Melancon Jewelers' diamond cross wins Custom Jewelry Design of the Year Award

Jewelers of Louisiana announced their pick for the 2010 Custom Jewelry Design of the year to Richard Melancon of Melancon Jewelers for his custom made diamond cross.

This piece was chosen as the overall winner at the Jewelers of Louisiana convention that was held in Baton Rouge. The convention was represented by national and local jewelry sale reps, jewelry store owners and their employees from across the state. The main purpose of the conclave was to participate in an outstanding educational forum, networking, socializing and to showcase handmade jewelry from around the state in its custom jewelry design contest.

Richard Melancon entered this two carat total weight diamond cross which exemplifies his love for jewelry that is exquisite as well as multi functional. As a cross it is a showpiece but with a simply rotation it can be worn 3 additional ways, each spectacular. Each piece of this creation was hand crafted by Richard himself and his Master goldsmith, Kenneth Ray Hardy.

This collaboration of design, gold and two shades of natural diamonds produce a magnificent custom design. It all started with a parcel of natural fancy yellow diamonds that Richard purchased on one of his buying trips. The very best diamonds were hand picked to make a design, but what? A ring, pendant, bracelet or a broach. After a number of sketches, the cross rose to the top of the list. “I had never entered a cross and always wanted to.” Richard said. As in many things the first basic sketch was tweaked into the design that you see today. The actual drawing was replicated in 14 karat white gold with each piece interlocking with each other. The yellow diamonds were set in 18 karat yellow gold mountings to provide an interesting contrast with the white gold and accent the color of the yellow diamonds. The original design called for a emerald cut yellow diamond in the middle but at the last minute the design was further elevated by placing a very white 0.77 Radiant Cut Diamond in the center. This catapulted the design into a new level of elegance with the fancy yellow of the canary diamonds contrasting to the pristine white of the sculptured cross and the Radiant diamond. Richard commented "Much to my surprise, near its completion it was discovered that when the cross was positioned upside down or positioned sideways (both ways) it created a beautiful design independent of the cross."

From concept to completion it took approximately 60 hours of work to complete this design.

As a tradition, the designers at Melancon Jewelers typically name their designs. The formulation of names come in a number of ways; dedication to a particular person, the look or most often the piece just name themselves. This year Richard could not come up with an inspiration for a name so he is opening it up as a contest. Name the design?

A $100 gift certificate will be awarded to the individual that comes up with the name. Register the name at Melancon Jeweler's in Abbeville , via email (richard@mjewelers.com) or at Mjewelers.com.

Name this spectacular cross and walk away with $100 certificate to Melancon Jewelers.

The collaboration of Richard Melancon and Kenneth Ray Hardy at Melancon Jewelers goes back almost 30 years. The love of design and the art of a master goldsmith produced a number of custom design through the years. A small fraction of these designs have been submitted to state and national contest always being a constant winner. In Louisiana they have won more awards for custom jewelry design than any jeweler in the state. They have also won several national contest. A collection of pictures and paraphernalia through out the years has been assembled into a photo book entitled “The Art of Custom Jewelry Design” It showcases most of the design pieces entered into contests since they started competing. A snippet of it can be previewed on their website, Mjewelers.com or in person at Melancon Jewelers.

Melancon Jewelers is located conveniently on the bypass in Abbeville. A celebrated jewelry store it has been awarded by it peers in the jewelry industry “Jeweler of the Year” on three different occasions. Also has been voted on four different occasions “Best Jewelry Store in Abbeville” by the readers of the Abbeville Meridional.

Incorporated in 1981, Melancon Jewelers Inc is about to celebrate 30 years of service to the Vermilion, Acadiana Area and those loyal customers out of state. They are located on the bypass in Abbeville next to Blockbusters.

For more information they can be reached at 337-893-1900 or at info@Mjewelers.com.