Adding texture to my metals is a strong part of my aesthetic. I think it screams organic to me! There are so MANY ways to create texture. I have the most fun fusing metal to metal. Take the cuff shown above. I started with smooth silver already cut to the proper cuff size. Then I started playing around with adding small silver components to the base. What follows is LOTS of … [Read more...]
Onyx Gemstones: The Lore Behind the Black Stone
Onyx is best known for its black color, but my collection also reveals pale bands, brown tones, and pockets of tiny crystals. If you've pictured it as a uniformly black gem, these pieces show its natural variation. In my Arizona studio, a converted garage, I use onyx both on its own and beside other stones.The video here shows many of the gems in my collection. Onyx … [Read more...]
Petrified Palmwood Root Gems: History Beneath the Polish
A polished petrified palmwood gem can look like a tiny fossil garden, filled with dots, circles, and branching lines. Yet it isn't a gemstone crystal like ruby or diamond. It is ancient plant material whose original structure survived mineral replacement. For jewelry lovers and fossil collectors, petrified palmwood root offers two stories at once: the story of an old palm … [Read more...]
Earrings; A small object with a colorful History
Earring materials tell you what people prized, what they could reach, and what they believed. Bone, shell, copper, silver, gold, glass, and steel are all part of the history. The story begins close to the ground and ends in a world full of new options, but the old meanings still cling to the surface. The earliest earrings were made from what people could find nearby. Early … [Read more...]
Bolo Tie History: From Cowboy Dress to Everyday Wear
A few years ago a customer asked me to fashion a bolo tie for him. While I had never created this type of design, I was up for a new challenge. Let's just say this was quite the learning curve. I did lots of research and dove rignt in. The finished design was beautiful. Afterwards I went back to creating my pendant, ring, cuff and earring designs. In the back of my mind … [Read more...]
