HEIRLOOM JEWELRY REDESIGN - WITH OUR RENEW EXPERIENCE

As a designer, I believe that a piece of jewelry is more than just a precious object. Jewelry holds our memories.  We all have pieces that carry special significance: pair of earrings handed down from your grandmother, a necklace given to you as a graduation gift, a meaningful piece you bought for yourself on a trip, a ring from your beloved.  

Personally, I love that jewelry preserves our stories, life’s journey, deepest connections and relationships.   

What happens if an heirloom piece isn’t your style?   What if that special gift that once had so much meaning, doesn’t resonate with who you are today?    

These pieces of jewelry hold our stories, they don’t belong in a box collecting dust.  Jewelry, with its precious stones and metal, is meant to be worn. 

At BLISS LAU, we created the ReNew Experience, an invitation to transform your unworn or heirloom pieces of fine jewelry into new modern treasures. Reimagining heirloom and unused fine jewelry to reflect our history and celebrate our future while protecting our environment and its precious resources.

 

The ReNew Experience invites you to partner with us to breathe new life into your unworn treasures.  It’s a unique opportunity to redefine your connection with your jewelry, re-establishing its meaning for you today as an expression of personal stories, family history and your authentic self.

WHY RENEW?

Growing up in Hawaii, I learned a deep respect for and connection with the Earth. Reuse and recycle to make new again is a part of culture on the islands.  In this tradition, we approach our design process with a focus on Circularity and responsible sourcing. We're not just preserving precious materials – we're preserving stories while reducing our environmental impact. Each piece we transform is thoughtfully crafted using responsibly sourced materials like Fairmined Gold, or post-consumer diamond details, ensuring that your jewelry's new chapter aligns with ethical practices.

The ReNew Experience is a journey in three parts: EMBARK, ENVISION, and EMERGE.  

 

EMBARK

We start with the story of your piece.  Chatting virtually or over a cup of tea at our studio in DUMBO, Brooklyn, I want to understand what this piece means to you. 

Whether you ship your jewelry to us or bring it to the studio in person, I love to listen to stories behind the piece – the celebrations, the milestones, the quiet moments. Through our conversations, we’ll discover how these treasures can evolve to reflect who you are today.

This is where a kind of magic happens.  Your narrative melds with my design ideas, as we carefully consider every detail. Whether we're incorporating new elements, rebuilding settings, or completely reimagining a piece, the creative process is guided by both meaning and aesthetics.

 

Rachel came to us with her beloved mother’s vintage ruby ring.  She wore this cherished piece on her wedding day and only on special occasions.   It carried so much meaning, but mostly sat in a drawer.  Together we envisioned a ring that honored her mother’s memory and celebrates the woman she is today… We created a modern heirloom to be cherished daily, that's both wearable and wonderfully meaningful.

We’ll come away from this phase with a clear vision of a reimagined piece of jewelry that will be yours.  From here, the design and hands on work begins.

 

ENVISION 

Symbolism and Significance

One of the distinguishing features of the ReNew Experience is our emphasis on personal meaning, symbolism and intention.  In the EMBARK phase we discussed what is meaningful to you, now we infuse the design with those elements that resonate with your journey. I often start hand sketching concepts to capture the essence of the design during this first conversation.  Sharing these initial creative ideas with you in the moment sets us on the path to the final piece.

Whether incorporating birthstones, symbolic shapes or cuts or custom engravings, the design will represent your world and experiences. Numerology often plays an important role.  The number 8, for example, auspicious in some cultures, can be incorporated into the amount of diamonds.   Setting stones in threes can represent life cycles. Color, of course can play an important role as well.  

Custom Sketch Rendering

Next, we’ll share with you a lifelike digital sketch rendering to help you visualize your new piece.

 

“I am so incredibly in love with my new custom ring. The stones were from a ring of my mother’s, which I admittedly stored in a drawer for over 15 years since her passing because it didn’t fit any of my fingers. Not only did Bliss and her team reimagine this ring into something modern and beautiful, but the process of working with them was also so so wonderful. Now I have something that perfectly embodies my aesthetic and also embraces my mother’s legacy.” -Joanna

Our design technology utilizes a combination of 3D rendering, inspiration from advances in the jewelry industry and digital printing.   We synthesize the spatial relationship between your body, the chosen stone(s), the characteristics of the design and our aesthetic to create a new, completely unique piece.

The technical process by which we develop, craft and create our jewelry is specialized for our design studio: it is our own hybridization of traditional jewelry techniques and current innovations in technology. We utilize 3D renders or prints of jewelry in our development process which contributes to the highly precise nature of our work.

In the final stage of development, before we go into casting, we can print a 3D model of the piece for you to try on.  This is a fun moment where the new piece comes to life and it’s the time for any final adjustments.  

Once approved, the piece is printed in wax and sent to be cast into metal. 

Your Gemstones and Precious Metal

Metalsmithing is a generational craft.  Our network of goldsmiths and artisans have a lifetime of knowledge, skills and experience to make our unique pieces.

When reworking heirlooms, our team of specialists will carefully take out your stones.  They will then be measured and 3D scanned. 

Recutting and refinishing gemstones can often bring a sleeping or scratched stone back to life beautifully.

One note of caution: Jewelry that has been lovingly worn for years often has wear and tear.  Even in the hands of the best of craftspeople some stones may be broken or may break in the extraction process. 

The price of precious metal like gold and platinum fluctuates daily. The value of your metal will be credited to you.

Once approved, we create the piece.  Now it’s only a matter of weeks...

 

EMERGE

When your piece is completed, you’ll receive an email from a BLISS LAU team member.  We can ship or arrange for an in-person pickup. 

That moment when you wear your Renewed jewelry for the first time is profound, suddenly the unworn treasure becomes a daily reminder of that special person, memory, your essence. Now back where it belongs, you have a new story to tell with a transformed piece that reflects you, your history and your journey. 

CARE FOR A LIFETIME

At BLISS LAU we want to make sure your jewelry is cherished for a lifetime, even generations. 

Weekly cleaning will keep your ring shining in all its glory: use our natural cleaner.  Our Travel Case is perfect as a safe place to store your jewelry.  And you are always invited to visit our Brooklyn Showroom for a complimentary jewelry cleaning, just book an appointment. 

Your jewelry's story doesn't end with transformation – it evolves with you. 

As your life unfolds, we can continue to adapt and enhance your pieces, ensuring they remain true companions for a lifetime. 

The ReNew Experience isn't just about reimagining your jewelry; it's about empowering you to wear your story with intention and pride.

I invite you to experience this transformative journey. Let's awaken the hidden potential in your cherished pieces together, creating jewelry that doesn't just adorn you, but celebrates who you and your story.

Until next time, 

Bliss