January 2011

Monday, January 31, 2011

There's more where these came from. 92 more, in fact. I can barely stop myself from posting the entirety of "100 Rings of Solitude" by Inari Kiuru, a Finnish jeweller currently studying in Australia. I couldn't even wait for her website to stop being "under construction"; you can find the 100 rings on her blog for now.

Bonus link: while the above collection is a play on 100 Years of Solitude by Gabriel García Márquez, this ring comes from a collection by another Gabriel — Gabriel Reinoso of Cuba (now living in Italy).

Even more jewellery:

Lilah Gabriel (Texas) - rope necklaces
Youth vs. Future (Finland) - feathers & chains
Vivien Walsh (Ireland) - semiprecious beads

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Friday, January 28, 2011

I love how these pieces juxtapose clean, brushed silver with an element of surprise, be it an accent of colour or a burst of crystals. Rings by Stockholm-based Romanian jeweller Kuki Constantinescu.

Bonus link:
Speaking of accents of colour, here's L'Accent Nou (Spain's Anastasia Egorova) and one of her ceramic rings with vibrant spots of red and green.

Even more jewellery:

CDSO Designs (Hawaii) - silver & concrete
Solveig Linke (Germany) - botanical pods
Hedy Parks (Mexico) - contemporary metal

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Thursday, January 27, 2011

Tea, deconstructed. London's Annie Banian turns tea sets into jewellery, fusing porcelain fragments with gold and silver. Inspired by traditional English culture, her work plays on "the decadent experience of afternoon tea with a modern twist... embracing the most English of ladies by paying a parodic homage to them." Pictured above are her handle and back-stamp rings.

Bonus link: North America's got much more of a coffee culture than a tea culture. For you bean addicts, here's a copper coffee ring by Connecticut's Elena Samsonova (originally from Russia).

Even more jewellery:

Escama Studio (California/Brazil) - popcan tabs
Stylesnob (Denmark) - leather bracelets
Les Bijoux de Sophie (France) - little charms

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Wednesday, January 26, 2011

Nobody likes a manipulative person — unless that person is Greek jeweller Niki Stylianou and what she's manipulating is rubber and paper.

Above, what looks like a stack of thin gold bands is actually paint and gold leaf on paper and wire.

Bonus link:
Of course, it's hard to think of manipulating paper without thinking of origami. This lacquer-coated origami flower ring is by Satoko's Origami Jewelry of the UK.

Even more jewellery:

Cory Child (Australia) - origami clusters
Mizuki Jewelry (New York) - diamonds & rhodium
Casalinda Studio (California) - silver flowers

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Tuesday, January 25, 2011

Something about these rings immediately brought to mind images of highways and ramps in mid-construction. So, I wasn't surprised to see that they were from the "Urbanity" collection by French jeweller Blandine Luce. I fully endorse putting my tax dollars toward these.

Bonus link:
Here's a little urbanity, 1800s style. Train ring with bridge bangle by Poland's Kamilla Rohn.

Even more jewellery:

Urbanite Jewelry (Ottawa) - wooden flourishes
Joanne Grimonprez (Germany) - ropes & metal
Trish Bondi (UK) - silver shapes

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Monday, January 24, 2011

Don't be shy. Face the camera.

That's more like it!

Fun, chunky "Drink me!" and "Eat me!" rings by Germany's Antje Stolz.

Bonus link: the last pair of rings above reminded me of these "Harlequin" rings by Danish acrylic jewellery designer Zarah Voigt (actually a set of three; also comes in zebrawood).

Even more jewellery:

Issy Salomon (New York) - acrylic chains
Julia Denes (Australia) - cut-out metal
Showsh Designs (Toronto) - contemporary silver

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Friday, January 21, 2011

If you like to cook, you must visit this artist. If you don't like to cook, you must order yourself a pizza, and then you must visit this artist. Nova Scotia's Berkeley Brown (currently in Scotland) combines the culinary and jewellery worlds in her charming collection.

Above, one of her rings featuring strips of food writing. Swoon.

Bonus link:
Japan's Momo Jewelry (Momoko Noda) also has some nods to the kitchen in her work, such as a whisk pendant or the biscuit ring shown here.

Even more jewellery:

Lucy King (Australia) - recycled plates
Victoria Walker (UK) - botanical metal
Kristin Hanson (New York) - fine jewellery

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Thursday, January 20, 2011

New Zealand's Nga Waiata pairs wood and stone from NZ and Australia, creating chunky pieces that are — I'm just going to have to go with the obvious line here — naturally beautiful.

Bonus link:
Meanwhile, in another hemisphere, Poland's Amber Abram (Michał Abramczuk) does similar work (but pairing wood with Baltic amber, of course).

Even more jewellery:

Regina Dabdab (France) - cool wood
Beau & Trouble (Australia) - trophy heads
Mieleszko Myszka (Poland) - amber & metal

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Wednesday, January 19, 2011

Just a pinch of silver.

UK artist Lucie Gledhill is interested in things. Coincidentally, I am also interested in things. What kind of things? Fingerthings.

Bonus link: London's Martine Wester partnered with Nails Inc. to create boxed sets of matching rings and nail polish. (With talons like the ones above, you'll probably need more than one bottle.)

Even more jewellery:

Williams Goldsmiths (Maine) - fingerprints & paws
Miho Nishikawa (Japan) - modern silver
Nicholas James (UK) - contemporary classics

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Tuesday, January 18, 2011

Boo! (Like a scary boo, I mean, not a thumbs-down boo. Just so we're clear. Carry on.)

Like their name suggests, the UK's EVOL HEIST has just got an UPPER CASE kind of style. If you need to STAND UP AND SHOUT, this is the jewellery you wear.

Bonus link:
For a simpler acrylic ring, check out this sleek piece from Oregon's Tyler Pesek. The inner layer is available in multiple colours (or wood, if you like).

Even more jewellery:

Live Out Loud (Ontario) - chunky wood
Bonnie Styles (UK) - contemporary silver
Elie Hirsch (France) - fluid & sculptural

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Monday, January 17, 2011

According to the Silversun Pickups song "Rusted Wheel," you can't hold a star in your hand. According to this rusted ring, however, you can hold a stalagmite. Ashley Winnington-Ball created this stalagmite ring by layering drips of resin onto a found piece of rusted metal.

Above, more rings from the Toronto artist, who likes to work with materials that "most would call waste."

Bonus link: you don't have to worry about rust here — these rings are gold! Rings by London's Rust (married duo Nao Utsumi & Artemis Russell), who favour traditional styles like signets and engraved bands.

Even more jewellery:

The Rusted Chain (Kansas) - stamped silver
Yevgeniya Kaganovich (Wisconsin) - conceptual art
Elyse Marks (California) - knit necklaces

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Friday, January 14, 2011

An exploration of colour and texture by Michigan artist Tiffany Massey.

Bonus link:
Here's some more bright colour, but with a soft rather than rough texture in the form of interchangeable felt panels. By Germany's Dodo Duexmann.

Even more jewellery:

Artaya (Washington, DC) - colourful paper
Loet Gescher (Netherlands) - playful plastic
Katherine Lawrie (UK) - texturized silver

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Thursday, January 13, 2011

Woolly weather calls for woolly rings, like these sculptural felted Merino rings by Strong Felt (North Carolina's Lisa Klakulak).

Bonus link:
Here's some more felt from Japan's Eri Fukada, who also collaborates with Kana Umeda (mentioned last April) under the brand Démaé Jewellery.

Even more jewellery:

Zita Kälin (Switzerland) - felt accessories
Clare Hillerby (UK) - vintage postcards
Stephen Kraft (Tennessee) - metal & glass

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Wednesday, January 12, 2011

One of my favourite things is illustrated porcelain, so I recently treated myself to a modern porcelain sake set with gold silhouettes by Japanese designer Shin Matsunaga (just to look at, not to use). Unfortunately, I don't have a picture of the set — but I do have a picture of these charming, illustrated porcelain rings by Australian artist Abby Seymour, one half of design duo Goldenink (the other half is Katherine Wheeler, whom I mentioned last July).

Bonus link:
Imprinted porcelain is pretty nice, too, like this ring with a lace design (actually made of cold porcelain) by Paris-based Portuguese artist Sofia Barão.

Even more jewellery:

Cordialement Bisou (France) - illustrated porcelain
Loumina (New Zealand) - silver & stone
Dominique Giordano (Louisiana) - inlaid gems

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Tuesday, January 11, 2011

No fitter day than 1/11/11 for my first post of the year. (Nevermind 1/1/11 — five ones are better than four!) Happy 2011 to you all :)

I spent my holiday in Mexico and it's been very tough getting back into the swing of things here. Since my head is still south of the borders (plural), let's kick things off with Texas jeweller Ale Bremer and her "Mexican Finds" collection, featuring embedded bottlecaps, found embroidery and loteria cards.

Bonus link:
Mexico is typically associated with silver, of course, so here's an atypically-shaped silver ring by Mexican jeweller Ariadna Correa Calleja of CC Jewelry.