Part of the Tamar Collection Studio Stories

I'm Andrea Li, a handmade gemstone jewelry designer creating one-of-a-kind pieces from my studio in Denver, Colorado. Each piece I make takes me on what I call a "micro-journey", a unique creative path that can never be exactly replicated. This is the story of how the Amethyst Choker from my Tamar Collection came to life.

Some pieces flow from vision to reality without resistance. This wasn't one of them.

The dramatic amethyst choker from my Tamar Collection taught me, once again, that jewelry design is a conversation between artist and material, and sometimes the material wins, forcing me to move with the gemstone's vibration rather than against it.

amethyst choker with a dramatic gold chevron chain drop showing closeup details

The Tucson Discovery

sketches of original concept of perpendicular configuration

It started at the Tucson Gem Show in Tucson, Arizona, where I found a strand of Brazilian amethyst so unusual it stopped me mid-aisle. The stones were shaped and faceted in a way that reminded me of sparkling, faceted, hexagonal, tube-shaped vertebral, sculptural, organic, full of structural possibility.

I immediately envisioned an avant-garde piece that would preserve that vertebral configuration, letting the natural geometry do the talking.

When Vision Meets Reality

Back in my studio, that idea began to unravel. Literally.

Each attempt to wire the stones in their original perpendicular formation (stacked vertically like a spine) made the piece feel chaotic. Forced. Unclear. And if there's one thing I've learned after years of designing one-of-a-kind jewelry, it's that when a piece resists you, you have to listen.

So I let go of the original concept and began again.

This pivot took me nearly a week of playing with the stones' configuration, failing, and reimagining what the stones wanted to become. I ran multiple wire-wrapping tests and sketch iterations.

The Micro-Journey: Listening to the Material

I asked myself not just what looked beautiful, but what felt intentional. Most importantly, it needed to celebrate the shape and cut of the center-drilled stones. Whatever design I land on has to work with the hole placement and how they will be attached in the final design.

Instead of the perpendicular configuration I'd imagined, I tried aligning the stones in parallel formation (side-by-side in horizontal tiers). The result? A three-tiered choker that honors the natural light and shape of the amethyst, set like mosaic stained glass in handcrafted golden frames.

I kept my signature touch of whimsy by adding a dramatic gilded drop, anchored by three "sister stones" that echo the piece's overall rhythm and spirit.

Each gold frame was hand-fabricated with articulated joints to improve movement and wearability, because art should be functional as well as beautiful. Why does this matter? The modular frames make it easy to take on and off and offer comfort to the wearer, unlike a solid piece.

Technical Details

Materials: Faceted hexagonal tube-shaped amethyst, 14k gold-filled wire, and findings
Technique: Hand-fabricated mosaic-style settings with articulated joints
Construction: Three-tiered parallel formation with pendant drop
Design Time: Approximately 2 weeks from concept to completion
Collection: Tamar Collection
Status: One-of-a-kind (available)

The Science Behind the Color

Amethyst isn't just beautiful, it's a marvel of natural transformation.

Its rich violet hue is actually the result of a "radiation bruise" left by Earth itself. Iron impurities and natural irradiation alter the crystal structure of quartz at the atomic level, forming what geologists call "color centers." These tiny disruptions give amethyst its signature purple glow.

What's even more remarkable? The same stone can shift into golden citrine or green-toned quartz with just a little heat. Amethyst and citrine are really just two expressions of the same mineral spirit.

infographic of amethyst a marvel of natural transformation

It's a gemstone that reminds us that even under pressure, heat, and change, beauty emerges, sometimes more than once. The poetry of how these gemstones form is a testament to the human spirit. They are a wonderful reminder that we, too, can transform life’s biggest challenges into something beautiful to behold.

Why This Piece Matters

This necklace reminds me that even when the vision changes, the soul of the piece remains.

As a one-of-a-kind jewelry designer, I don't work with production lines or replicate pieces. Each design is a micro-journey, a unique path from raw material to finished work that can never be exactly repeated. The person who owns this choker is the only person in the world who will ever possess this exact piece, born from this specific strand of Brazilian amethyst and this particular creative journey.

That's the value of handmade, artist-made jewelry: singular vision, singular execution, singular ownership.