Tucked into a moody, high-windowed corridor of the West Loop Asrai Garden is a desk arranged with not only technical equipment, but also a velvet-lined tray of sparkling, delicate chains and charms. This is the workspace of Melissa Roels, social media and digital marketing manager at Asrai Garden—and their forever jeweler.
Forever jewelry, also known as permanent or claspless jewelry, is soldered together. This process allows for omitting the clasp entirely for an elegant, unobstructed chain that can only be removed through the breaking or cutting of the chain. “We break apart one link and then solder it back together so that it's completely claspless,” Roels explains. “It's made from 14-karat gold and should require no maintenance except for maybe some polishing, if you like a really sparkly bracelet or necklace. But other than that, it really just means that it's a piece of jewelry you keep on forever.”
For some, the idea of forever jewelry can be a bit enigmatic: isn’t the point of jewelry to be a temporary embellishment, something that can be swapped and selected from day to day? But Roels explains that, for many of her clients, there’s a specific meaning and symbolism to the acquisition of a piece of forever jewelry. Some people come to celebrate major life events. Her very first client was celebrating a cancer-free diagnosis. “That was my most unexpected discovery, was that people were coming in for major life moments,” Roels says. “So I always like to ask how their day is going, if they're here for a specific reason, and really hold space for that celebration and reverence.”
![A hand holds a pair of pliers to manipulate a gold chain on a person's ankle.](https://varyer.imgix.net/DSC08591.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&domain=varyer.imgix.net&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=1200&ixlib=php-3.3.1&q=82&usm=20&w=960&s=5c84659825e9ca565d248c1a04ef8876 960w, https://varyer.imgix.net/DSC08591.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&domain=varyer.imgix.net&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=2400&ixlib=php-3.3.1&q=61&usm=20&w=1920&s=80c0d82efbe0b5ca2056f609d1198be5 1920w, https://varyer.imgix.net/DSC08591.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&domain=varyer.imgix.net&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=960&ixlib=php-3.3.1&q=60&usm=20&w=768&s=27030ee55aae360dd78e07bb3e353012 768w, https://varyer.imgix.net/DSC08591.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&domain=varyer.imgix.net&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=1920&ixlib=php-3.3.1&q=45&usm=20&w=1536&s=6697ba62afcb44a1751fb0aa820dcfab 1536w, https://varyer.imgix.net/DSC08591.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&domain=varyer.imgix.net&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=720&ixlib=php-3.3.1&q=60&usm=20&w=576&s=2a1ea5d3a9e80842874ba15a212513b1 576w, https://varyer.imgix.net/DSC08591.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&domain=varyer.imgix.net&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=1440&ixlib=php-3.3.1&q=45&usm=20&w=1152&s=8bb857225897e4bc6c443accf63be4d6 1152w)
![A person looks through a jeweler's loop at a chain on someone's ankle.](https://varyer.imgix.net/DSC08602.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&domain=varyer.imgix.net&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=1200&ixlib=php-3.3.1&q=82&usm=20&w=960&s=0bd64cd9d18d11f3f6efe0b83844b2bc 960w, https://varyer.imgix.net/DSC08602.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&domain=varyer.imgix.net&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=2400&ixlib=php-3.3.1&q=61&usm=20&w=1920&s=8ee69b08c60298ac7b7250fb71c60663 1920w, https://varyer.imgix.net/DSC08602.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&domain=varyer.imgix.net&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=960&ixlib=php-3.3.1&q=60&usm=20&w=768&s=810f2705ffa9bd377b649800535806df 768w, https://varyer.imgix.net/DSC08602.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&domain=varyer.imgix.net&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=1920&ixlib=php-3.3.1&q=45&usm=20&w=1536&s=f7ba47aae75381d29d5749e1b58ac073 1536w, https://varyer.imgix.net/DSC08602.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&domain=varyer.imgix.net&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=720&ixlib=php-3.3.1&q=60&usm=20&w=576&s=e80701be0646d89e4a96e16fcf2eb850 576w, https://varyer.imgix.net/DSC08602.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&domain=varyer.imgix.net&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=1440&ixlib=php-3.3.1&q=45&usm=20&w=1152&s=7b894571de4b18aeaa3d133d315cacea 1152w)
![A feminine person holds a chain on someone's ankle.](https://varyer.imgix.net/DSC08582.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&domain=varyer.imgix.net&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=1200&ixlib=php-3.3.1&q=82&usm=20&w=960&s=e3200c0d71e97a8b5df282f47f408f7d 960w, https://varyer.imgix.net/DSC08582.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&domain=varyer.imgix.net&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=2400&ixlib=php-3.3.1&q=61&usm=20&w=1920&s=b6b48ed8288f291188c65432e56114a4 1920w, https://varyer.imgix.net/DSC08582.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&domain=varyer.imgix.net&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=960&ixlib=php-3.3.1&q=60&usm=20&w=768&s=7390744366c712a182726e5801594018 768w, https://varyer.imgix.net/DSC08582.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&domain=varyer.imgix.net&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=1920&ixlib=php-3.3.1&q=45&usm=20&w=1536&s=084ead310e394016a5e45c9f077d4275 1536w, https://varyer.imgix.net/DSC08582.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&domain=varyer.imgix.net&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=720&ixlib=php-3.3.1&q=60&usm=20&w=576&s=8be0bf6879b89fe68cf5f74665a78290 576w, https://varyer.imgix.net/DSC08582.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&domain=varyer.imgix.net&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=1440&ixlib=php-3.3.1&q=45&usm=20&w=1152&s=9140208539495b82b804a30a64200687 1152w)
When Asrai Garden identified that they’d like to start offering forever jewelry, Roels was intrigued by the idea. “I had my own creative practice through printmaking,” she explains, “Which is kind of like a machine-meets-human art practice. So this felt really familiar to me, in a way.” To initiate the learning process, Asrai contacted Dallas Maynard, a Chicago-based jeweler whose work is carried at Asrai Garden. Maynard articulated the process of cutting chain links, how metals behave when melted back together, and the need for flexibility when working with organic materials.
Despite its technical components, the process of forever jewelry is a fluid one: each metal and chain type behaves slightly differently when soldered back together—Roels keeps a cheat sheet on particular machine settings to reference as needed. The fact that the soldering spark is not always perfect on the first attempt is something that Roels has embraced as a beautiful part of the process: each bracelet and interaction is unique. “I think my entire adult life has been about deprogramming perfectionism, so it's been a really nice thing to do to help with that,” she says.
✨⛓️✨⛓️✨⛓️✨⛓️✨⛓️✨⛓️✨⛓️ ✨⛓️✨⛓️✨⛓️✨⛓️✨⛓️✨⛓️✨⛓️
When it comes time to select the chain, charms, length, and placement, Roels views the process as entirely collaborative: while she’s the facilitator, the client is the creative director, customizing the jewelry to their specific taste. No two pieces of forever jewelry are exactly alike.
Once the key decisions have been made, Roels breaks a link of the selected chain using wire cutters. This achieves the cleanest cut, which makes the rejoining the link with the soldering spark as strong and long-lasting as possible. As she maneuvers the chain into the correct position, she places a small square of black leather between the skin and the chain itself, both protecting the skin and increasing the visibility of the chain. Her arsenal of jewelry pliers, lent to her by a friend, allow for precise maneuvering of the delicate chains.
Roels also uses a jeweler’s loupe and an OptiVisor to ensure the clearest view of the process. Her soldering station, which includes a stylus connected to a main unit, connects to a tank of argon beneath the desk that she turns on before each appointment.
After the chain is appropriately placed and the soldering iron set to the appropriate level for the chosen chain, Roels prepares for the main event: the soldering spark. This part of the process is admittedly thrilling—the iron creates a flash of light and quick crackling noise, a fun spectacle. She may repeat the spark once or twice more to ensure the strength of the now-unified chain.
![An animated GIF shows a welding spark closing the link of a bracelet.](/uploads/foreverspark1.gif)
At this point, the jewelry is permanent: all that’s left to do is admire your new accessory. If the chain somehow breaks (some people are harder on their jewelry than others, of course), clients can make another appointment to repair it. Roels explains that clients can also return to add charms, an offering that she is hoping to expand in the future—she encourages interested clients to direct message her on Asrai's Instagram account if they have any ideas for charms.
She explains that her work as a forever jeweler has opened up her way of seeing jewelry out in the world. Is that chain something that we should offer at Asrai Garden? How does this person’s jewelry play into their personal style?
She sees potential for forever jewelry parties, with groups of friends coming in to celebrate birthdays, bachelorette parties, or just-because occasions. She even generously offers up the option for clasps to be added in the event of a member of the party looking for a little more flexibility in their accessorizing. There’s something for everyone: “I can also do semi-permanent custom jewelry,” she quips.