Jewelry Collection Stories: The Girls of Gray & Davis

The girls of Gray & Davis love antique jewelry and working in the heart of NYC’s diamond district, they get to experience the hustle and bustle of the fast-paced jewelry world each and every day!  With the company’s torch being passed on to these girls, the shop is shining brighter than ever…but before Gray retired, she gifted each with a special piece from her personal collection.  So happy to share each with you:

 

We could tell you a story about each piece of jewelry we own personally; whom it came from, the occasion we received it and maybe even that person who wore it before us.  When Gem Gossip asked us to share some jewels from our personal collections, all three of us were decidedly sure which pieces we would like to talk about.

47^th Street is a bit of a boy’s club, so when our founder, Gray Boone, started Gray & Davis over a decade ago, she immediately stood out in a good way. Armed with an inexhaustible knowledge of antique jewelry and old-fashioned southern charm, her tiny booth quickly became a favorite shop for New York City collectors and couples. She was more than a boss to us, she was our mentor. She taught us about the historical relevance of jewelry, how crucial it is to stand by your word in this industry, and the importance of appreciating not just antique diamonds but also Berlin Iron, jewelry made of woven hair, and paste demi parures. She expanded our interests; things that didn’t feel precious at first became the most storied. Now, we love it all!

Gray retired last year, and it was her wish that Gray & Davis be carried on. Before she left she chose and gifted each of us a piece from her personal stash of treasure.

We knew how much these pieces meant to her and we are flattered and honored to have them in our own collections.  Wearing these pieces will forever remind us of Gray. She instilled in us a need to collect and preserve antiquities and a desire to share them. We are grateful for our founder/mentor for all the lessons, opportunities, and yes of course the jewels, too 🙂

 

Ali’s whimsical Victorian 18K yellow gold earrings set with rhodolite garnets and fringe! They still look funky and fun over 130 years after they were made.  Crazy earrings are an antique dealer’s staple. 

Laura’s awesome 1920’s long cut-steel tassel necklace. It’s easy to imagine this glittering necklace going out for a night on the town in Jazz-age New York or on present day Laura, whose height and monochromatic color palate are well suited. 

Anna’s pair of 19^th century bangle bracelets.  Talk about wild! These are hard to put into words, flat gold disks atop oxidized silver coils, perfectly esoteric for a soon-to-be Master in the History of Decorative Arts.  

>> To read about my visit to Gray & Davis, click here.