One word can summarize what’s happening in the precious metals market these days- Speculation! Every day we see more and more TV and radio ads from companies advocating investing in precious metals to hedge against inflation.  And people are jumping in by the thousands.  With the dollar on the decline, endless government spending, and the huge deficit America now faces, it appears to be a great idea.  But is it? Will precious metals continue to keep rising? No one really knows the answer to those questions. Here is a little information / comparisons to price indexes from 1970 when I started in the jewelry business to now in 2011.

In 1970 gold was approximately $36.00 an ounce, silver was approximately $1.75 per ounce. Today, gold is $1,500.00 and silver is $45.00 That’s 42 times the gold price, 26 times the silver price. Let’s make some comparisons to average incomes and the costs for a few things if they were 42times (for gold) and 26times (for silver) from 1970 to now-

1970                       2011 (X42)                        2011 (X26)

Avg. Household Income:              $ 9,000.00             $360,000.00                       $234,000.00

Postage Stamp:                           $.06                       $2.40                               $1.56

Milk / Gal:                                   $1.15                     $46.00                              $29.90

Regular Gas / Gal:                       $.36                       $14.40                              $9.36

New Home (avg.):                       $27,000.00             $1,100,000.00                  $702,000.00

It appears to me that at these prices are grossly over inflated at the moment due to all the Speculation. But what do I know, I’m no economist, I’m a jewelry designer. Understandably, gold and silver are commodities- not necessities. Like stocks, they are investments, and have performed well for the 40 year period. But that’s only true due to the fact that the majority of the increases in the prices have occurred in the last five years, with the biggest gains in the last year due to all the worries of the current economic crisis.  Had you invested in only precious metals back in 1970 you wouldn’t have had any substantial gain until just recently. If you were in your 50’s back in 1970 you would likely have retired with nothing or passed on before you made any money at all. As for today and the future- if the dollar was to completely collapse, do you think you could buy a loaf of bread or gallon of gas with some gold or silver??  I don’t think so!

What does all this mean when it comes to buying a piece of jewelry today? Every business has been affected by the economy over the last two years, none more than those of us in the jewelry business. The current run up in the price of the precious metals has affected us more than any other industry. Essentially, it has, and will continue to eliminate the designers and manufacturers that can’t rethink the use of the metals. It will force the talented and truly creative designers to see, and approach the art of jewelry in a different perspective. The consumer will benefit from all this as only the accomplished artists and their work will prevail. Given these circumstances, the price you pay today for a piece of jewelry, although it may cost more, it is certainly going to be a better value than ever before.

Welcome to the new site, and my first blog post!

I've just returned from doing a successful trunk show on one of my favorite cruise line’s ships—the Regent Seven Seas Navigator. I spent four weeks in the beautiful Mediterranean, beginning in Dover, England. We were in port in France, Spain, Portugal, Monte Carlo, Italy, Sicily, Greece, and Turkey. It is my favorite time of the year to be in the Mediterranean—after the summer crowds have calmed down and the weather is always beautiful. 

As always, I had the opportunity to meet many wonderful people. Meeting and talking with those who have purchased my work while on their cruise is certainly a rewarding and invigorating experience for any artist.  To be able to experience firsthand the appreciation they have is essential and encouraging for anyone to continue to push forward with their work.  The interactions I experienced with my customers certainly gave me renewed inspiration. In short, it's what makes all the hours at the bench in the studio worth it!