When out and about with my stall of jewellery treasures, I’m often asked where the inspiration for my work comes from… the short answer is – ancient jewellery!
Here’s the longer answer…
The beginning of my journey started with experimenting with wire wrapped jewellery. That happened by accident because I’d bought some crystals for some air-dry clay projects.
I had plenty of crystals left over, so tried some wire wrapping. When wrapping, I started creating spirals. With the crystals, suddenly you have something that looks magical and ancient!
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Some of the oldest symbols used by our ancestors featured the spiral, and is inspiring in itself. It represents so many things to so many cultures and peoples around the world and has been a constant through tens of thousands of years.
Then I wanted to work with thicker materials, and started to play with thicker copper, creating spiral pendants and rings.
I enjoyed that so much, I wanted to see what else I could create, and using flowing curved forms with spirals as terminals, I hit a style which really clicked with me.
The more I looked at the curves and flowing spirals I was creating, I could see that there are elements of not only the ancient pieces that originally inspired, but the organic whiplash forms reminded me of the sinuous flow of floral forms you can see in Art Nouveau design.
Also, the handmade nature of the pieces, plus the textured planished finish brings the ethos of the Arts and Crafts movement of William Morris.
This mix of styles really complement each other, making the pieces so versatile. Reflecting movements from Victorian and Edwardian periods, these pieces can be worn in both formal and informal settings.
The one-off planished designs make them perfect for the stylish Bohemian, the Arts and Crafts influences give a casual look ideal for every day use, the Art Nouveau forms add an elegance which transcends into more glamorous events, and the ancient influences grounds the designs into our shared history.
This mix of influences lends itself to being suitable for many different occasions, including boho, gothic styles, period inspired looks and steampunk.
The handcrafted nature of these pieces mean every one I create is unique, but they are all cohesive and suit many different styles and occasions.
Please feel free to comment and let me know what you think of my work!
