The gem in question is probably one in a million however, when the 60 carat heavy-weight Mozambican aquamarine worth £40,000* is raffled by prison charity Fine Cell Work on 20 November 2014, ticket holders will have a one in a thousand chance to win it.Gem hunter and merchant, Guy Clutterbuck has generously donated an exquisite, multi-faceted, unheated, cushion-cut aquamarine to Fine Cell Work to raise funds for its invaluable work that helps prisoners in the UK to turn their lives around. To augment Guy’s generosity, the renowned jewellery designer Georgina Skan, former Head of Design at Garrard and Asprey, has offered to design an exquisite setting and Fine Cell Work will donate £1500 towards the materials. This is an extraordinary fund raising initiative that will result in a remarkable piece of jewellery to treasure.
Raffle tickets cost £50 and are available from Fine Cell Work – www.finecellwork.co.uk/raffle and all the proceeds go directly to the work of the charity. The raffle will be drawn at an exclusive party at the Foreign & Commonwealth Office on 20 November 2014. The prize draw aims to raise £50,000.
Fine Cell Work is a social enterprise that trains prisoners in paid, skilled, creative needlework — undertaken in the long hours spent in their cells — to foster hope, discipline and self esteem. This helps them to connect to society and to leave prison with the confidence and financial means to stop offending. Prison stitchers spend an average of 20 hours per week doing embroidery in their cells: the highest earners stitch for as long as 40 hours. It builds self- discipline and skills that enables them to serve their time with purpose and dignity. Their modest earnings from stitching nurtures a work ethic and a sense of independence. Fine Cell Work is done in 24 prisons with 450 prisoners each year and 97% of the stitchers are men.
