For the past 13 years we have been using a track light system for illuminating our jewelry, and this track system consists of roughly (thirty) 75-watt flood lights. Being in an age where energy costs are up, and spending almost $4,000 a year on just the cost of running the track lights, (not to mention running the air conditioning to cool the building down due to the heat of the lights) we had to make a change.

After researching all of our options, we decided to replace the lights we are currently using with LED lights. I was skeptical at first, seeing that these LED lights only had an output of 300 lumens per light, as opposed to the 750 lumens per bulb we were used to, so I ordered only 2 lights. Plus they were ...

Like the Bob Dylan song, titled a little like this post, times are changing; not only in life and on the streets, but also on the internet. No longer can you have just a web page with a generic shopping cart, throw a bunch of money at some ad campaign, and expect to be an instant hit.

And it isn’t all about the money any more either. People actually want to int ...

For weeks one could see me storming about my family stating “write a blog post!”, “We need more blog post.”, “people have read everything and want more. write a blog post” etc.

I need only to open my mouth to hear “I know, I know …” or “I’ve really been meaning to”. I’m sure everyone is sick of hearing my voice by now. But what have I written lately?

My excuse was IR ...

2007-2008 has been a time of change for Wexford Jewelers. Not only have we completely revamped our landscaping, we just painted our building! We’ve stared at mottled orange & brown brick for so long, the soft gray structure sitting at the corner of Mitchell & River Streets is almost unrecognizable!

Add to that new paint inside, new concrete sidewalks (at least on two sides of the building), a new design studio inside, a new and huge repair/finishing shop, this new and awesome website, and this place seems suddenly like a lovely chrysalis, a shining butterfly emerging from a dusty cocoon.

I will post photos later of the new paint job/garden/sidewalk. The painters are not quite done as o ...

Over the years, I have repaired every kind of jewelry there is. And it was brought to me in every possible condition. In doing so, it has taught me a lot about how to properly maintain my precious, not so easy to replace, baubles. I am now passing on a practical list of do’s and don’ts for you read, and implement. If properly maintained and checked, your jewelery will last for generations to come.

DO’S:

Do get your jewelry regularly checked by a jeweler. Every 6 months to a year.

Do take off your rings every month and clean them, if not by a jeweler, then yourself. A solution of hot water, Windex, and a couple drops of dish soap, works wonders. Soak for 5 to 10 minutes, ( no long ...

Its Friday night. I’m sitting at home after a hastily-prepared but tasty meal. My children are clambering over my legs and putting questionable things into my hair. My feet ache- not from standing in one place all day but from walking back and forth throughout the store, balancing on one foot while a customer regales me with stories, and constantly getting up and down to answer the ding of the door.

Its been a busy week, as usual. I’ve changed your watch batteries, sized your watch bands. I’ve drawn sketches for you- sketches of rings and pendants made from your mother’s diamonds and your old high school class ring. I’ve listened to you tell me about how your hands swell in the morning, ...

One of the better things about operating our earlier business ventures out of Tucson was the annual opportunity to attend the world’s largest gem show. I believe that may have been what drew us there in the first place, back in ‘87.

The first few years, I seldom got a chance to tag along with my dad and his friend and mentor, Walter C. But as our business grew and I aged into a somewhat responsible teen, I was allowed to accompany him more often. We would only make it through a tiny percentage of the show, as my dad was extremely pokey, and loved nothing better than haggling some poor Brazilian until the guy forgot his English.

In the early nineties tanzanite really took off as a popular gemstone. Always exp ...

Summer has finally come to Northern Michigan. It has had to struggle through rain, late frost, and more rain. Then it encountered hail, high winds, thunder, more rain, and… more rain.

It is flooded up here, as in other parts of the country. My poor neighbors had just gotten their garage emptied of six inches of Lake Mitchell when another storm blew up and refilled it. As if that weren’t enough, the storm also upended a good-sized tree onto their swing, and their yard is now one big messy pond.

But I firmly believe that we have found summer, and I intend to hang onto it until at least October. My peonies bloomed and died, now the Iceland poppies grace a sparse patch of lawn. We redid the landscap ...

The little boy couldn’t have been more than twelve years old. Small for his age, he peered just over the glass countertop of our antique cases.

“How much does a custom necklace cost?” He asked, his voice level and his eyes serious.

“Well,” my dad hedged, ever the profiteer, “how much do you have?”

“I have thirty-two dollars.” The boy pulled a stack of sweaty bills out of his pocket. They were wrinkly, but neatly ordered. “I want a peanut necklace for my mom.”

“A peanut?” My dad asked.

“Yes, sir.” Any child who referred to my dad as ‘sir’ immediately rose up a few notches in his estima ...

Since I launched the shopping cart I have been keeping an eye on how many people are registering and using the shopping cart. I am always looking for ways to make the shopping and browsing experience better as we transition to the finalized website](http://wexfordjewelers.com). It was while I was looking at this that I noticed no one was adding anything to their shopping carts.

I found a bug that was preventing it from working and have fixed it. I have tested it on my development server and on the main ...