BLUE MARLIN JEWELRY DESIGN CONTEST TURNS KIDS’ IDEAS INTO GOLDEN GIFTS FOR MOM

Blue Marlin jewelry design contest turns kids’ ideas into golden gifts for Mom

MAKING MOTHER’S DAY MAGIC
Coral Shores student Jessie Hopley presents his mom with his custom-designed rose ring after winning a previous year’s Saige Raiche Jewelry Design contest for Mother’s Day, sponsored by Blue Marlin Jewelry. CONTRIBUTED

These are the stories I love to write, so don’t skim over the headline and glance at the photo just long enough to realize you don’t recognize anyone in it. Stick with me for half a page. (I promise it’ll be more interesting than a school board budget story.)

How many homemade Mother’s Day gifts have you given as a child and received if you’re a mom? Growing up, we all slathered together some glue and glitter on construction paper and came up with some super-clever adjectives that started with the letters M, O and M. We were not only artistic geniuses, but poets as well. 

And if you’re a mom, the generational cycle has surely repeated itself once your own kids started gluing macaroni onto paper or shaping a block of brown clay into a lopsided little dish — because you clearly needed some place to store, well, paper clips. 

I know. I know. Moms love every single thing their kids have ever glued, glittered, cut and colored for them.

But what if, on this Mother’s Day, you opened a suspiciously fancy-looking box and found an actual piece of jewelry — a ring, a pendant, maybe a bracelet? Yeah, yeah, you said not to spend any money. You told the kids’ dad not to go shopping for them. Homemade gifts are the best because they come from the heart.

We’ve all heard all the platitudes. But now, let’s be honest. 

What if your precious child DESIGNED that piece of jewelry, just for you? I’m serious. What if they drew their gold or silver vision on a piece of paper and wrote a really cute tribute describing the story behind their design and why it would matter to their mom? And what if your genius child entered that design and story into a local contest and won? Then what would happen?

Enter Armando Gonzalez, owner of Blue Marlin Jewelry, those stunning and sparkling shops in Key West and Islamorada.

For the past 10 Mother’s Days, Gonzalez and his team have sponsored the Saige Raiche Memorial Junior Jewelry Design Contest. He invites every kid in the Florida Keys to design a piece of jewelry for their mom, submit a drawing of it and include a short essay. Entries are divided into three age groups — kindergarten through third grade, fourth through seventh grade and eighth through 12th grade. 

“Initially, we didn’t divide it into age groups, only because I hadn’t thought about it. But then an elementary school art teacher told me she had stopped having her students enter the contest because the older kids would, obviously, always win,” Gonzalez said.

He didn’t need to be told twice. The following year, he divided the entries by grade and then selected a panel of judges to choose a winning design from each group.

Now, here’s the best part: Blue Marlin’s expert jewelry designers actually create the three winning pieces — at absolutely no cost to the mom, dad or kid.

“The kids are fully the designers,” he said. “We just execute their vision. And then a few days before Mother’s Day, we contact the winning kids’ dad, if he’s in the picture, or their teacher or school principal, so they can help us plan the surprise. I also frame the kid’s original drawing for them as another keepsake.”

Past designs have been done in gold, silver and rose gold. Pendants, rings and bracelets have featured a cat, a palm tree, a rose, an infinity symbol and plenty of hearts.

In fact, it was a heart-shaped locket designed by the contest’s namesake, Saige Raiche, that launched the annual contest. 

Raiche was 10 years old and living with her family in Tavernier when she entered Blue Marlin’s first-ever contest. She had designed a locket that opened to reveal three loving words that described her mom. Tragically, Saige died due to respiratory complications from a severe flu before the contest winners were announced. Following her death, Saige’s heartbroken parents found the drawing she had submitted. 

Gonzalez didn’t think twice. He made the locket for Saige’s mom. And he’s kept the tradition for the past 10 years, helping three Keys kids create an unforgettable gift for their moms. He named the contest in Saige’s memory.

To participate in the contest, contact Blue Marlin Jewelry in Islamorada at 305-664-8004, in Key West at 305-517-6664 or via email at Director@BlueMarlinJewelry.com.

Mandy Miles
Mandy Miles drops stuff, breaks things and falls down more than any adult should. An award-winning writer, reporter and columnist, she's been stringing words together in Key West since 1998. "Local news is crucial," she says. "It informs and connects a community. It prompts conversation. It gets people involved, holds people accountable. The Keys Weekly takes its responsibility seriously. Our owners are raising families in Key West & Marathon. Our writers live in the communities we cover - Key West, Marathon & the Upper Keys. We respect our readers. We question our leaders. We believe in the Florida Keys community. And we like to have a good time." Mandy's married to a saintly — and handy — fishing captain, and can't imagine living anywhere else.