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Personal touches
Cindy Probst-Dekruif has owned and operated Probst Jewelry in Sacred Heart since 2006, though she has been in the jewelry business for 40 years, starting in her parents' store in Fulda. Shelby Lindrud / West Central Tribune
Probst Jewelry in Sacred Heart offers opportunity to show off style, family history
BY SHELBY LINDRUD | WEST CENTRAL TRIBUNE
SACRED HEART — If something glitters at Probst Jewelry in Sacred Heart, you can be certain it’s probably gold, silver, diamonds or gemstones. The store, owned by Cindy Probst-Dekruif, has been a small-town treasure chest of beautiful jewelry since 2006.
“I’ve been in the jewelry business all of my life,” Probst-Dekruif said. “I grew up in my parents’ jewelry store in Fulda. I’ve been doing this for a while.”
Unlike some children who can’t wait to get away from the family business, ProbstDekruif has always had a love for jewelry and was helping her dad with jewelry repair at the family store by the time she was 16. She obtained certification from the Gemological Institute of America and opened her first store in Sleepy Eye.
“I just loved everything about it,” Probst-Dekruif said.
When her husband’s job was relocated and the couple started a family, ProbstDekruif took a break from the jewelry business. But after her daughter started school, Probst-Dekruif thought it was a good time to open another store. The family was living just outside of Sacred Heart, so it made sense to locate the store there.
It has been a good fit.
“I love the small town,” Probst-Dekruif said. “It is more like a giant family.”
That giant family extends back to Fulda and beyond. People who once purchased pieces or had jewelry repaired at her parents’ store now come to Probst Jewelry, even if that means a long car ride to Sacred Heart. Probst-Dekruif believes people like knowing who will be handling their precious jewelry, and she often repairs jewelry from around southwestern Minnesota.
“It is always kind of fun when I hear from somebody who was from home,” Probst-Dekriuf said. “I’m honored they trust me, to bring their stuff here.”
At her store Probst-Dekruif is able to help customers find just the perfect piece of jewelry to mark an important occasion, and there are a lot of options. Jewelry designs now offer more ways for customers to make their own mark. At Probst Jewelry, customers can design the perfect diamond ring with multiple metals, diamond cuts, sizes and band patterns from which to choose.
“A lot of time they (customers) want customization, especially on engagement and wedding rings,” Probst-Dekruif said. “It is fun to play.”
Diamonds remain the top stone for engagement rings, but it is becoming popular to add colored stones as well. Popular choices are rubies and sapphires, though other stones can also make for beautiful combinations.
Those stones don’t have necessarily be natural either. Lab-grown stones, whether they are diamonds or gemstones, are growing in popularity for many reasons. This includes concerns regarding the environmental and human impacts of mining stones. Other reasons people like lab-created stones is the control it gives over the color and clarity of the gemstone, and how much more stone one can afford when buying lab versus natural stones.
Probst-Dekruif is a fan of lab stones, which she said have really increased in quality over the last few decades.
“You get a lot more for the money,” Probst-Dekruif said.
Customers also have many different options for metal when picking their next piece of fine jewelry. For the last few decades, white gold has been the metal of choice for many, but lately a change has been brewing.
“Yellow gold is making a comeback,” Probst-Dekruif said, perhaps helped by the popularity of rose gold over the last few years. It is also probably being helped by the cylindrical nature of fashion — what was old is now new.
The special thing about jewelry is it can be very individual and personal. Three people may show up wearing the exact same clothes, but with a few pieces of jewelry can make that outfit their own. Jewelry is also a great way to showcase personal style, whether it has a more modern twist or leans toward the traditional.
“It is like the frosting on the cake and it’s a very personal taste,” Probst-Dekruif said. “It is your personal touch.”
All the opportunities to help people display their style, preserve their family history by fixing a precious piece of jewelry or play even a small part in major life events by helping find that perfect ring keep Probst-Dekruif in the jewelry business. It is a business full of joy.
“It is a business that makes people happy,” Probst-Dekruif said. “It is a happy business.” ■
