When you walk into Poway Fine Jewelers, you walk into Tim’s
world. Not because he is the on-site master jeweler that will greet you with a
smile, a story, and a solution for your jewelry-related needs. That’s a given.
It’s because when you enter his store, you enter a philosophical world where
jewelry is just the beginning.
“If your car ran out of gas, you would refuel it, right?” he
recently asked me during a conversation we were having about a necklace I
brought in that was wound so tightly I had no hope of it ever coming undone. It
was a rhetorical question, of course, but I appeased him. “Sure,” I said,
wondering where this was going.
After untangling my necklace with his handy little tools,
Tim whipped out a tiny plastic Ziploc bag and carefully snaked my necklace inside,
leaving only the clasp hanging on the outside before zipping it up. “It will
never tangle if you keep it stored this way. Why would you store it any other
way?”
Why would I not refuel
my car if it ran out of gas?
Point taken.
This is Tim.
I’ve known him for a while now, and I recently started
maintaining his Poway Fine Jewelers blog and Facebook page. I’m also a smiling
face you’ll sometimes see in the shop. I help Tim out as much as I can, but
when I’m not with a customer, I am behind the desk at the front of the store.
And I am listening. First and foremost, I am absorbing everything Tim is saying
to customers so that I can attempt to gain even a fraction of his knowledge.
(He’s been in the jewelry field for more than three decades…it’s probably not
going to happen, but I can try, right?).
Either way, I listen and I hear story after story, theory
after theory, all underlined with Tim’s philosophical interpretation of
whatever he and his customer are discussing. It’s typically jewelry, of course,
but many of Tim’s conversations begin like this: “I don’t even know why I’m
sharing this with you…”
Somewhere in that brilliant mind of his he has a reason for
sharing what he’s about to share, and it always comes out, and it’s always
relevant, thought-provoking and, well, Tim. He’s a thinker and an analyzer.
He’ll talk to you at length about the history of your piece, the story behind
where you got it, the fixes or changes you’d like to make. He’ll listen with
undivided attention before helping you make a decision about a new piece of
jewelry. He’ll ask questions and give as much input in your decision-making
process as you’ll allow (no more, no less).
He might throw in there a fishing story or a description of
a meal he ate (the man loves food), but it will always somehow be relevant and
beneficial to the conversation at hand.
From the few months I’ve worked with Tim, it is clear – his
customers are his friends. He greets many of them by first name – even if
they’ve only been in a time or two – and he will remember pieces he’s created
for you, styles you’ve liked in the past, and possibly your favorite vacation
spot or sushi roll.
In other words, he is more than a jeweler. He always looks
the part, with his handy loupe (magnifying glass) atop his head, ready to get
down to business, but he is a kind man with a genuine passion for jewelry and
the process it takes – from selecting stones to shopping for what his customers
will love to designing your dream piece – to get it just right.
I wanted to write this post so that those of you who don’t
already know Tim will feel like you do before even coming into his shop. And
for those of you who do know him, well, you’ll surely appreciate this post!
Aside from a master craftsman, Tim is a husband, a father,
grandfather, fisherman, connoisseur of good food (as we’ve already
established), snorkeler (just ask him about sea turtles…), he’s from Seattle,
he likes to ride go-karts, camp, hike, travel, and enjoy an occasional beer (or
two). He's also a master gardener, pool player, and self-proclaimed music critic. Come in and meet this jack of all traits (especially the art of
jewelry-making)!
