Something New

Vanessa deBruijn

A three-dimensional computer-designed diamond engagement ring hangs in the center of a flat screen monitor, the dimensions and size of its sparkly rock manipulated with the click of a mouse

In another store across town, the setting is different but the wish to make a couple’s wedding day the most beautiful day possible is a shared desire. A scan of the showroom reveals cases and cases of sparkly diamonds and shiny silver-and-gold jewelry. Two women peer into a case, pointing animatedly at the beautiful stones enshrined under a layer of frequently cleaned glass. Easy listening music filters out of the speakers in the ceiling, and a plate of chocolate chip cookies lies on the counter next to the register. A young woman named Christina Webster emerges from a work-station in the back of Chalmers Jewelers - she is responsible for helping design the diamond rings that make men’s and women’s hearts beat just a little bit faster (though perhaps for very different reasons).

"The majority of men that come in, they are a little bit anxious," she admits, "but it’s also excitement. The more excited they are, the more excited I am."

Webster is no stranger to jewelry. Her fascination began as a little girl who loved to prance around in her mother’s rings, and she developed her passion into concrete skills after receiving a scholarship to Northeast Wisconsin Technical College where she majored in jewelry repair and fabrication.

When embarking on a custom ring project, Webster begins a process similar to Yamada’s. However, Webster deviates from the traditional process in one fundamental way – it’s called the Matrix.

The Matrix helps jewelry artists design in 3-D on a computer, just like animators who use a computer to design a cartoon character. The Matrix brings the jeweler and customer’s vision into a virtual world where the design can be manipulated and added to until every angle, texture and proportion is aesthetically pleasing. In the midst of buzzing polishing machines and rows of miniscule tools for shaping and drilling by hand, the lime green and black grid on the Matrix’s screen acts as a digital canvas where Webster creates her masterpieces.

Despite all of the high-tech gadgets and gizmos at her disposal, Webster still gets her biggest thrill out of designing heirlooms that will be in the hearts and minds of her customers for years to come.

"I like knowing that I am making rings that are going on someone’s finger and that it is going to make them smile," she said.