We love nothing more than a designer visit-especially when the designer brings beautifully crafted gemstones to facilitate one-of-a-kind creations for the holidays and ever after.

Anna Sheffield image courtesy Anna Sheffield

On Thursday, November 5, from 12 to 3pm, New York City-based jewelry designer Anna Sheffield will visit SPACE in our flagship Seattle location. And on Saturday, November 7, from 12 to 3pm, she'll be at SPACE in our brand-new Vancouver store.

We talked with her in anticipation of her Northwest visits, and found out what she's looking forward to sharing with clients and fans.

The Thread: One of the most exciting parts of your visit is that you'll be bringing jewels with you so that clients can select their own colorways and work with you one-on-one to create a unique piece. What do you love about sharing this process with your clients?

Sheffield: The wonderful part of working with such a wide array of gemstones and metal colors is that just about anything is possible. Seeing the stones and being part of the design process means that you are getting a truly bespoke piece-and that is so fun for both me and the person who's going to have the jewelry in their life every day! Jewelry is so personal and special, as it is. So I feel it's a great way to share in the dialogue and to see what kind of beautiful combinations people come up with.

Image courtesy Anna Sheffield You must have a really deep and informed relationship with gems-and part of the benefit of meeting designers like you is getting some of that first-hand knowledge. What aspects do you end up discussing with clients? What do you find people want to know about? What are your favorite gems to talk about?

There is so much magic in gemstones; I absolutely consider their aesthetics as well as their meaning and metaphysical or energetic properties. Each one is a unique and glorious part of the mineral kingdom.

The stones I love most are the ones that have a story as well as something exceptional about them. I'm a huge fan of labradorite, which is an opalescent blue, green-grey feldspar-very similar to moonstone, which I also love for its luminosity and delicate coloring.

I'll have a mix of shapes, sizes and cuts for some of our best silhouettes so that people can make a unique piece or even develop a bespoke suite of earrings and ring-or a stacking set.

Coloration and colorways are such an evocative part of what you do-and fall is such a hue-rich season. What shades and combinations do you find yourself drawn to right now?

My color crushes are changing moment to moment, especially when it comes to gemstones and jewel tones. I love each and every one for their own attributes and provenance. I was really into pink and green-rose gold and emerald-in the summer, and now I am feeling more yellow and cool colors-yellow gold and blue sapphire or grey moonstone, turquoise and grey diamonds. I'm sure I will have a rose and champagne diamond or ruby crush in the near future! I never stray for too long into just one color.

Do you travel a lot for your work? Have you been to the Northwest before? Is travel a common source of inspiration for you?

I have been to Seattle a few times, during childhood and more recently. I absolutely love the Northwest coast; last time I went up to Whidbey Island, which was so phenomenally beautiful. I'm looking forward to that landscape-the trees alongside the lake and sea. There are very special jewel tones in them.