Know What You’re Buying

Buying jewelry should be fun. It should make you stop, pick something up, turn it over, and think, ohhh, this one.

What it should not require is decoding a bunch of vague marketing language.

One word I have grown to hate in this industry is “authentic.” Authentic what? Sterling? Turquoise? Native American made? Handmade? Southwestern style? It gets used so loosely that sometimes it tells you almost nothing.

I would rather just tell you what I do know.

Turquoise In Style carries handmade jewelry from a lot of places. Some pieces are Native American made. Some are made elsewhere in the U.S- but not by an artist that is of Native descent. Some come from Mexico, Tibet and other parts of the world. I am not interested in pretending everything fits neatly into one category just because that would make marketing easier.

If I know who made a piece, I’ll tell you. If I know where it was made, I’ll tell you. If I know the stone, the materials, the artist, the treatment, or the history, I’ll tell you that too.

And if I don’t know, I’ll say I don’t know.

I grew up with a blue-collar Daddy and I was raised to believe your word and your handshake mean something. I still believe that. If I tell you something about a piece, it is because I believe I can stand behind it.

The same goes for stones.... Turquoise can be natural, stabilized, reconstituted, composite, dyed, or something else entirely. If I know what it is, I’ll tell you. If I know the mine, even better. If I don’t, I am not going to suddenly develop psychic gemological powers because “unknown” sounds less exciting in a listing.

Sometimes the honest answer is simply: this is what we know.

And honestly? I am completely comfortable with that.

This is also why I curate the way I do. My job is not to give you 700 options. My job is to look through the 700 and bring back the pieces that deserve your attention.

I look at the stone, the craftsmanship, the proportion, the wearability, the rarity, the weirdness, the price — and sometimes something much less scientific:

Does it have IT?

Before something makes it into TIS, I have already decided it deserves another look.

Not every piece is rare. Not every piece is Native American made. Not every piece is expensive. Not every piece comes with a perfectly documented history.

But every piece should be represented honestly.

Because good jewelry already has enough character.

We do not need to make shit up.

-- Peace, love and turquoise....LOVE YA! Mego