Harlin Jones, with its spiky forms and rock-and-roll vibe, is one of those rare fine jewelry collections you can identify on sight. New York City-based jewelry designer and bench jeweler Sumer Sayan, who was born in Turkey but moved to Sydney, Australia, when he was just 5 years old, launched the brand in 2014 after working for a handful of major jewelry houses.
He's recently returned to his roots: Sayan opened a showroom in Sydney last month, making Harlin Jones a transcontinental atelier. And now the designer's partnered with a Down Under gemstone purveyor—the Australian Natural Sapphire Company (ANSC)—on a small collection of styles that utilize deep green sapphires, which he paired with gold and diamonds.
Sayan has known Michael Muratore, managing director of ANSC, since 1998, when they both worked as apprentices to bench jewelers, and explains, "As we planned to open our studio in Sydney, Michael approached us with the idea of having Harlin Jones serve as the Sydney CBD [retail seller] for ANSC’s extensive collection of loose natural Australian sapphires."
The gemstone dealer's collection is comprised of the top 2% of all mined gems from Australia's Queensland Gem Field, the largest sapphire-bearing area in the southern hemisphere, in quality. ANSC stockpiled and acquired the sapphires from mining regions including Ruby Vale, Sapphire, Tomahawk Creek, Subera, Anachy, Glenn Alva and Willows. "The mineral rich soils of some of these locations led to a larger than normal range of color-change and color-shift sapphires across all the colors of the spectrum," according to ANSC's website, which also states, "each piece of this 150 million-year-old gem material is treatment-free."
Sayan's collection for the gem dealer spotlights the beauty of these top-shelf sapphires. "They truly offer some of the most exquisite gemstones I have ever encountered, showcasing a remarkable variety of colors, shapes, and sizes," Sayan tells Gem + Jewel, adding, "What distinguishes ANSC from many others is their cutting; in my opinion, the precision of a gemstone’s cut is one of the most crucial factors, and the sapphires from ANSC are cut to perfection."
The new styles were inspired by the stones themselves: "Each gemstone possesses its own unique character, and our main objective was to showcase their stunning beauty in all its glory," Sayan says. "At the same time, it was crucial for us to remain authentic to the Harlin Jones aesthetic and brand DNA."
The designer found jewelry design and craft after dropping out of high school and feeling, "uncertain about which career path to pursue." Recognizing his creativity and dexterity, his father encouraged him to return to Turkey and embark on an internship with his uncle, a renowned jeweler in Istanbul. "It was during this time that my passion for jewelry truly blossomed," he recalls. "I was captivated not only by the intricate craftsmanship but also by the rich history and tradition of the art form in a city like Istanbul, where jewelry making has been revered for centuries. The combination of exposure to such a skilled trade and the vibrant culture surrounding it left a lasting impression on me."
When asked what he loved most about working with the sapphires, all of which are full of fire, Sayan says, "There’s a subtlety to these gemstones that, when illuminated, truly comes to life, almost exploding with vibrant hues and light."
