Jewels That Dance has a spokesperson! It’s Julie Wunder, the former morning-news meteorologist on WLOS-TV.

Julie left the station in June to allow more balance in her life and to pursue her interests in health and fashion. She’s created a fun and informative blog, Running In A Skirt (www.runninginaskirt.com), which details her passions: running, fashion and health.

We’re big fans of her blog, and we’re excited about our partnership with Julie.

Check out our first television ad with Julie:

This season, we’re introducing a new line of fun bangle bracelets for the holidays.   These gold-infill bracelets come with a variety of charms talismans, lucky charms and spiritual symbols, from evil eyes to St. Christopher medals.

They are a great way to dress up a casual look.  And at the priced at just $29 to $49, they also make great stocking stuffers!

Come in and check out the line!

High-tech meets organic in Paula Dawkins stunning new jewelry collection, “Cornucopia,” which debuted late this fall.

Inspired by the colors and impressions of autumn and winter – warm oranges and reds to icy-cold black diamonds – the line was designed by Paula using T-Spline technology, a cutting-edge 3-D design software for jewelers.

“The line reflects both my mood and my life over the past year,” Paula said.  
“For me, fall is about a full woodshed, a successful garden harvest, beauty and bounty.  But it is also bittersweet, as colorful fall fades into the cold starkness of  winter.  In my personal life, my daughter, Julia, was going away to college, which made me happy for her, but a bit sad to see her leave home.”  These are some of the emotions and experiences that are reflected in Cornucopia.

Using T-Spine, Paula was able to create the sun and moon faces of the anchor pieces of the line (see photo).  The sun-face with its burnished 18-carat golden glow surrounded by diamonds, evokes bright, vibrant autumn days.   The moon-face pendant, a brushed white-gold with twinkling diamond stars suggests cold winter nights.   Likewise other pieces in the collection reflect the falling leaves and changing colors of autumn, through colorful sapphires, and the dark stillness of winter, through black onyx and diamond stones.

“This line is technically superior to anything we’ve done before.  As a studio we really pushed ourselves with this line,” Paula said.  “We began the design process in August, and worked on it for three months.”   All did not go smoothly, however;  in the middle of creating the line, Paula fell off a ladder and broke her leg!  “It set us back a little,” she laughs, but she made a speedy recovery and got back to work.

The new line debuted on November 5 and is available now in the store (69 Haywood Street in downtown Asheville) and on line at www.pauladawkins.com.

In keeping with the autumn theme of abundance and bounty,  Jewels That Dane donated 10% of the sales of the collection, during the first 10-days of the launch, to Manna Food Bank.

You may know our store manager, Marlene Clevenger.  She’s been with us for more than 20 years, selling, stocking, working with people and, generally, making the jewels dance.  We think she’s a real Wonder Woman.

But in her personal life, Marlene is all Iron Woman.  This summer, Marlene finished her second Half-Ironman Triathlon, the Wilmington Beach2Battleship, and we couldn’t be prouder.  Or more impressed.

For those unfamiliar with this punishing, competitive sport, she was swam 1.2 miles (in the Wilmington Channel), biked for 56 miles, then ran for 13.1 miles.  And she did it all in under six-and-a-half hours!

To prepare for this grueling event, Marlene trained five days a week for four months.

“Crossing the finish line, I felt like I’d given birth,” she laughed.  “I’d been ‘in labor’ for 6-and-a-half-hours and then . . .success!

“And I felt like a million bucks,” she said.   “I was teary-eyed and very emotional because I’d been preparing for so long and then I finished.”

We’re thrilled to congratulate Marlene, not just for the remarkable job she does at Jewels That Dance, but for the determination and drive she shows in her private life.

Next up for this Wonder Woman:  the March Marathon at the Biltmore Estate.  And, of course, getting the shop through the Christmas holidays!

At Jewels That Dance, we believe, when buying a diamond, there is more to consider than just the 4 C”s.  That is why we traveled to South Africa to ensure the diamonds we carry meet our standards:  all of our diamonds are conflict free, no child labor is involved in the diamond mining or cutting process, and all the diamonds are extracted from the earth in an environmentally friendly manner.

Paula Dawkins’ desire to expand her awareness beyond the scope of Asheville has led her throughout the world – much of Europe, India, Nepal, Thailand, and China.  But it seemed there was still much left to know about South Africa and the mining of diamonds.  It was important for her to see with her own eyes how the diamonds are tracked to avoid the hands of conflicting rebel movements, and to ensure that there was no child labor.  She wanted to touch more of the diamond world than its luxury, to see the diamond beyond its romance and ascertain the bigger picture of the diamond trade.  So, upon invitation from DeBeers she flew to South Africa with our store manager, Marlene Clevenger.

Discovered in 1961, the Finsch Diamond Mine carries a legacy of the world’s most magnificent diamonds.  Over 70% of the most famous diamonds in history have been discovered in mines located in the South African region, including the Cullinan Diamond which weighs over 3,000 carats.  The Finsch Mine is conscious of the environment, using only water methods to extract diamonds from their host rock, the kimberlite.  The rock is re-processed after the initial diamond discoveries are made to avoid unnecessary digging.  As a result of this thoroughness, nearly 2 million additional carats of diamonds have been discovered to date in the already-processed rock.  In addition, Finsch implements programs that assist in re-establishing sustainable ecosystem where mining sites previously existed.

The next step on this adventure was to the sorting house operated by DeBeers.  In this building sitting in the middle of South Africa, diamonds from all the mines come to be sorted.  Tables set below north facing windows were piled with rough diamond crystals.  There highly trained individuals would look into each diamond and decide its potential.  From there the diamonds journey to the cutting houses.

Our trip led us to FestDiam Cutting works.  It was founded nearly a century ago by the Dutch Meents family.  With six generations of expertise to their name, FestDiam’s master cutters employ exquisite craftsmanship to transform rough diamonds into luminous masterpieces.  Three generations of the Meents family are working together today, alongside of native South African citizens whom they train  These individuals , who are frequently from less-advantaged communities, have stable, often lifelong jobs with FestDiam, and enjoy improved quality of life with health benefits, fair wage and pensions.

While in South Africa, Paula and Marlene not only received a grand education about diamonds , they also discovered far more than they ever expected to about humanity, benevolence and a township called Refilwe.   Paula and Marlene visited Refilwe, where a village project serves nearly 50,000 severely disadvantaged people.  In Refilwe medical care and much deserved attention is provided to AIDS stricken individuals, who are frequently shunned by the communities. Refilwe workers provide day care for the children, while teaching skills classes to help self-empower the adults to rise above their circumstances.

Paula and Marlene had the opportunity to meet and speak with some of these children, and were deeply touched by their spirit and need. Jewels That Dance has offered support to the Rifilwe project throughout the years.

The South African diamond’s legacy extends far past its journey from the mine to your ring or necklace.  It touches many lives along the way, adding sparkle in the eyes of previously neglected children in Africa, and providing change that brings brilliance to the lives of many underprivileged.