Annette Gabbedey gets a lot of questions about her work as a jeweler — people aren’t sure how she manages it with no fingers.
Gabbedey, whose shop is in Somerset, England, has never known the profession any other way.
She doesn’t even use special tools — she adapts, or adapt to, the regular ones. Usually it’s just a matter of holding the tool in a specific position.
“When you’ve been born with something, then you learn your way of doing things from birth,” Gabbedey says in the video below, which comes from Link TV. She specializes in diamonds and opals and does mostly custom work.
Gabbedey is shown using various jewelers’ tools, drawing in her sketch book and doing daily tasks around her studio — all with apparent ease.
Link TV explains that she “even says she could not imagine doing her job with fingers because they ‘must get in the way.’”
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Ready to Relocate? Wilkerson Makes Your Move Seamless
When Brockhaus Jewelry decided to leave their longtime West Main Street storefront for a standalone building elsewhere in Norman, Oklahoma, owners John Brockhaus and Brad Shipman faced a familiar challenge: how to efficiently reduce inventory before the big move. Their solution? Partnering with liquidation specialists Wilkerson for a second time.
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Asked if they'd endorse Wilkerson to industry colleagues planning similar transitions—whether relocating, retiring, or refreshing their space—both partners were emphatic in their approval. "The entire process was remarkably straightforward," Shipman notes. "Wilkerson delivered a well-structured program, paired us with a knowledgeable advisor, and managed every detail flawlessly from concept to completion."