Our Process

Stream & Strata is a family run jewelry business

Our mission is to create high quality, ethically made, earth friendly jewelry made from precious metals and natural stones. We start with ethically sourced raw materials to produce only the best quality finished products- handling every part of the jewelry making process from the lapidary down to recycling scrap metals. Read on for an inside scoop on how we make our adornments.

So where does it all start?

We source all of our raw materials from other likeminded hobbyists and businesses, only purchasing from individuals who have a direct role in acquiring the materials, and often also those who worked with the materials to make more desirable forms (such as a lapidarist who cut and polished their own cabochons). We have spent many weekends out in the sun claiming rocks from fields and attending auctions on family farms, coming home with crates full of new rocks to cut open and polish for our jewelry.

We control every step of the process

From the lapidary work down to the final polish

Large rocks first need to be "slabbed"- think of it like a meat slicer!

The large rock will be clamped down and run through an oil saw to make cross sections of rock called 'slabs'. This takes a fair amount of time depending on how hard the material is, just one of the many time consuming steps in this process. Once we have our slabs, we move on to marking out the desired shape using a template or freehand. We will mark the full slab to maximize efficiency, then it's on to the next step- the trim saw.

Onto the trim saw

Once we are happy with the layout of shapes on our slabs, we can move onto the trim saw where we'll roughly cut out all of the shapes. We use water to lubricate the blade, and gently push the slab through the saw, freeing all of the shapes as we go. This prepares them for the polishing stage.

Last but not least...

With our shapes cut out, we're ready for the final shaping and polishing process. This involves water lubricated wheels of various grits ranging from coarse to ultra fine. We work through each grit, taking care to maintain the shape and dome of each cabochon. Once we have a glassy shine, they get one final polish, then they're ready to be set into jewelry! Easy right? ;)

Moving onto the metal

Our finished cabochons will now find their forever homes in metal- sterling silver or gold. After leaving the design stage, the next step is usually a bezel, the part that wraps around the stone. All other components, such as decorative balls or hand sawn plants and animals will also be made in preparation for soldering.

Fire it up!

Next we'll move between a few stages, soldering & tweaking designs until everything is up to snuff. Solder chips or wire in hard, medium, and easy varieties will be placed along seams and heated until everything flows, creating a seamless bond. After every solder session, the piece is placed into a pickle solution which will get rid of any residue and fire scale left by the flux and flame. This is often the most challenging and finicky part of the process, and the one that'll make every jeweler cry at some point in their career. Guilty.

The finish line is in sight!

Once everything has been soldered and pickled, each piece will undergo an extensive sanding and polishing process involving many different items and rotary tools. I ensure that each piece is smooth and blended, and most importantly- all fire stain is removed (which can take a loooong time). Fire stain is a purplish stain that occurs when silver is heated with a flame, it can often be minimized but never fully avoided when working with a torch. Once all of this has been removed and each piece is smooth and shiny, it gets a dip into a darkening bath to bring out the highlights, then tumbled in various mediums to achieve the desired finish. Finally, the stone is set and the piece is buffed with a sealing wax to slow down tarnishing. Voila! Our piece is complete, 100% handmade.

Here's a little more about who's who at the zoo...

This business is a full time family affair, and one that I love dearly

My dad is our main lapidary artist, often found in the studio polishing rocks all day and night. He slabs all of our material as well, and even built a beautiful shed in the backyard to act as our three season lapidary studio (a bit too chilly here in the winter!). My mom marks a lot of the slabs, finding stories and patterns in stone. She also takes care of a ton of the behind the scenes inventory and research, saving me valuable studio time. I (Emily) am the main metalsmith, customer service and IT support, photographer, designer, everything person you'll always see running around like a crazed chicken. Kaz, my partner, acts as my therapist and photography assistant, and owns the steadiest hands in all the land. Every photo prop you see has been foraged by this man. All of my friends and family have had a role in building this business, and I couldn't be more thankful for the generosity and support. It truly is a team effort and this little business wouldn't exist if it weren't for all of these amazing people.

My dad the lapidary wizard

He built this shed in the dead heat of the summer and only fell off the ladder twice. This space is absolutely beautiful and has allowed us to expand and take on new opportunities.

Moving forward...

My goal for the future is to work more with solid gold. I've made a handful of solid 14k pieces, and would love to make more. If you have any projects that you'd like to have made, I'm your gal! I am also looking forward to learning tube setting and flush setting faceted stones, and much further in the future semi-precious stones are on the horizon!