An unusual eye for gems and their settings
When Ali Galgano graduated from the Gemological Institute of America (GIA), she was known to friends ”“ “and friends of friends,” she said ”“ as “the diamond girl.”
Small wonder. Galgano has an eye ”“ not just for shimmering stones but for setting them in unusual ways. Pierced drop diamond earrings give the illusion of being multiple studs but actually require only one hole per earlobe. Tennis bracelets take on a pastel spectrum with sapphires in different hues and diamonds or a jagged edginess with pear-shaped diamonds arranged horizontally. Eternity rings beckon with diamonds in different shapes or half a band of round stones. A pear-shaped ruby pendant says “notice me” with the stone presented horizontally as well.
This ready-to-wear collection, another facet of Galgano”™s bespoke Serpentine Jewels business, is showcased in her new Serpentine Townhouse in Greenwich, itself a two-story jewel box designed by New York City-based Danielle Richter with artwork often featuring powerful, alluring women curated by Greenwich gallery owner Gilles Clement ”“ although it”™s hard not to imagine Galgano”™s hand in everything. The green, gold and black-and-white décor is all Fornasetti display plates, Christian Lacroix wallpaper, lacquered chairs, marble tables, suede sofas and snake motifs, in keeping with a name that signifies fertility/creativity, seduction, wisdom and transformation.
Galgano sees the month-and-a-half-old Greenwich showroom ”“ she has had a small office and conference room in Manhattan for three years ”“ as a nexus for luxury clients from Fairfield and Westchester counties as well as those newly relocated from New York City. What that clientele ”“ half men, half women, mainly in their 30s through 50s ”“ is looking for are custom-made, one-of-a-kind pieces that tell a story, symbolizing relationships, creating memories, offering opportunities for legacy and spurring a kind of treasure hunt for the best stones and designs.
“I established my business to fuse the best of 47th Street (Manhattan”™s Diamond District) the value, with the best of high-end retail, the client experience,” she said.
So if you were seeking an engagement ring ”“ or an upgrade to an existing one ”“ Galgano would work with you to select the right stones and design for you. (She deals with several manufacturing shops in Manhattan.)
These days ”“ in the season not just of holidays but of engagements ”“ she”™s getting a lot of texts from brides-to-be, saying, “Thank you for my ring.” Those rings do not use lab-made diamonds, a hot trend in the industry because of their supposed greater environmental sustainability and cost-effectiveness. However, Galgano said they are not part of the luxury trade. While lab-made diamonds are cheaper ”“ as much as 50% to 75% — she added that they are not necessarily more environmentally friendly, and they do not appreciate in value.
“There”™s something about a piece being a product of the earth,” she said of natural diamonds, “and that you search for the best material. The hunt is part of it, too.”
By way of illustration, Galgano flashes her own engagement ring, which was designed by her husband, with whom she shares two young sons and a New Rochelle home. It”™s an oval yellow diamond surrounded by scallops of diamonds and pink sapphires ”“ the versatile sapphire, coming in many colors and including as a category the ruby, having been a popular alternative or accompaniment to the diamond for engagements since the days of Princess Diana.
Galgano”™s engagement ring, a diamond tennis bracelet spotlighting three larger stones (a hexagon and two that are kite shaped), and a pair of drop diamond earrings that create the illusion of multiple studs complement her outfit ”“ a cream puff of a brocade dress by British designer Sister Jane that belies the jewelry maker”™s willowy presence.
Growing up in Rye, Galgano said, she was always interested in jewelry, taking her inspiration from her mother, who went through the executive training program at Neiman Marcus”™ Dallas headquarters and worked in fashion and fine jewelry. After graduating from the Hackley School in Tarrytown and Cornell University, Galgano enrolled in the graduate program at GIA. Over the years, she has seen a generational shift in attitudes toward fine jewelry. People like her mother and older generations, she said, tended to think of such jewelry as something to be placed in a safe, to be worn only on special occasions. Younger generations want something of value they can wear every day.
“They want something that has meaning.”
And Galgano is determined to create jewelry that gives them that and more.
For more, visit serpentinejewels.com.