Arts and Entertainment

Anne-Marie Warburton: Experience and instincts yield exquisite jewellery

March 13, 2025   ·   0 Comments

By Constance Scrafield

Anne-Marie Warburton is the owner of Gallery Gemma, the fine jewellery shop in the Alton Mill Arts Centre. Unique certainly in Dufferin Caledon, Gallery Gemma offers beautiful, sometimes extraordinary and original pieces but always fresh and exquisite, for women and men. Part of Warburton’s success in providing such an extensive array and choice of pieces is the annual trip she makes in February, to Tucson, Arizona, to the “overwhelming” Tucson Gem and Mineral Show, the largest in the world.

“It is truly an international show,” Warburton told us, having attended in February of this year.

In 1955, 12 jewellers used to meet in February because the weather was nice and there was a small group of rock houses. From those days, now there are 4,000 vendors and 44 shows and ever since she was able to go to the Gem show in 2006, Warburton has attended every year. She moved into the Alton Mill on a day in September, 19 years ago. 

That first trip to Tucson she had just graduated from school but had no physical location yet.

“I decided to go anyway,” she told us. “I had the idea of a shop,”

In that year, her husband David Warburton came with her. In the beginning, as she tried to describe it, it was completely overwhelming. One just has literally no idea what to expect. A magazine is issued, saying where everyone is but, the truth is, “You don’t really know.”

Picture it this way as she very kindly described it to us:

For example, the big shows are for the trade only. Many of the shows are open to the public but you don’t necessarily know that when you are first there.

With familiarity, you begin to know where what you’re trying to find is located, and where you want to go. It applies to what you want to take and what is possible to see in a day. You have your favourite vendors whom you only see once a year.

Anne-Marie Warburton goes for a week, which with travel a day there and a day back, means five days at the show.

The main show is at the Tucson Convention Centre. You have your list and trends, what are you seeing more of this year? Everything is highly visible; you are walking, seeing what they all have. And you walk across the road where there is another show under a tent as big as a couple of football fields. Germany, Brazil and other countries have sections and you think, what am I seeing I didn’t see last visit?

There are also lectures and workshops you can attend.

So far, that is just two big shows, Walk under the highway and see what else another show has; get in the car and drive down the highway to another.

Said Warburton of her own organizing, “I have a plan. I go by myself. What you don’t really want is to talk until you do want to talk – there’s this processing about what’s going on around you. I am looking for things that my clients might love; might bring this trend forward.”

Warburton’s Gallery Gemma is known for having things you don’t see anywhere else; she wants to have new things and excitement about what people are looking at.

Of the 44 shows, in her week of attending, Warburton manages to visit eight to ten, sometimes, twice to one show. They are so huge and because of the vastness of the property, if you see something fabulous you almost don’t get a second chance.

This year she was really focused on bringing turquoise back. It has so many colours, everyone looks fabulous wearing it, men and women alike. With the variety of turquoise she has brought back, Warburton will create a collection of pieces, all of which she will make herself.

“I am now going to make those beads and so forth into pieces,” she said.

The element of happenstance is a part of the business. 

Warburton gave an account of that, “Just before I left someone came in and wanted a pink sapphire, wanted it cut a specific way and I ended up finally finding it with a Toronto jeweller in the Tucson show.”

Social events remind her of how lovely the community is in the jewellery business.

Part of what has kept the business afloat, after all these years is so much word of mouth; people know family who have come to her to remodel their old pieces, pieces that have been passed down and she will melt the gold or silver and make a whole new creation of it. 

She commented on how well the Alton Mill Arts Centre has come into its own. A fabulous centre, very attractive and hosting well-attended festivals, entertainments and events.

“People don’t necessarily know a fine jewellery store is here,” she remarked, “but then they find us.”

Her ambition is to still be a valued part of the community; to support Theatre Orangeville and Family Transition Place.

She said, “Bringing joy through jewellery – that is what we’re all about – keep bringing things in, making custom jewellery by being able to melt down jewellery for new jewellery. Yet, we sell earrings from $22.”

In response to our asking, what the Tucson Gem show means to her, “It’s tremendously inspiring, expands the possibilities for a fresh look. That in itself is wonderful. You’re at pearls and gems to get a better shape for a gem, the colour you want to see again; hear the stories behind how they were found.

“It’s so good and really inspiring.”

Learn more with a visit to the Alton Mill Arts Centre, 1402 Queen Street West, Alton.

Warburton’s website is gallerygemma.com.

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