N is for Necklace
Have you ever found a pendant, bead, or necklace that you thought must have been created especially for you? I'm not talking about something that's just pretty, but something that you felt strongly represented your life in some way. Maybe it was a lampworked bead that looked exactly like your Labradoodle, down your dog's facial expression. Or maybe it was a necklace that not only used all the colors on a quilt your grandmother made for you, but it also managed to replicate the subtle patterns on the fabrics.
When you see something that speaks to your life so strongly, it's pretty hard to resist. That's how I felt when I saw this handmade art pendant by Erin Prais-Hintz of Tesori Trovati Jewelry.
The Pendant
On one side, the handmade polymer clay pendant says "leap" and on the other side "& the net will appear." That has always been one of my favorite sayings, a kind of
mantra I repeat to myself whenever I'm about to do something even the slightest bit risky.
The saying is attributed to American naturalist and essayist John Burroughs, who has a number of interesting quotes, including this one: "A somebody was once a nobody who wanted to and did."
It didn't hurt that the pendant was set in a copper bezel—my favorite metal—and used soft blues and browns—my favorite colors for designing jewelry. I bought it
immediately.
The Necklace Design
Normally, I'm a slow designer.
I like to try out a million combinations and sometimes have a hard time finishing a piece, wanting every bead and finding to fit and not be merely "good enough."
This necklace came together ridiculously quickly. All the materials for the necklace were ones I already had in my bead stash: frosted mint green glass coins, shibuichi links, round copper chain, aqua Czech glass coins, pearls (for the dangle), and white shell heishi.
If you're not a jewelry designer, I can compare the experience to buying
a blouse and finding that at home you have the perfect pair of pants,
shoes, jacket, and bracelet to wear with it. It happens, but not as often I as would like.