoying a great holiday weekend & happy end of Summer...sigh. 

Summer Jams!

A new playlist for the middle of August - hot nights & hotter days - for now. Enjoy! RBJ

Happy Couple

This happy couple (return customers) came into our Northampton store the other day to celebrate the anniversary of their first meeting & picked up some feather earrings and a fox pendant. They had both previously worked closely with Rebekah to design their rings & bands with special engraving on each. His is plain flat but enjoys matching engraving to hers on the inside of his band - very sweet! Thanks to them for letting us share their pics & congrats on the anniversary!

New Antiques!

Some gorgeous new finds coming in to the shops. A quick shot below to whet the appetite - among them, a Victorian bone shield necklace, a beautiful sapphire & pearl Art Deco cluster ring, handmade 18k flower post earrings with little diamond centers and of course an amazing rare 18k Essex Crystal handpainted 'Aude, Vide, Tace' ring with an all seeing eye! Ring dates to 1896 and bears the masonic motto meaning 'know, dare, be silent' (to live in peace).

Employee Profile : Leah

Here in our studio things are ever bustling! In the center of all this activity is our dear Leah - a hard working, open-hearted alchemist that's full of grace. She was generous enough to take some time answering our query's - read below..

 

What is your position at Rebekah Brooks, and what is your favorite part of your job?


I am the Studio Manager, which means I oversee the production of all jewelry, special orders & repairs. It is my job to help make sure everything runs smoothly in the studio. In addition to production, I oversee the ordering of materials, castings, make sure orders are completed on time, help train new team members, and assist with jewelry design. I make everything from earrings to engagement rings. There are so many things I love about my job! But above all, I just love that I get to work with my hands all day. Time in the studio just flies by. It still never ceases to amaze me, that moment when you look over at the clock and half the workday has gone by.

What are you passionate about outside of work? 

 

Outside of jewelry, I am a painter and enjoy working in my home studio. I work in primarily oils, gouache and watercolor. I have a strange fascination with ants and moss, and I collect antique photographs – all of which make their way into my artwork in one way or another. I am also an avid rock climber and hiker. If I’m not in a studio, I love to be outdoors.

What is your favorite jewelry era?

My favorite has to be the Georgian period. Stone cutting was still very new, jewelry techniques were still being established and the pieces had such a raw, handmade look about them. My favorite pieces from this era are the symmetrical cluster designs, which were very prevalent. More specifically, I’m obsessed with Bohemian garnet pansy motifs. I think the flat cut stones with the closed bezels and foiled backs are absolutely gorgeous, especially when you can see the different pinks, reds and oranges of the garnets.

Check out Leah's website here where you can see all of her beautiful work! www.LeahHollrock.com

  

Memorial Day - Closed in Cambridge

Happy Memorial Day everyone! We will be open today in Northampton but closed in Cambridge for the holiday. Enjoy the beautiful day!

Diamonds & Pearls

Title of this post in honor of Prince of course. Stunning round of special antique pendants just in! And there's more than just diamonds & pearls - there's emeralds, platinum, yellow & white gold - and even more diamonds. One of these already sold so drop a line through the website if you're interested..

An incredible museum-worthy Victorian necklace, dating to 1860. With Emeralds, Diamonds & Pearls in 18k & Silver.

Georgian period necklace with 1.5 carats of rose cut Diamonds! In 14 & 18k gold.

From the Edwardian period, in Platinum with approx 1.5 carats of Diamonds, delicate and striking.

also Edwardian with lots of diamonds (over 3 carats!) in Platinum & 18kt. Wow.

Art Deco period with Emeralds, Pearls & Diamonds in 18kt & Platinum. *SOLD

Edwardian with Diamonds in Platinum & 18k, delicate and very pretty.

Spring Playlist

A new playlist to help ring in Spring! A diverse mix to help you kick back & watch the flowers grow..

Employee Profile : Mallory

For the second installment in our employee profiles we bring you the magnificent Mallory - the hard working ray of sunshine at the helm of our Cambridge store..
 

1) What is your position at Rebekah Brooks, and what is your favorite part of your job?

 

I manage our Cambridge store in Harvard Square. I have a hand in merchandising and display, educating employees, social media, selecting antiques and helping to create amazing custom pieces for our clients. The thing that brings me the most satisfaction and fulfillment in my job is making other people happy (cliche, I know). Being involved in couple's lifelong commitments to one another, and seeing them happy at the end of the day is something that I cannot be more grateful for.

 

2) What are you passionate about outside of work? 

 

In college I studied fine art, and I continually exercise my artistic interests outside of work. I love to paint, draw, and take photos (mostly of my cat) and explore new culinary outlets around Boston. I'm always trying to go to art shows, meet new people, and hike around New England in the Summer. To me, there's no better place than being outside. 

 

 

3) What is your favorite jewelry era?

 

The Art Deco period definitely takes the cake for me when it comes to my favorite jewelry era. I love the introduction and prominent use of platinum and white gold during this period, where everything predating the 1910's was primarily made with yellow and rose golds. Floral victorian motifs are lovely, but it's so interesting to see how those themes evolved into clean, geometric and architectural lines that Deco jewelry is so known for. Colored stones and contrasting stone and metal combinations were such an industrial trend that mimic what was going on in the world at that time, which is fascinating to me. Since Old European cut diamonds were so popular during the Deco period, it's definitely my favorite because it's jewelry is the perfect combination of new and old. 

 

 

Wedding Ring Event!

Spread the news for our annual wedding ring event - 15% off all wedding bands, custom or out of the case, one day only, Saturday April 9th in Cambridge & Northampton. See you there!

Winter Engagement

A couple of great customers from our Cambridge store who were nice enough to share some photos. We made & engraved a ring for them then strung it on a chain - seems to suit them perfectly. In their own words: 'As a man trying to buy an engagement memento for another man, I was pretty much at a loss. I wanted something traditional yet contemporary. Something special but not flashy. Something simple but not boring. I didn't know if I should get a ring or a necklace or a pendant or something totally different. I really feel like I got the best of everything, and didn't have to compromise for it.' Our thanks & a big congratulations to them both!

 

 

 

Engagement Ring Sale!

If you're considering a proposal there's no better time to come in & see what beautiful rings we have on offer and to get a jump on the blossoms of love. In both shops this weekend it's our annual promotion of 15% off engagement rings - both from the case & special orders. Wow! Save yourself some considerable cash while procuring an incredible heirloom that she's sure to love..

Employee Profile : Sara

We're a young company that's like a small family - we work closely & diligently to better each other and our workplace because it feels great to care about what you do and who you do it with! Taking off from our customer profiles this is the first in a series of employee profiles - beginning with our very own regional manager, the lovely Sara..

1) What is your position at Rebekah Brooks, and what is your favorite part of your job?

 

I am our Regional Manager, which means that I oversee both stores, continue to educate and motivate our employees, and make sure everything runs smoothly. I assist in marketing, inventory selection, merchandising, hiring, social media, design, financials, and future planning. There are too many things that I love about my job to count, so I'll name three. First of all, I love the people I work with. It's really astounding how special each and every person in this company is. We are all incredibly supportive of one another, and I would call every individual my friend. Secondly, I love gemology. I've always had a keen interest in gems and minerals, but after learning so much by working in the field and getting my degree from the GIA alongside Rebekah, that interest has grown even more. There is an unlimited amount of knowledge to obtain! The fact that our Earth has the ability to create these beautiful and unique specimens is a phenomenon that fascinates me. Lastly, I love making people happy. Whether it's going that extra mile to reach out to a special customer when you come across the perfect piece for them, or helping design wedding bands that truly symbolize their commitment to one another - making people happy in that way is not something everyone has the pleasure of doing in their work. 

2) What are you passionate about outside of work? 

 

I guess you could say I am into extreme sports and music. I play a handful of instruments and enjoy seeing live music. My most recent obsession had been bluegrass. I enjoy any sport that involves being outside, whether it's rock climbing or snowboarding or hiking or wake-boarding, being outside is like my medicine. I enjoy being on a mountain or near a body of water, whatever the season! I am a true New Englander in that sense. Family is also majorly important to me.

3) What is your favorite jewelry era?

I love Art Nouveau. I love the floral and feminine motifs, and the constant reference to nature. I like it because there's a lot less Art Nouveau jewelry out there - it was a shorter era than others and it kind of overlapped with other eras, so it's a more specific style. I like enamel, Alfonse Mucha (an artist of that time) and the laced, delicate detail in Art Nouveau jewelry.