How many times can you wash your hands while singing “Happy Birthday” in a single day? How much hand sanitizer can you squirt in 24 hours? These are questions you never thought you would have to ask, but these are strange times, and getting stranger by the minute. If you are out and about to the shops for neccesities, you might be wearing your jewellery. Perhaps because you always wear them, or simply that it cheers you up to look down and see them on your body, twinkly steadfast companions at a time when sadness and fear threaten to envelop us. But rings, necklaces, earrings and bracelets and hand soap (or alcohol-heavy sanitizer even more so) are unhappy bedfellows. Serious cleansers can cause metal to oxidize or stones to become dull and cloudy. Cleaning your jewels is as essential as cleaning your hands. For example, if you take off your ring and put it back, you can recontaminate your hands again. The same can happen with bangles and earrings. Here are a few tips you can follow to keep yourself clean and safe: Avoid heavy jewelleryIt’s best to keep it minimal with jewellery at home. Avoid wearing semi-precious and precious stones and jewellery at home, as they can be tough to clean.  Don’t use a sanitizerThere is a possibility that an alcohol-based hand rub can damage your jewels. Avoid using sanitizer especially on gems, as it can damage the surface. Take off your jewels before washingWhether you’re washing your face or hands, it’s best to remove the jewellery first. Germs, soap and even lotion can collect under jewellery items and even behind the stones and diamonds. So, take them off and wash them before wearing them. Wash it with lukewarm waterOne of the best ways to clean jewellery is with a mild soap. Read More

Fundamentally, the difference between Engraving, Hand Stamping and Etching at Megan Goldner Designs is that Engraving is done with a machine, Hand Stamping is all by hand, and Etching is done with a chemical process. But let’s explore each by delving in a little deeper to get a better understanding of which might be the right choice for you: Engraving Engraving is a very exact way of personalizing your items.  Classic and timeless, all engraving at MGD is done with a CNC engraving machine specifically designed for jewellery. The completed and polished items (ie. ring) is placed in the machine, and a specialty tool then removes metal by scribing on the surface of the metal to deliver evenly spaced lettering and precise graphics with a uniform look and a consistent depth.  Although precise, and perfectly formed, engraving is not always deep. Engraving takes a long time, and most of that time it spent on the graphics using specialized software and programming for the CNC engraving machine.  Therefore, you will most often be charged for a ‘Set Up’ and an ‘Engraving’ fee. Smooth and polished serfaces is ideal for engraving.  Engraving on hammered or textured surfaces is not recommended. Although traditional, machine engraving is like writing a love letter on a computer.  Technically perfect but without the personal touch. The bigger the surface area of an item allowes for bigger letters that stands out and looks bold. The light is catching this tag perfectly to show the engraving. The same Dog Tag from a different angle.  Note that you can see that it is only the surface which has been scribed.  Engraved 3mm rings.  The smaller the surface area to engrave, the more difficult it is to see the engraving. Hand Stamping Hand Stamping, on the other hand, involves using a Read More

Finally a good use for plastic drinking straws! We all them… stashed in the cubbyhole of our car, or in the dreaded kitchen drawer where everything ‘else’ gets shoved into.  But no matter where they are gathering dust, here is the best use for your plastic straws!   Please DO NOT go out and purchase or ask your local eatery for  plastic straws to do this.  Search for the one’s that you already have, and use them 🙂 How to: Unclasp the two ends of your necklace. Hold a drinking straw vertically, and drop the smaller end of your necklace clasp down through the straw. When the necklace comes out through the bottom of the straw, reconnect the two ends of your necklace. This method may work best with thinner necklaces, and necklaces that don’t have an attached and immovable pendant in the center of the chain. The pendant will not be able to fit through the straw. If your necklace has an immovable pendant, consider cutting the straw in half, threading one chain on the side of the pendant through the straw. https://megangoldnerdesigns.co.za/wp-content/uploads/Plastic-Straw-1.mp4 Food for thought… Plastic straws and other single-use plastics are a non-essential part of our life. Yet, they cause so much damage to the environment. The simplest way to reduce plastic pollution is to reject the use of single-use plastics, like straws. Most plastic straws are not biodegradable and cannot be broken down naturally by bacteria and other decomposers into non-toxic materials. … Most plastic straws simply break into ever-smaller particles, releasing chemicals into the soil, air, and water that are harmful to animals, plants, people, and the environment.  For plastic straws, disposable diapers, and Styrofoam, decomposition can take about 500 years! The equivalent of FIVE grocery bags of plastic trash for every foot of coastline spills into the oceans annually. Over 1 million marine animals (including mammals, fish, sharks,turtles, and birds) Read More

2018 was a year of growth and reflection for myself and MGD.  It was a year of trying different styles, finding my feet, and discovering my niche. It was a year of internal struggles between my monstrous ambition and my desire to live a more simple life.   I discovered more strengths of my personality, and kept reminding myself that life is a personal journey, and there is no point in comparing my journey with someone else’s.  The below poster is stuck to my studio wall, and I wish to share this with you:  2019 is the year to start giving back I have decided that it is not enough that I try and run my studio as ‘green’ as possible, but it is also time for MGD to start giving back to the environment.   Animal sanctuaries is on top of the list in 2019, and I will strive to make a difference.   Besides from eating a more plant based diet in my personal life, I have already started exploring ideas and designs, and looking for sanctuaries that is close to my heart.   I am super excited for this, and it will manifest as a collection all on its own injected with my own personal flair of jewelry making. Not following the latest trends… Those who know me, will know that I am not your ‘bunnies and flowers’ kinda girl.  I am the rebel, the rule breaker, and someone who loves to be different from the crowd.  This will also be the premise going forward in my business. I have never ‘followed the latest summer trends’, but have always drawn inspiration from the natural elements, universal energy, experiences, stones, nature around me, and I believe that MGD is a brand on it’s own that speaks a different language.  In 2019, I Read More