Opal: October's Enchanting Birthstone

Oz is the man behind it all! Read on to get to know him a little better!

 

Can you tell us a little about yourself?

I have lived in Catawba County all of my 65 years of life, & love this area. My business is extremely important to me. But as much as I love Oz's Jewelers, there is some things that are more important: family, my employees (which are like family), friends, & my faith. Away from the store, I enjoy messing with cars, traveling, &, most of all, the life I have been blessed with. 

 

When did you decide to open up your own jewelry store?

I began working in jewelry in 1976 & set a goal to open my own store by the age of 33. On February 1, 1983, I opened Oz's Jewelers doing mainly wholesale repair work for 12 stores in our area. Not long after that, it morphed into a retail jewelry store as well.

 

What sets Oz's Jewelers apart from other jewelry store in terms of design & craftsmanship?

We are family owned & truly care about your jewelry & understand how much it means to you. We also specialize in custom jewelry & I love bringing new & unique pieces to life for our customers.

 

What's the best part about your job?

The people that I work with that always have my back & push me to do things that can seem almost impossible. I also really love working with my hands, &, most of all, creating new designs.

 

Could you describe the process of creating a custom piece of jewelry at Oz's Jewelers?

We begin with having a conversation with the customer to discuss the details of the project. As I jeweler, I want to understand what styles a customer is drawn to & if we're gong to be using heirloom stones or sourcing new ones.

Then I begin my favorite part of the process: drawing up new designs. Sometimes I have visions (a lot from God) of what a piece could look like before I create a CAD design of the jewelry piece. Once the design is approved by the customer, the jewelry is casted & the stones are set into the beautiful piece that we set out to create!

 

 

 

What is your favorite piece of jewelry that you've ever created & why is it your favorite?

I made my wife, Brenda, a ring using old setting styles of hand work. It took about 21 hours to make, but was so worth it. Another favorite was a flat diamond slab with many diamonds around it on a diamond beaded necklace. It had a total of 22 carats of diamonds in it. It also won 1st place in it's division & best of show! 

One of my most important designs is what I now call the Steal Her Heart collection. It was given to me through a vision from God. The design won multiple awards & grew into many designs that were sold in over 1000 stores across the country. 

 

What's your jewelry philosophy?

Your imagination is your limitation. If you can imagine it, you can make it!

 

What trends in jewelry do you foresee becoming popular in the coming year?

Lab-grown diamonds! They continue to grow in popularity!

 

We know you're a car guy! Tell us a little about your collection.

Cars & racing have always been important to me. If I would have not been helping on a race car when I  was in high school, I would not have met the man that trained me to create & repair jewelry! My current car collection consists of a 2020 Corvette, 2007 Corvette, 1982 Corvette, 1996 Daytona Pace Car Edition, 1969 C-10 Chevy Pickup (my dad's), & a 1960 Impala Sport Coupe.

 

What does your ideal Saturday look like?

I love going up to the mountains on my Saturdays off to enjoy nature.