Diamonds and Design with Marie Kargiotis

We had the privilege of chatting with Marie Kargiotis who is Adelaide’s interior design guru, creating dream spaces for the likes of International Model Adut Akech, Kane and Lucy Cornes and Radio personality Rebecca Morse.

Marie recently visited our Walkerville studio and trusted us with creating a new, memorable ring from an existing piece of jewellery she has had for many years.

Jewellery redesigns are one of our favourite things to do here at Class A. We feel honoured that our clients entrust us with the process of taking an existing piece of jewellery that often has sentimental value, and giving it new life. Here’s what Marie had to say about her redesign experience.


Why did you choose to work with Class A?

Class A Jewellers are known for their incredible custom designs and jewellery transformations and I knew they would include me in the creative process. When deciding who to choose I knew I wanted to support a South Australian business that has an unmatched reputation for quality and customer service. From walking in with the three original pieces to walking out with my final piece, the whole process was seamless and they completely understood and listened to my vision for the ring. Class A offers a lifetime guarantee, so I had complete peace of mind with my purchase.

Tell us a little bit about your original ring and why you chose to redesign it?

I feel very privileged to have this incredible tradition in our family where I received a piece of jewellery each time I had a child. I am blessed with three girls and one boy and I have a ring to represent each of them. When the kids are old enough to appreciate the jewellery, I will pass it down for them to cherish and enjoy. The ring that I had redesigned was one I received for my second daughter, Chloe who is now 16 years old.

The original style of the ring was a pavé band with over fifty diamonds throughout. There was nothing wrong with the original design, but after all these years I wanted to give it a bit of an update. I know Chloe is rather excited by the new design and is looking forward to inheriting it in the future!

What inspired the new design of the ring and did you have a plan of the design before meeting with Class A?

I had a very clear vision of what I wanted for the new design, but that all changed as soon as I sat down with Daniel. Initially I had the idea of splitting the original ring into three separate rings, with each band in a different metal colour; yellow gold, white gold and rose gold. The rings would have been designed to stay together or wear separately depending on the occasion. After my initial consultation with Daniel, we decided to scrap that original idea and "go hard or go home", so to speak. There was a great opportunity to create something incredibly unique and unlike any design I had seen before, so that's what we went with. The final design is pavé set with my sixty-three original brilliant cut diamonds, with offset floral leaf shapes which span right around the finger.

What was your favourite part of the process with Class A?

Working with a passionate and talented creative like Daniel was a highlight. Daniel brought his expertise and creative flair to the experience that just made me even MORE excited about my ring transformation. From one Designer to another, I felt as though we spoke the same language, as he really understood what I was looking to recreate. One of my favourite aspects of the process was having the opportunity to try on a wax version of the new design before committing to it. This was a great way to try the ring on my finger, see how it would fit and how it could be worn with my other rings.

 The time, effort and creative energy that went into this ring was truly amazing. I LOVE IT!

Marie Kargiotis - the stylist loves
W: thestylistloves.com.au
IG: @thestylistloves

Cover image credit: Now and Then Photography