A Gift.

A Bob Brooch!

Bob!

I am so fortunate to be able to take a Bob Ebendorf / Jim Cotter class this summer at Penland! Then I expect to have another 3 years with Bob at ECU. Bob is the reason that I became interested in jewelry and metals in the first place, not only because of his work, but because also too, he's such a special person.

The last time I visited ECU, which happens to be in my home town, Greenville, NC, I picked up a similar rusted crushed can on the road during my run. Laying next to it was a beat-up plastic gem that wedged into a crease of the can perfectly. I gave it to Bob and he's going to make it into something fabulous!

 Here's a collection of some of Bob's charms:

You may recognize this piece from the exhibit at SECCA recently. Glasswear: Glass in Contemporary Jewelry. 

Elizabeth Yarborough

When my sister found out that I was interested in jewelry design she gasped and said that we must have lunch with her cousin, Elizabeth Yarborough! After browsing her website I excitedly agreed. With a sense of humor, and with an interest in deconstructing materials and stereotypes, she subverts traditional wardrobe and household staples and reintroduces them in surprising ways. I had the pleasure of speaking with her on the phone last summer, where gave me tons of helpful tips and words of wisdom. She recently opened a new boutique in San Francisco and featuring her sweater bangles called Yarbie, which has its own website.  

Yarbie Sweater Bangles:

Oh, and she's beautiful:

Laura Wood

I am so exciting about being able to attend Laura Wood's senior thesis show this Friday! In the past 3 years two different people have bought me a pair of her poppy paper earrings, and they are my favorite. She's graduating from East Carolina University with a MFA in the metals program, the same program I'll be enrolling in this coming fall. She's been working on a series of small jewelry objects covered in paper, I recently dropped off one of my mom's old watches for her to cover with abaca paper. She's oh so very talented and I absolutely love clicking through all of her work. 

Here are some of her poppy earrings:

She used sweet potatoes for the molds.

Here's an example of her found objects covered in paper:

She's also into sculpture:

you can follow her!

www.laurawoodstudios.com

www.laurawood.tumblr.com

www.ldeezy.etsy.com

Logo

I think that Becky Hatley needs to look into designing logos as a career! This is the logo I'll be using when I design my website, new business cards, and who knows, maybe I'll get it tattooed on my back. That's how much I like it. Please comment and let me know if you can figure out what it is. It may help to know that the original spelling of my last name means 'little quail' in Italian. Enjoy.

Barbietastic

Talk about what you can do with Barbie parts! Margaux Lange knows how it's done. I'm especially inspired by this necklace: Bubblegum POP Neckpiece 200?, made with sterling silver, resin, and Barbie faces.

Monocolormagic

Speaking of things painted all the same... Rondle Royce West has the same idea.