Good team communication leads to a casting victory
By Shannon L. Brown
Anyone who’s played a team sport knows the value of good team communication. Without it, no matter the skills of the players involved, victory is more difficult to achieve. And designer Paul Klecka of Paul Klecka Inc. in Carlsbad, California, knows that when it comes to jewelry making, nowhere is that need more evident than in the relationship between a designer and his casting team.
He was recently commissioned by a woman about to be inducted into her university’s sports hall of fame to design a ring commemorating the event. With his customer wanting something unique and not reminiscent of a Super Bowl ring, Klecka designed a ring featuring a net and rim centered by a basketball. The rim featured her and the school’s name, the shank had her playing number, and the year of her induction was engraved on the basketball. Klecka tried to keep it as lightweight as possible for affordability.