Designer of ROCKRAS™ by Kimberly McDonald Fine Jewelry
Kimberly McDonald remembers the days of rock collecting in her driveway and at the beach when she was just a child. Growing up with a deep-rooted appreciation of aesthetic beauty, a passion for rocks of all kinds, an intuitive feel for fashion and a natural eye for color, North Carolina native Kimberly McDonald has managed to combine all these interests in her professional life. And she has always adhered to one of the maxims of her Southern mother: Never leave home without your earrings on. Her expert eye for detail and quality has taken her beyond the quest for simple personal adornment into the realm of jewelry curation and design.
As an independent, determined young woman, Kimberly learnt the basics of diamond grading at a diamond brokerage firm in New York where she attended GIA courses and gained invaluable market experience. This knowledge, in combination with her innate sense of color and appreciation of beauty, she put to practical use working for several years as a jewelry curator. In this role she helped people cultivate their jewelry collections and mold individual pieces into personal, wearable art. She helped each client build an assemblage of pieces that would mirror not only their status and aesthetic taste, but also their personality and unique lifestyle.
Seeing the success of her jewelry curation both with clients and in the media (with features in Robb Report and Worth, among other publications), Kimberly realized that there was a certain niche in the market for clients who, like herself, demanded not only jewelry of the highest caliber, but pieces that were crafted from rare and unique materials. She knew that for most women, jewelry is an emotional purchase. She wanted to create pieces that they could connect to on a very deep level, in a market that seems flooded by mass production and predictable designs. In effect, McDonald’s aim was to create a jewelry line that would encompass her definition of luxury: having the best you can afford in the most personalized and distinct presentation possible; and so ROCKRAS by Kimberly McDonald was born.
Launched in 2006, this collection was inspired initially by Kimberly’s lifelong love of natural stones. It is a celebration of their beauty, their strength and mystique, and of the inert power that they, along with every other living thing in the world, possess. She continues to uphold the belief that the most beautiful things on this Earth cannot be created by man – they can only be foiled in a way that enables us to appreciate their splendor. Kimberly is known for her philosophy that true luxury comes not from buying expensive items because of a brand or trend. True luxury, she says, comes from having the very best quality that you can afford, in a unique and distinctive piece that really works for you, your lifestyle and your personality.
Looking ahead to the future, McDonald envisions continuing to create beautiful, original pieces that speak to and about those who wear them. She maintains that for the sophisticated buyer diamonds are simply not the only precious gemstone; the real collector will also require unusual stones set in exquisitely crafted jewelry and understand that a comprehensive collection comprises gems of all varieties. In this regard, McDonald’s clientele have a true appreciation for the art behind fine jewelry.
So what lies ahead for such an innovative, creative soul? When asked about the future, Kimberly considers the question for a few seconds and then, with proud determination, replies “I find that the further ahead I look, the closer I get to my original loves…rocks, color, and gorgeous sparkly jewelry. Isn’t it great when your first loves remain with you for life?”