What I've Learned Since I Got My G.G.

Art always came naturally for Helen Parer, an award-winning jewelry designer from Gold Coast, Australia, but she wasn't sure how it could turn into a career. She spent several years working in retail in the early 1980s, but grew restless and decided to trek through Europe. Her father, Marius Antolovich, an opal enthusiast with a wholesale company who had recently earned a Graduate Gemologist (G.G.) diploma from GIA, encouraged Parer to visit her sister, Linda, en route to Europe. Linda was working on her G.G. in Santa Monica, and maybe, he suggested, Parer would want to take a class, too.

Helen S. Parer, G.G. Designer/Manager, Mariora Australia, in Surfer's Paradise on Australia's Gold Coast Age: 45 Family: Husband, Philip; sons, Thomas and Matthew Home: Queensland, Australia GIA diplomas and certifications: Graduate Gemologist (G.G.) diploma, Jewelry Design certificate Proudest accomplishment: The first time she entered – and won – a jewelry design competition, the Jewellery Association of Australia's Australian Opal Design Award and Grand Prix Design Award. Image courtesy of Helen Parer

"Everything was starting to fit into place," Parer says. She went back to GIA for her G.G. in 1991, and says the family's GIA diplomas make a difference for the company. "We gained knowledge that we use every day," she says, "and our customers have more confidence in buying from us."

Don't Underestimate Your Customers. Don't judge a customer by what they are wearing – they may just surprise you. We once had a customer who came in our store in his beach gear, and our staff was a bit wary of him. He had a good look around and left, then returned that evening with his wife, dressed in the finest clothes and jewelry. He ended up being one of our best customers.

Take Your Education With You. I use my design skills at work and in everyday life, and when I want to check up on a gem, I refer back to my textbooks for information.

Enjoy the People You Meet. One of my favorite things about this industry – besides being surrounded by beautiful gems and jewelry – is the people we meet. Our customers come from all over the world, and I love seeing the pleasure they get when they have fallen in love with a piece of jewelry.

Go to the Shows. I love to travel to trade shows around the world. You see new trends, meet new contacts, and take in amazing gems and jewelry from all over the world. For a new graduate, it opens your mind to what's out there.

Get the Knowledge You Need. It's disappointing to still hear of people being given the wrong information on gems or being sold imitations that are billed as "natural" by someone out to make a quick buck. It's up to the industry to have the right knowledge, and up to the customer to be informed.

Expand Your Network at GIA. Network with the people you meet at GIA, as you can help each other in your future careers. My father, sister and I all enjoyed our time studying there and made lifelong friends from all over the world. Our company's branch in Osaka, Japan, is run by Shuro Uemoto, G.G., who my father met while studying in Santa Monica.

Immerse Yourself in the Adventure and Beauty of Gemstones. My father was mining for and wholesaling opals in the late 1970s, so we would go to Lightning Ridge during our school holidays. It was a big adventure for us kids – we would go down in the mine looking for opal and though we didn't find much, it was fun. Lightning Ridge was a small town full of characters, and miners everywhere dreaming of finding "red on black."

They say that once opal gets in your blood, you're hooked. Opal comes in so many colors, and you never see two stones that are the same. When you see a top-quality opal that's full of color and changing with each movement, you can't help but fall in love.

Keep Improving. Sometimes I can work on a design for a long time, and it's just not working. I'll put it away and do something else and when I do come back to it, it may work out or I may change the design totally.

For all those budding designers – keep drawing. Your designs will get better and better, and you will create a style of your own.

Find Good in Everything. Enjoy every day, and try to see the good in everything. If something doesn't work out, it wasn't meant to, and you can learn from it and move on.

– Interview by Jaime Kautsky