What I need from a client isn't a design. It's a story. Maybe it's a grandmother's ring you've always loved the color of, a place that matters to you, a stone you can't stop thinking about, or just a feeling you want the piece to give off when you look down at your hand. Sometimes clients bring very specific non-negotiables: this exact sapphire, this engraving, a certain proportion they saw once and can't shake. Other times they bring almost nothing concrete, just instinct and trust. Both are complete starting points. My job is to take whatever you hand me, precise or vague, and translate it into something that can actually be built, worn, and live with you for decades.

People assume a bespoke piece starts with a sketch. It doesn't. It starts with a conversation, usually a fairly unstructured one, where I'm doing more listening than talking. By the time I pick up a pencil, most of the important decisions have already been made — I just haven't drawn them yet. That first meeting can happen in the studio over coffee, or on a call if someone's not local, and either way I try to keep it loose. No forms, no checklist handed across the table. Just questions, and a lot of room for someone to think out loud.