One of the aspects of my practice which I've not really thought about properly and which I don't document fully is the way in which I sometimes "doodle" with materials in downtimes. Waiting for some stones to be delivered or a casting to complete, or when I can't really take my eye off a class for any length of time, I frequently play with bits and pieces and offcuts on my bench. Sometimes these amount to nothing, sometimes they become pleasing-enough little pieces to be sold on Etsy and at other times they seem to be suggestive of a direction I might take. Over the last week, I've put together this:
A very human-scaled "Post Apocalyptic Cocktail Ring", which I named (post facto) The Black Prince as it is set with a large natural ruby, which, it has to be said, looks a lot more like a ruby than this photograph would lead you to believe. The black stones in the side are black diamonds and the back is set with a natural transparent white quartz. The crown element is a part of the rear mech of a bike and the shank is constructed from my favourite iron electrical conduit.
(The joke here being that the "Black Prince's Ruby" in the UK crown jewels is, in fact, a spinel...)
Today, I received an invite to be included in a jewellery magazine of which I was previously unaware and which I found to be very interesting: Creating Linus Jewellery. It is a strange name but has interviews with many interesting European and American jewellers, as well as basic workshop tips and tricks, all beautifully photographed and laid out. It is a pay-for-subscription but you can sign up for the issues until January for free. Well worth a look.
Off on holiday for a long weekend in Brighton. Absolutely nothing planned!