Giorgi Shataidze

Founder and designer, Akra. Tbilisi, Georgia.

I have been working with natural stone for seven years. I make every piece from scratch: the design, the cutting of the stone, and the setting in 925 sterling silver. All of it in our workshop in Tbilisi.

I currently work with eleven stones: amethyst, aquamarine, jade, labradorite, lapis lazuli, malachite, moonstone, obsidian, pyrite, rose quartz and tourmaline.

Each one behaves differently on the wheel. Malachite sits at 3.5 to 4.5 on the Mohs scale and is brittle. Amethyst is a 7. Obsidian is glass, and it breaks in curved, sharp surfaces. The same tool asks a different speed and a different patience of each of them. That is not something you learn from a description. You learn it with your hands.

I choose the rough myself, and I know my suppliers personally.

Georgian cloisonné enamel will be added to the online shop soon. It is already in the shop in Tbilisi.

What I write about

In the Akra Journal I write about what working with stone teaches you:

• How to tell natural material from imitation
• What a stone's measured properties actually mean when you wear it every day
• How to care for natural stone and handmade silver so a piece lasts

The workshop

The workshop and the shop are the same place: 13 Abano Street, Abanotubani, Tbilisi 0105. Every stone is cut here and every piece is sold here.

Open daily, 10:00 to 22:00
+995 593 00 18 16
info@akragems.com

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