by Sherry Kelly
On Nov. 23 Alexandra (Alex) Holt, daughter of Mark Holt, who is the owner/operator of Holt’s Diamond Jewelry in Wautoma, completed a 12-week graduate course at New Approach School for Jewelers (NASJ) in Arrington, TN, which is just south of Nashville.
Alex originally started the course in March of this year, but after only three weeks into the course, COVID-19 caused the program to close. Alex headed home, disappointed, but signed up for the next 12-week course, which began near the end of August. She started fresh in August, repeating the three weeks she had already completed, along with a total of 22 students from all over the country.
While enrolled in the course, Alex stayed in an Air-BnB rental in Arrington and made many friends, including four closer friends from Tennessee, Colorado, West Virginia and Ohio. “By the end, we lost four from the course,” said Alex in a recent interview. “Two dropped out and two didn’t graduate.”
The owner and founder of NASJ, Blaine Lewis, is the lead instructor during the intensive 12-week course. With approximately 20 years of experience as a bench jeweler (one who uses a combination of skills to make and repair jewelry), Lewis has trained over 5,000 students and contracts with Tiffany & Co. jewelry store in New York City to train their employees once a year. “My entire purpose and philosophy is to help students perfect their skills and transition to master craftsman,” says Lewis in an online video.
The second course instructor is Drew Hadley, who took the NASJ 12-week course from Lewis several years ago, then worked for Tiffany & Co. for a few years, and then returned to NASJ to become an instructor. “Both of them were extremely helpful throughout the course,” said Alex.
The first thing students learn is how to safely use equipment used throughout the course, including torches, shafts, and hand tools, such as hand files, hammers, and jewelry saws. Included in the course is soldering, sawing, filing, polishing using finishing compounds, chain repair, ring re-tipping and re-pronging, stone-setting, and head and shank assembly. Although some of the students may have completed various 1-week courses at the school in the past, as did Alex, who took ring sizing and prong tipping in August of 2019, no prerequisites are required to take the 12-week course.
The first project Alex and her classmates had to do was make a round brass circle and then be creative and do anything they wanted to do inside of the circle. “During the project, the instructors talked us through the steps,” said Alex. In the classroom, the students were able to watch live demonstrations that were magnified on video screens. “After each project, the instructors would come by and give us advice,” said Alex. “Every couple of weeks, they would check our work and progress to see how we were doing,” said Alex. “Two people ended up leaving the course because they weren’t progressing,” said Alex. “I don’t think they were interested in learning it.”
Each week they gave students a new project to complete, including hand-engraving, chain repair, ring-sizing, making a ring from a block of metal, making settings, and stone-setting (most often using cubic zirconia).
“Most jewelers don’t set stones,” said Alex. “They send it out to be done somewhere else.” However, Holt’s Diamond Jewelry store does their own stone-setting. Alex is now able to set stones, as well as her dad, and an associate, Dyan Rait, who also has been doing jewelry repairs for Holt’s for five years.
Alex graduated from UW-Oshkosh with a degree in Business Management, with a sales emphasis. While in high school, Alex had little interest in a jewelry career, but after working full-time for her dad’s store in 2018, she changed her mind. She enjoys meeting and talking with customers, but especially likes buying jewelry for the store. She and her dad go to about two jewelry shows per year to purchase jewelry for the store. “I like the unusual and unique pieces,” said Alex.
One of her favorite trips was one she took with her dad to Antwerp, Belgium, which is known as “the diamond capital of the world.” “After having made appointments with diamond sellers, we went to two or three buildings that were highly secured and looked at various diamonds that were labeled “certified,” said Alex. “Diamonds are typically cut in India by master diamond cutters. To cut a one-carat diamond or more, the cutter has to have a minimum of 10 years of experience.”
Alex also enjoyed a trip with her dad to Idar-Oberstein, Germany, which is considered “the colored gemstones capital of the world.” They purchased a number of stones, such as rubies, emeralds, amethyst, citrine, etc. that were already set in pieces of jewelry and some loose stones, which they planned to set once back home in Holt’s jewelry store.
Alex found her 12-week course with NASJ challenging and rewarding and plans to put her new skills to work at Holt’s Diamond Jewelry store, where she now works full time. “I learned so much that I had never done before,” said Alex. “It made me really appreciate how much it takes to create a piece of jewelry.”
Holt’s Diamond Jewelry offers jewelry repair and resizing, lazer-engraving, a large selection of jewelry, both diamonds and colored gemstones, estate jewelry, watches, clocks and many other gifts for many occasions. Contact them at 920-787-3416, on Facebook, or on their website: holtsjewelrywi.com.
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December 02, 2020 at 10:31PM
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Alexandra Holt completes 12-week graduate jewelry course - Waushara Argus
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