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Eric van limpt coverstory in Haarlemmermeer into Busines 2
10/23/2020 04:10
General
With this ring I can distinguish myself
These are exciting weeks in the limpt house in Hoofddorp. the streamers hang in the room. for son justin, who just turned 18 years old. he hasn't celebrated it yet because he's busy with his exams. but if possible, the garlands can linger until mid-April. then goldsmith eric van limpt is told whether his ring, made of a unique diamond, has won a prize at a competition in italy. “I have faith in it,” says eric. “Not because I am very fond of it myself, but that stone in particular is unique. the jurors should notice that. it is different than usual. ”
That naturally formed and colored diamond, of which there is only one in this size in the world, ended up at Eric by accident. The Hoofddorp entrepreneur has been doing business with a diamond broker in Belgium for 21 years. When Eric places an order, they meet and it sometimes happens that the diamond broker shows something nice. “At one point this stone appeared. It is a godsend if you come across these types of stones. It's special when you get to see one, because there are only a handful of them, and that you also see the largest in the world. ” Eric gets a warm feeling now that this stone is at his home. The stone has the weight of 2.42 carats. “That is a big stone. It also has a special color, namely natural greenish yellow. ”
Unique cut
The cut is unique. “Everyone knows brilliant. Diamond is the raw material, the cut is brilliant. ” In the eighties, the American Genn Vargas once experimented with this cut, but not with a diamond but a tourmaline, a much cheaper stone. “Diamond brokers came up with the idea that you could also do this with a diamond. It is often a matter of months of searching for the right proportions and seeing how that light will work in that stone. That turned out super. The stone continues to sparkle. If you dream of becoming a goldsmith, then you want items like this to work with. ” The diamond has been in Eric's possession for fourteen months now. At first he showed the stone to people.
To draw
About three months ago, Eric started working actively with the stone. First think about what he wanted to make and how he could achieve it. “I separated myself from the outside world for three days. I went to a hotel in Zeeland to be able to sign. The ideas are in your head, but then they also have to be drawn on the computer. ” Eric has made a choice from the five drawn designs. The ring is made of 18 karat palladium-bearing white gold, which is not rhodium plated. The design is made in such a way that the stone can be seen as freely as possible. “It is important to me that this is emphasized. The style has to be right and then you look for contradictions. The contrast of the round balls with the angular shape of that stone. And you can see a heart in it. ” Eric put a lot of time into the design. He estimates that it took about 120 hours to get the final result. It took him between 70 and 80 hours to draw alone. “The proportions have to be right, it has to be strong enough and it has to be possible to assemble the ring. The technical story has to be right. After that it is a matter of printing and casting. ” At the end of March Eric was pleased to show the end result. As it is currently a new stone, Eric has registered the stone ring for competitions. Like the competition in Italy, where Eric then competes in the "jewelery department".
"It's up to the jury to say that they like the stone ring just as much as I do."
Distinguish
After that Eric mainly uses the ring to advertise.
“I want to show people what you can do with a crazy stone. My business consists of designing and making especially unique jewelry. With this ring I can distinguish myself. ”
The ring is for sale, but it would be difficult for Eric if he had to say goodbye to the ring right away. He prefers to hold the ring until September, when he is going to organize an evening because of the 25th anniversary of his company. The ring has a price tag of 74,000 euros.
“You can imagine that the ring will not just be sold. For me it is very nice to be able to show this. Money is not really interesting, it is about the experience you have. That you can translate emotion into something tangible. ”
Eric has been working for private individuals for 25 years. They come to him for a piece of jewelry for a special occasion.
“Nobody walks in here and puts their wallet on the table and says: do something. There is always a story behind a piece of jewelry. I then sit at the table with the person for whom the jewelry is intended or the person who will give the jewelry. That results in a nice interaction. I hold the pencil, but the client decides what to draw. Ultimately it is the intention that the piece of jewelery suits the person for whom it is made. ”
