When most 16-year-old girls were spending their time choosing a dress for the prom,
Pamela Huizenga was spending her time studying to become a certified lapidary.
By Cynthia Unninayar
Pamela Huizenga was spending her time studying to become a certified lapidary.
By Cynthia Unninayar
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Since early childhood, Pamela Huizenga has always loved rocks. “My mom says I would come home with pockets full of fossils and stones,” she reminisces. “If it was sparkly, shiny or interesting, I had to have it.” Later, when she was about twelve, her family vacationed in North Carolina and took her to some of the "mine-your-own gemstone" places where she became fascinated with gems and minerals.
At sixteen, she asked world-renowned lapidary, Jerry Call, if she could enroll in his gem-cutting classes. “It was an intensive five-week program, from 9 to 5, five days a week,” she recalls. “When I received my certification, it was mentioned in the local news-papers because I was the youngest person to take the course.” “Although high school and college got in the way of my stone cutting,” she continues, “the world of gems and minerals was never far away.” By 19, after working for a gem dealer at a local exchange, the talented teenager started her own business selling pieces from various jewelers. Since then, she has been involved in all aspects of the jewelry industry—as a buyer, retailer, seller, consultant, and designer. Today, she concentrates on what she loves most—designing and stonecutting. “As a lapidary,” Pamela muses, “I work directly with each of the stones I use, focusing on its color and shape, allowing the gem to guide my hands and tell me how it wants to evolve. I work with its imperfections, instead of against them, which makes each design unique and gives it character.” Although she doesn’t cut every stone in her designs, she does cut the opals and some of the more unique rough pieces. Pamela’s unique ability to pair unusual and rare gemstones in her stylish and timeless designs attracts jewelry collectors who are always looking for something new. Inspired by the dichotomies in Nature, this gifted designer expresses both the calming and dramatic force of the oceans, the serene and yet vibrant colors of the deserts, and the contrasting hues of the world’s forests. Her boldly intimate use of precious and semi-precious stones— often mixing and matching unlikely textures and shapes— truly demands attention. There is an earthy complexity about her designs that is both sophisticated and primeval. From cutting and polishing stones, to layouts on her signature duct tape, to design and manufacturing, Pamela’s hand touches every step in the creation of her one-of-a-kind pieces. And, these original works of wearable art may include such exotic gems as hemimorphite, uvarovite, drusy agates, emerald slices, fossilized coral and wood, as well as luxurious multicolored sapphires, garnets, rubies, aquamarines, diamonds, and tourmaline. From show-stopping bracelets and pendants to striking earrings and sophisticated rings, each piece of jewelry is a conscious artistic expression. “One of the most exciting aspects of being a designer is that I can create what I want,” she adds. “But what makes it all worth while is when someone sees your work and ‘gets it.’ They feel the mystery in the stones and relate to why you created the piece. That is definitely the most rewarding part of designing jewelry.” In an industry where perfection is often the goal, Pamela Huizenga has created her own, imperfectly perfect sensations that are bold examples of what can happen when Mother Nature is given a loving helping hand. The result is organic elegance—balancing texture, color and shape into a wearable mosaic of gems and metal. (www.pamelahuizenga.com) |
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