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Kerby’s ‘heart of gold’: Yanase Jewelers
From our weekly issue dated September 09, 2009
Michael & Karen Yanase (Photo by Zina Booth, Illinois Valley News)
Neil Young could have found his Heart of Gold in the Illinois Valley community of Kerby.
After years of saving lives as a paramedic, Michael Yanase is now healing hearts at Yanase Jewelers. “I can’t crawl under burning buildings anymore, but I possess a talent for metal that is almost as rewarding as saving a life,” says Yanase.
He and his wife and best friend Karen, a Graduate Gemologist from the Gemological Institute of America, first began selling jewelry in 1994. They opened a small custom jewelry and repair shop at their home, then built an addition and expanded their shop in 1998.
Yanase Jewelers will celebrate its 15th year in September.
Yanase creates unique Heart-Art, such as their Sunrise/sunset wedding rings “because she is the first thing I think of in the morning, and the last thing I think of at night.”
Other designs include Celtic symbols, lions, bear claws and sharks teeth -- he customizes jewelry for each individual. “I try to get into people’s heads to get them the trinket that they want” says the color-blind jeweler, who needs Karen to be his eyes for color.
He fabricates jewelry by shaping, soldering and polishing gold or silver, then setting precious and semiprecious stones to create unique pieces. He can transform a family heirloom into a custom-designed pendant or earrings.
Another method he uses is lost wax casting -- “a true art that is going by the wayside like so many others.” explains Yanase. “In the case of a ring, you carve away everything that doesn’t look like a ring. The wax mold is coated with a high temperature plaster, then heated and as the wax melts it leaves the plaster mold. Hot metal is then injected inside using a centrifugal casting machine creating a metal duplicate of the wax model.”
Yanase says that metals have nearly quadrupled in cost since 1994, when gold was $250 per ounce; it is currently $953 per ounce.
“People’s tastes are changing; the favorite used to nearly always be gold, but many people can’t afford gold now, so yellow gold and sterling silver are becoming more popular.”
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Besides Michael’s custom work and repairs, Yanase Jewelers also offers five different kinds of Black Hills gold and sterling silver.
Another hot seller right now is the Oregon state gem, Oregon Sun Stone from Plush, past Lakeview. Sunstone colors range from clear to red, including orange, yellow, and even green, and it contains schiller that has “chatoyancy,” giving it a sparkly shine similar to moonstone.
Yanase’s unique jewelry is featured in the Chateau gift shop at Oregon Caves National Monument, the Illinois Valley Visitor Center, and at events such as the Kerby Evenings of Art & Wine.
“Although we have a client base from Washington to California, it’s because of the good folks that live in this valley that we can even be here,” claims Michael.
Yanase Jewelers is a community-minded business, donating items for fund-raisers for Illinois Valley Safe House Alliance, I.V.H.S. Grad Night, IRVAC and the Duck Derby. Karen works at I.V. Family Coalition.
The virtual business can be viewed at yanasejewelers.com to get an idea of their one-of-a-kind jewelry.
Better yet, drop by Yanase Jewelers at 23772 Redwood Hwy. in Kerby. Regular store hours are Tuesday through Fridays from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., and most Saturdays from 10 to 4. Weekend and evening appointments can be arranged by phoning 592-4838.
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