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What Makes Jewelry Truly Custom: A Closer Look at the Design Process Behind Every Old Main Piece

Updated: Jun 16

Old Main Gem Co. is a custom jewelry studio in Draper, Utah, founded by Joclynn Johnson. Inspired by the legacy of Utah's Old Main building, the studio creates custom engagement rings, heirloom redesigns, wedding bands, and meaningful fine jewelry built around the moments and stories that matter most. Every piece begins with a conversation, takes shape through CAD renderings, and is crafted with ethically sourced gems and high-quality materials.

There's a difference between buying jewelry and creating it.

One is a transaction. The other is a story — written together, shaped through conversation, and worn for a lifetime.

At Old Main Gem Co. in Draper, Utah, custom jewelry isn't a category in our shop. It's the heart of everything we do. Whether we're designing a custom engagement ring, redesigning an heirloom passed down through generations, or building a meaningful piece to mark a milestone, every design begins the same way: with a conversation about you.

Here's a closer look at what makes jewelry truly custom, what to expect when you commission a piece, and why so many of our clients return for the next meaningful chapter.

Custom Begins With a Conversation, Not a Catalog

Most jewelry stores hand you a tray. Custom design hands you a chair.

When you begin a custom piece at Old Main Gem Co., the first step isn't browsing display cases or flipping through catalogs. It's a complimentary, no-pressure consultation where we sit down and listen — to your story, your inspiration, your preferences, your timeline. We want to know the meaning behind the moment you're designing for.

For some clients, that moment is a proposal. For others, it's the redesign of a grandmother's ring, a milestone anniversary, a memorial piece, or a gift for someone they love. The conversation guides every design decision that follows, from stone selection to setting profile to the smallest engraving detail.

Because the best custom jewelry isn't about replicating a trend. It's about translating something meaningful into something wearable.

See Your Design Come to Life Before It's Made

One of the most common questions we hear from clients new to custom design is, "How will I know I love it before it's made?"

Every piece we design starts with a sketch, then becomes a photorealistic 3D rendering before any stone is set or metal is poured. Our CAD design process lets you see your custom piece from every angle, adjust the smallest details, and revise the design until it feels exactly right.

You can refine the stone size, change the setting profile, soften or sharpen the band width, swap a stone shape, or add a hidden detail that only you will ever know is there. The CAD process is where custom stops feeling like a leap of faith and starts feeling like a sure thing.

It's also one of our clients' favorite parts of the journey. There's something quietly magical about seeing your future ring rendered in three dimensions, and saying, "That's it. That's the one."

What We Design at Old Main Gem Co.

Custom doesn't begin and end with engagement rings, although those are some of our favorite pieces to design. At Old Main Gem Co., custom is a process we apply to almost every kind of fine jewelry we create.

Here are the pieces we design most often:

Every piece is treated with the same care, the same conversation, and the same CAD-first design process — whether it's a one-carat diamond engagement ring or a delicate pendant designed for a daughter's sixteenth birthday.

Heirloom Redesign: Continuing the Story


For many of our clients, custom design begins with something they already own.

A grandmother's engagement ring. A mother's pearl strand. A father's signet. A great-aunt's diamond brooch tucked away in a velvet box for forty years. These pieces carry history, sentiment, and love — but they often sit unworn because the style no longer feels like the person who inherited it.

Heirloom redesign is where the past meets the present.

At Old Main Gem Co., a thoughtful heirloom redesign begins exactly the same way every custom piece does: with a conversation about the original piece, the person it came from, and the story you want to continue. From there, we evaluate the existing stones and metals, propose design directions, and walk you through a CAD rendering of what the redesign could look like — before any work begins.

The result is a piece that honors where it came from and finally feels at home on the person wearing it.


Ethically Sourced, Beautifully Crafted

Custom jewelry isn't only about how a piece looks. It's about what it's made of, where it came from, and how it was crafted.


Every diamond, gemstone, and metal used at Old Main Gem Co. is selected with care, sourced ethically, and chosen specifically for the piece it's designed for. We work with GIA-certified, AGS-certified, and IGI-certified lab-grown diamonds, ensuring every stone we set is documented, traceable, and held to the highest standard.


The craftsmanship matches the sourcing. Every Old Main piece is built using precision metals, expert hand-finishing, and the unhurried care of a studio that believes a piece worth keeping is worth taking the time to make.


The Old Main Experience


Custom jewelry should feel as meaningful as the moment it's marking.

At Old Main Gem Co., every custom design follows a clear, collaborative path:

  • A complimentary consultation where we listen to your story

  • An initial sketch and design direction shaped around your vision

  • A photorealistic CAD rendering of your piece, with unlimited refinements until it feels exactly right

  • Expert hand-crafting using ethically sourced gems and high-quality metals

  • A finished piece, beautifully boxed, ready for the moment it was designed for


No pressure. No rushing. No display-case shortcuts.


Just a piece of jewelry built around your story, made together, made to last.


Start Your Custom Jewelry Conversation


If you've been thinking about designing something meaningful — an engagement ring, an heirloom redesign, a milestone piece, or a gift for someone you love — the most important step is the first one: the conversation.


We'd love to hear your story.



Old Main Gem Co. 12251 S 900 E, Draper, UT 84020 801-901-3343 (call or text)


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