About

Topaz is a precious gemstone that is found in a variety of colors from yellow to blue, brown, and rose red, blue being the rarest form. The word ‘topaz’ is thought to have a few different origins: ‘Topazios,’ the ancient name of St. John’s Island in the Red Sea which was known for the yellow gems mined there; an Arabic word meaning ‘subject of the search;’ or the Sanskrit word tapas meaning ‘heat’ or ‘fire.’ It is considered to be the birthstone for the month of December, and is given in celebration of 4th and 19th anniversaries.

The poet Pablo Neruda wrote an ode to the beauty of topaz in his poem ‘El Topacio:’ it begins, “Whenever you touch topaz, it touches you: it awakes / a gentle fire, like wine awakes in grapes.” The topaz is a particularly captivating stone, having high qualities of color, clarity, and hardness.

Sapphires have few rivals in the world of gemstones. They belong to the corundum group of minerals, classified as a 9 on the Mohs scale: only diamonds are harder than sapphires. While this gem is largely cherished for its beauty today, it was often used in the making of axes and other sharp tools in China as early as 4000 BCE. Perhaps this durability has lead many to attach the sapphire to attributes such as truth, faithfulness, and permanence.

Artist

Page Sargisson describes her Brooklyn studio as bright and happy, with a couch where she occasionally takes afternoon naps. The colors are fuchsia and orange - with two boys at home, ages 4 and 2, she doesn't get to see pink very often. Page has always been a designer of sorts, starting at age eight, when she would knit clothes for her Cabbage Patch Kids. "It just happens that you can make a business from jewelry since knitting for a living is almost impossible!" she says.

In creating her jewelry, Page doesn't always follow the rules of tradition. "Too much of this world is made by machine now and everything looks sterile. I love seeing the imperfections, the hand of the artist." Page mostly wears her own jewelry, although she and her husband found her engagement ring - a 1950's cocktail ring - in Rome, Italy.

Page has never owned a car, and is passionate about car-less transportation. She lived in Europe for a time, and is particularly fond of the railroad. With two kids, she rarely has thirty minutes of downtime, but takes those once-in-a-while opportunities to lie in bed and read. She indulges in chocolate on a daily basis.

Details

• 18k satin-finish gold
• set with two 2mm blue sapphires and one 2mm blue topaz
• 3mm band
• TLC for your satin-finish gold and gemstone jewelry