Showing posts with label Sea Fan Coral Cuff. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Sea Fan Coral Cuff. Show all posts

Saturday, June 21, 2014

Ocean Reef Flip Cuff Bracelet






Ocean Reef Flip Cuff Bracelet

Have you ever thought about buying an heirloom?

An heirloom can be a piece of jewelry you purchased or a piece you had made...either way, this special piece of jewelry should bring out your emotions, your thoughts or just put a smile on your face. It's something that has brought you joy and you want to pass it down to the next generations for them to cherish and enjoy as well.

Needless to say, my daughter will be getting quite a few heirlooms especially this one. It only took one trip to the islands to fall in love with the ocean and everything in it but the most fascinating part of the ocean to me has to be the sea fan coral...its soft skeletal design gracefully moves with the currents. It's that movement I wanted to capture with this new Collection. I wanted to recreate that movement without it actually moving but I also wanted the piece to tell a story.

Such as the Starfish finding a safe place to land or the tip of the sea fan capturing a large pearl for its own enjoyment. I hope that whoever wears a piece of my sea fan jewelry, sees the movement that I see and simple takes you away for just a moment.

So whether it's a piece of jewelry that I create or one that I have made especially for you, I always imagine it being passed down to the next generations and bringing joy to the one wearing it.


Materials: Sterling Silver & 14k Yellow Gold
Pearl: Natural Color Freshwater Pearl, No Dyes.
Finish: High Polished
Size: Medium

A Few Options

The starfish is cast in 14k Yellow Gold and the Pearl shown is a 11mm Natural Fresh Water Pearl. Other pearl options are South Sea or Tahitian. Pearls that are 10mm-11mm work well with this design.

I have sculpted several starfish in various sizes, so a cluster would also look fabulous on this cuff.

Additional Pearl Options: Please let me know if your would like another pearl besides Freshwater. I would be happy to locate your pearl at the best price available.

My process for creating my Sea Fan Coral Jewelry

A piece of 16 gauge wax wire is cut into 2-4mm lengths and each one is soldered together to create the fan coral design. There are no shortcuts for me when creating my wax pieces. It's a labor of love and the results are something that I am very proud of. It takes great equipment from my caster to get these right. I push the limits when it comes to sculpting and casting.

When Volker (Master Jeweler) ask me, what did I want to learn? He said I can teach you everything about making jewelry! I asked if I could think about it overnight. I came back to him the next day and ask if it was OK just to concentrate on sculpting the wax to make jewelry? I told him I felt my time would be better spent on design, and spending the time needed to creating realistic wax models with the detail I felt they needed. He said it was OK and I never regretted my decision not to do it all.

Friday, June 20, 2014

Murex and Sea Fan Coral Fusion Cuff Bracelet






Creating Wearable Art

To this day, when I walk on the beach, I would see shells, starfish and corals washed up on the shore. The seaweed or coral would be intertwined with the shells as they rolled back and forth with the waves.

I guess some people would just ignore the mangled clump of sea life but I could see a painting laying on the sand, or as a scarf around your neck or a piece of jewelry wrapped around my arm. It was those fascinating little pieces that were the inspiration for making this cuff.

The Cuff is half Murex Shell and half Sea Fan Coral...just two fascinating pieces that came together as one.

So when I sit down at my bench, I have the opportunity to create just that, wearable art. It may take a month, sometimes several months but eventually, I will walk out of my studio with a piece of art that has never existed before.

Material: 92.5 Sterling Silver
Finish: High Polished
Size: Medium