Former Palisades Jewelry Shop Has S.M. Grand Opening
By Laurel Busby
News & Information Editor
In the Palisades Fire, David Tishbi and Holly Surya lost their Via de la Paz jewelry store, a rental house down the street, and their new home in the Marquez Knolls.
Now Rustic Canyon residents, the two have been working to reopen David Tishbi Jewelry, which specializes in high-end, 22-karat-gold, custom-made pieces. After searching for a new location, the couple found a second-story space at 632 Montana in Santa Monica, and Surya, a designer, crafted an interior that features a curving tan couch, a colorful mural of three huge, stylized birds, and a large mirror with jewelry displayed before it.
“It’s very homey, very chic, very whimsical,” said Surya, who has operated the design build firm, Evolve Design, for 26 years. “We want people to stay. We want people to sit and enjoy.”
Jewelers David Tishbi and Holly Surya
The couple, who hosted a grand opening on Aug. 28, has been enjoying their new shop, and is looking forward to both reconnecting with former customers and meeting new ones. Also, they treasure having a space in which to design and make jewelry.
“We lost the excitement of every day going in and deciding what beautiful jewelry we were going to make,” Surya said. “We’re getting that back. It’s exhausting, but exciting.”
Both Surya and Tishbi do jewelry design, but Tishbi is the craftsman who creates the varied pieces in the shop, although they also employ a master goldsmith. Tishbi’s career in jewelry making came about by happenstance. As a college student studying business in Tel Aviv, he took a job as a jewelry salesperson, and the position inspired him to begin learning about gem stones and metalwork. He was soon crafting his own designs.
“I got hooked,” he said. “There are so many aspects that I really enjoy. I’m dealing with nice things, things of beauty. Gem stones and precious metals. I enjoy looking at them…. In addition, jewelry usually involves celebrations, such as a wedding, an anniversary, or a birthday. I become a part of that through my craft…. Also, I’m good with details. I like precision, and I like to work with metal.”
Tishbi describes his style as “very clean and simple” with a handmade look. His focus is on high-karat gold and often involves mixing metal, such as yellow gold with platinum or white gold.
His collaboration with Surya began at a trade show in San Francisco, where they were both exhibiting their wares. The couple immediately “clicked,” and Surya soon moved to Los Angeles, where Tishbi operated a wholesale jewelry business.
They married, began raising their three children, Rama, 28, Eros, 25, and Eden, 16, and, in 2011, they opened Tishbi’s jewelry store and studio in Pacific Palisades. As with their original shop, their new store’s focus is high-end jewelry, but Tishbi also welcomes customers with minor issues, such as a watch battery replacement or ear piercings, which he does on site. More recently, Tishbi has also been cleaning and restoringhis clients’ jewelry that was damaged in the fire.
“At the end of the day, we are here for the people who are our customers and whatever they bring to us,” Tishbi said. “I would do anything to satisfy them and get them what they want and what they envision and what they need. It can be the smallest thing like an old piece that they got from their grandmother that they want to improve, or a new piece like an engagement ring. I would do anything I can to deliver the best product possible and to make sure they’re happy.”
David Tishbi Jewelry will be open by appointment only with bookings scheduled online at davidtishbi.com. Contact: (310) 866-6845.
The interior of David Tishbi Jewelry’s new location at 632 Montana Ave. features a mural by Thomas Rodehuth.
