ABOUT US
Goldsmith Gifts has served stores nationwide since 1974! We have hundreds of satisfied customers.
Goldsmith Gifts –from Aspen CO to Topeka KS
The Company History of Real Electroplated Leaves
.....
The roots of this company
began with real Aspen Leaf products in Aspen, Colorado in the 1950’s by Freddie Fisher. You can read more about Freddie in the book “Fisher the Fixer”
(published in 1973 by The Aspen Times). Freddie started plating the Aspen leaves and selling them locally at Alpine Jeweler. He advertised the leaves as: Made by Freddie
Fisher & God! The Alpine Jeweler store closed several years ago, and Freddie Fisher passed on
in 1967.
In 1974 this aspen leaf electroplating business was re-started and
owned by two local Aspen residents who had purchased
the original equipment. The leaves were “picked & plated” in the Aspen area until 1985 when it was re-located to Denver to allow greater availability to all parts of the country and less expensive overhead.
Over the years the business has expanded beyond just Aspen leaves and cones to include Maple, Oak, Birch, Redwood Cones and much more. Consequently, we have
operated under several dba names, in order to accommodate the needs of the different regions of the USA (east coast, west coast, Rocky Mtns., mid-west, redwood
country, etc.). The expanded business has located to the mid-west (Topeka, KS) and the Rocky Mtn. region is now a separate business. We
have aligned with people and groups (some students, some families, etc) who carefully collect leaves in all areas of the country.
The leaves can not be picked until they are fully mature—around July 4. We do not break limbs or harm the tree in any
way. Years ago we consulted with a forest ranger about “picking” leaves and asked if it is harmful in any way.
He told us that a matureAspen tree can have 100,000 leaves or more on it, and to pick a few from the bottom branches is not
harmful in any way. Most ornament size leaves are picked up off the ground in late autumn.
Every leaf is chosen for its beauty, shape, and size and
is carefully inspected for holes, tears, etc. After
“passing inspection” the leaves are dried, and prepared for plating tanks, and then electro-plated**. There are
many quality checks made in each step. Then we make them into various styles of jewelry and ornaments. Every product requires
several individual, hand-crafted steps.
This is a quality product and all of our products are 100% guaranteed to be a Real Leaf or Real Cone that has been electroplated
in 24K Gold or Fine Silver or Copper. We plate and stock what have proven to be the most popular leaf styles.
All
leaf and cone product is “Made in USA.”
This is a quality product you can sell with confidence
or own for yourself to wear and enjoy.
.
.
** Electroplating is the process of using electrical current in a solution
to coat the conductive object (in our product line=leaf, cone, etc) with a layer(s) of metal. Starting with the green leaf
or cone, we cover it with copper which makes it conductive, protects the leaf and retains the shape and vein patterns. The
item is then electroplated with 24K Gold or Fine Silver or Iridescent Copper.
There are many individual, hand-crafted, detailed steps. Electroplating began at the beginning of the 20th century
and continues to evolve today.
