'Chrome Hill' at the Naswa featuring artisan watches & jewelry for the motorcycle enthusiast

LACONIA — To help celebrate its 80th anniversary, G. Smith Motorsports of Louisiana has returned to the Naswa Resort on Weirs Blvd. for Motorcycle Week, bringing award-winning jeweler Steve Soffa along as one of its special guests.

Along with the excitement of Chrome Hill in the upper parking lot across the street from the resort's main office, Soffa has set up a traveling studio to showcase his unique and upscale jewelry and sculpture pieces — many of them specifically geared toward the motorcycle enthusiast.

Along with the 50-year commemorative watches designed for G. Smith Motorsports, Soffa is the official timepiece designer for the 75th anniversary of the motorcycle renowned rally at Sturgis, South Dakota and the official bracelet designer of the World Series of Poker.

Soffa started his career in 1993 as a rookie salesman at a branding watch company. A few years later, he was recruited by a Los Angeles Company to build their commemorative watch collection.

In this role, he designed watches for Wells Fargo, Universal, and Apple computer.

Always are artist in his own right, Soffa said he's been painting, drawing and designing since he was 6-years-old, he left the Los Angeles company in 2002 to begin work on his own collections of time pieces that he launched in 2005 in Las Vegas.

As his business became more well known and his clientele became more upscale, he began designing custom jewelry like rings and bracelets for both sexes to complement his watches and time pieces.

Recently, he has expanded his collection such that each timepiece or article of jewelry comes in it own specially designed box that mirrors the art piece.

Soffa individually inspects all of his raw material including the stones — mostly diamond and rubies — for authenticity so as to make sure they are not conflict stones.

Soffa also does individual commemorative pieces for individual. One of his pieces was a watch face that was a photo of his client's grandparent who he used to design watches for both of them.

True to Motorcycle week, Soffa has an unusual and ornate brand of skull rings in his and her sizes and some bullet jewelry including some Federal (ammo) earrings.

He described his shop and his employees as something akin to the Willy Wonka Chocolate Factory in that its private and he doesn't make his jewelry at public displays.

He said he want's his clients to walk away with the feeling that a Steve Soffa piece "should be timeless. It was made especially for me and I was part of it."

Soffa's exhibit, along with the other events at Chrome Hill that include a Ferrari and a Lamborghini, some V-8 choppers designed by G. Smith Motorsports.

G. Smith Motorsports and Magnolia Companies of Louisiana is one of the prime sponsors of this years Peter Makris Memorial Run that raises money for charities.

CUTLINE: Artist and watchmaker Steve Soffa shows off his 75th anniversary Sturgis Rally brochure at Chrome Hill during yesterday set up period.

A Steve Soffa Hard Core Watch complete with the matching box it comes in. The matching boxes are one of Soffa's specialties as is his complete Hard Core line. (Laconia Daily Sun photo/Gail Ober)