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Archives for December 2019

A Winter Solstice Collab with Maia Toll

December 6, 2019 · Leave a Comment

This collection is in celebration of Maia Toll’s beautiful book “The Illustrated Bestiary,” which explores animal totems and the guidance that may be obtained through observation and ritual. Maia has an uncanny ability to draw meaning from the world, to observe every corner of life and integrate the wisdom therein. It is incredibly easy to drift along, to passively observe, to distract oneself out of self-awareness. This book is a beautiful reminder to learn from the world.  

I first discovered Maia through her (now ended) podcast “The Lunar Lab” a few years ago, and I relished every episode. I started metalsmithing about seven years ago, and had a rocky transition into approaching it as a “business.” The dream was to spend my days making art without having to punch a clock in a profession that didn’t bring me joy. But the path forward was murky and unfamiliar. Early in the business, I was terrified of getting too deeply into debt, because unlike some other mediums, the cost of materials for metalsmithing is shocking. Precious metals, ethically sourced gemstones, a gajillion tools, one can easily go into substantial debt. In addition to that early apprehension, I also was disheartened by typical philosophies surrounding business. There was information thrown at me from all directions on how to do it “right.” Smart business and all that. Production strategies, tax payment plans, marketing campaigns, profit margins, and so forth. And in the face of these things, I felt the soul of my work recoiling. 

And that was precisely when I discovered Maia’s podcast, which was dedicated to exploring conscious business practices and all the beautiful ways in which people can carve out their own path forward. Through the podcast, I began to be more aware of my personal seasons, work cycles, the rhythms of my mind and hands. Maia’s words became one of the pillars in my approach to the business side of my art. Her friendly cadence moving with me through budget spreadsheets and calendar planning.  I found my way back to measuring success by different metrics, such as “How does this piece make me feel?” rather than “Did the piece sell, and if not, what was my profit loss?” I learned to not be scared of the financial side of things, because as long as I was being wise, the most important aspect is always to create honest work that moves the soul. I ditched much of the early business advice I was given, and moved along the path of art as business with Maia in my earbuds. And I cannot tell you what a balm that was.

There is a quote in the introduction to “The Illustrated Bestiary” that strummed my core: “The deep knowledge that I was woven-in and integral cured some nameless longing that had haunted me since childhood. Something in me calmed and became still.” This resonated to the very tips of my toes, because it spoke to my approach to metalsmithing. What gives my work meaning to me is the communing. Whether it is an ode to November ravens or a beloved book about a unicorn in a lilac wood, making collections that tether me more tangibly to that which has meaning to me is the soul of this work. Considering how honeybees navigate with internal compasses as I sail around their silhouettes with a coping saw. Sketching entire collections around my very favorite passages, characters, and notions from “The Silmarillion.” Picking up twigs and flowers while on a mountain in the Adirondacks with the intention of bedecking my metalsmithing bench. All of these things are my way of reestablishing my connection with that which I love. This work weaves me in even more closely with literature, the earth, my experience of life, the dear souls who connect with my work. It is one of the most soul-enriching ways in which I tuck myself into the tapestry. 

It took me nearly a month to decide which stone to use for this collection. I hemmed; I hawed; I turned stones over in my hands; I opened and reopened my gemstone cabinet countless times. And then, I happened upon my collection of silver sheen obsidian. These stones are incredibly special, with a beautiful silver schiller that plays across the tops. They look as though they are made of liquid glitter, mercurial in the way the light seems to drip across the slopes of the stones. Some of the stones have a very swirled pattern, like they were undulated into solidification. 
In the beginning of “The Illustrated Bestiary,” Maia includes a quote about the relationship between ourselves and animals: “Every creature of the world is a book or a picture, and also a mirror for ourselves.” – Alain de Lille, 12th Century 

This quote encapsulates my approach to the pieces I designed in celebration of Maia’s book. For hundreds of years, mirrors have served as symbols of self-realization and wisdom. In literature, there are numerous instances of liquid mirrors used for either portent or self-revelation: the mirror of Galadriel which showed past and possible futures, Merlin’s use of bowls of water in scrying in order to keep the young king safe, Narcissus’s revelation of self in a forest pool. And it is with these notions in mind that I designed this collection.

When held in the palm, one could almost imagine movement in the schiller of silver sheen obsidian, like a scene taking shape in a magic mirror. It is a volcanic glass, so this comparison to a mirror feels all the more apt. At the bottom of each pendant, I have included a swath of leaves curved over the stone, which harkens to Maia’s work as an herbalist. The leaves partially obscure the stone, like beech leaves strewn about a dark forest pool. And as animal totems are inherently a personal, inner journey, I have sawn the silhouettes of a few of the animals included in “The Illustrated Bestiary” out of the backs of the pendants to reveal the stone, a secret animal form to rest against the heart. The backs are like the silver sheen obsidian swirled into the animal form, as though you were looking into a magic mirror. A flash of illumination in an otherwise dark surface, like the flash of intuition in the self. 

This is a very limited run featuring representatives of “The Illustrated Bestiary.” There will be fourteen necklaces, with only one necklace per animal chosen. They will debut in the shop one at a time with one per day at 10:00 a.m. EST each morning from December 6th -19th. Each listing includes a signed copy of “The Illustrated Bestiary” to be mailed separately. The necklaces and books will be shipped on the same days as purchase to ensure swift delivery. And then, on the day of the winter solstice, we will conjure a bit of sunshine.

Filed In: Uncategorized / Tagged: Animal Totems, Artisan Jewelry, Jewelry, Maia Toll, moonspinner, moonspinner jewelry, Special Collaboration, The Illustrated Bestiary

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Recent Posts

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I am sorry it has been so quiet here lately. My st I am sorry it has been so quiet here lately. My studio is a flurry of blue gemstones and hammered sterling silver, I have so much to show you, but I just keep saying "I will photograph tomorrow!" and then run back to the bench to make more. I am en fuego creatively, swirling from one design to the next. I promise I will snap some photos soon!

In the meantime, Winter Oak Earrings. What do you think? Do you like them?

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✖️North Wind Collection Release: Early-Mid March in the Etsy shop✖️
I am pushing through drifts of snow and snapping i I am pushing through drifts of snow and snapping ice from pine boughs, all to gather up enough winter for my North Wind Collection!

As you may remember, I decided to move the North Wind Collection (as well as the Mossflower Collection) to a biannual schedule. I love these stones, these palettes, these seasons so much that when I work with them, I want to honor them with as bounteous of offerings as I can muster. And so they take months and hundreds of hours to conjure.

Therefore, to make space in my year for all the new collection ideas I have had tucked away in my sketchbook and gemstone cabinet, I decided to make those two seasonal collections every other year, rather than annually.

All of this to say, this will be the last North Wind Collection until 2023, but it is going to be SUCH a beautiful one!

Oh! Quick little poll for you, I am feeling pulled in two different directions in my earring creation. Which do you prefer: light, lilting, dangly earrings with small stones and perhaps a fringe OR bold, drop earrings featuring slices of stone?
After asking you in a poll and in the comments of After asking you in a poll and in the comments of a recent post, it looks like you would much prefer an early March release, rather than a February one, for the North Wind Collection.

This will allow me catch a bit more winter, create more pieces, and give me a bit more time to share the stories behind these designs.

I have so so so much to share with you. If only I could tear myself away from the bench to snap some photos of everything I have finished!

I haven't settled on a date in early-mid March quite yet, I need to see how long things will take me to finish. But you will be the first to know!
The surprise collection from yesterday is all sold The surprise collection from yesterday is all sold now, but garnet will return!

I have been collecting garnet, redder hessonites particularly and some almandine, for about four years with the intention of a big collection.

I am a bit like a crow with my gemstones, I find a little handful of beautiful turquoise or agate, and I tuck it away in my gemstone cabinet.

I have another little surprise collection planned for sometime next month. What stones would you like to see in an upcoming collection? Do you have a favorite that I havent worked with yet? One you'd like to see return? I would love to know!
Edit: Sold Out (Just three left! Sizes 6, 9, and Edit: Sold Out

(Just three left! Sizes 6, 9, and 11.)

As I mentioned before, I am hoping to do semi-frequent surprise collections throughout this year to offset the fluster of my scheduled and long-anticipated collection releases. These surprise collections will allow for serendipity to carry my pieces to their intended owners.

For some of the collections, I will give a slight heads-up on the blog, since I know social media algorithms can be really problematic. I will put up a blog post announcing the date and time when the previewed collection will be released.

Other collections will be true surprises, and I will announce on social media the moment they land in my shop.
Surprise! The very first of my surprise collection Surprise! The very first of my surprise collections just landed in the Etsy shop. 

Valentine Rings. 

Sweet, romantic rings featuring natural, faceted hessonite garnets. The January birthstone, and a wonderful representation of love, I think. They range in hue from deep cherry to magenta to brick red. Set in ornate inverted heart bezels with beaded circlets to accent them, romantic and regal.

They are set atop half-round hands for comfort and fit true to size. 
The sizes available will be 6, 6.75, 6.75, 7, 7, 7.5, 8, 8, 8.5, 9, 10.5, 11.
My hands are flying over sharp sterling edges and My hands are flying over sharp sterling edges and a color palette that reflects the world outside my studio windows. I am enthralled by blue this year, and you will be able to find a lot of it in this year’s North Wind Collection. There will be the deep, crackling teal of moss kyanite, magical shimmer of moonstone, the soft liquid blues of aquamarine, and the dusky snow-squalling blues of dendritic agate. Deep winter ice and shadows on snow, all encased within stone.

(Here is a sneak peak at a new necklace design!)

I am oscillating between release times for the North Wind Release, the last week of February or the first week of March. Do you have a preference? I would love to know!
✨A call for ring sizes!✨ With my recurring co ✨A call for ring sizes!✨

With my recurring collections, most designs don’t make an appearance in every iteration. Some designs I only make once, others I revisit every now and again. A few weeks ago I asked which designs you’d like to see return from last year’s North Wind Collection. And I heard a resounding call for Winter Current Rings.

And so, I have scoured every drawer in my gemstone cabinet, and was able to gather the sweetest little bowl of teal kyanites for the rings. Nearly two hundred people raised their hands when I asked who was hoping to claim one during the release, and I am afraid I wont be able to make that many. But I will have a good offering of them! A few dozen with the sweetest, wintery gemstones.

And now, if this is a design you’re hoping to scoop up during the release, let me know in the comments below your ring size! (They fit true to size.) I want to try to have the best spread of ring sizes possible, and I will make the most requested sizes.

I hope you are weathering 2021 comfortably. Perhaps by catching snow squalls and spinning magic out of ice, all while holding a steamy mug of something warm.
❄️ Winter Oak Earrings ❄️ I made a versio ❄️ Winter Oak Earrings ❄️

I made a version of these for my very first Mossflower Collection, featuring a round shape and little prehnite gemstones. My initial vision for these were of sturdy oaks, rough in texture and bold in their size. And those earrings reflected that.

While I smith in the studio, I can look out towards the slender, leafless birches and tremendous trees beyond them, thick and sturdy. And what a thing to see a tree in winter: weathered, bare, still. To run hands along branches slick with ice, touch the coarse bark in its hibernation. But in that same moment to know that they will soon shake the ice off their arms, kick the snow off their toes, and then toss on their green, glowing mantles.

And so, these earrings are for them. The winter version of my Oak Earrings. Emulating the beauty of great, frozen trees, lovely in their roughness and glowing with winter. Earrings for walking through frozen oak glades and filling your pockets with winter.

They are sawn in a marquise shape, seemingly spilling below the ear. The surface is textured, weathered, and oxidized. And at the bottom of each earring, a beautiful kyanite. I have sawn a window behind the stone so these gemstones truly glow below the ear.

So far I have only made this pair of Winter Oak Earrings. I wanted to put out a call so I could get an idea of how many I should make. So if these earrings are calling out to you, and you think you’d like to claim a pair during the release, let me know in the comments below!
Friends! I have decided that I am going to start s Friends! I have decided that I am going to start sprinkling surprise collections throughout the year. Since the long-scheduled shop updates can be a bit hectic and frustrating, I think a few small, surprise ones will allow for serendipity.

I will let everyone know about surprise collections in posts here that will be simultaneous to when the pieces appear in the Etsy shop. Since the algorithm can be a bit of a bother for some people, I will try to put a blog post up the day before. So if you are signed up for the newsletter, you will get a collection preview and the timing of the release slightly in advance. (You can find the signup on my website.)

First surprise collection coming soon!
❄️ February Rings ❄️ The companion design ❄️ February Rings ❄️

The companion design to last year’s January Rings. They will feature shimmering white moonstones and icy aquamarines, varying in surface cut.

Some of the aquamarines are the deep blue of an arctic lake, and others the softest blue, like early morning blue skies above a winterscape. The variations of blues and the different ways in which they shimmer and glow will be so splendid to see all together.

I finished these just as the fresh snow arrived, and I was able to catch a few snow crystals and place them daintily around these gemstones. I tucked a few frosty pebbles around the stones, and set them all atop a heavy-weight half round band. I have lightly textured the surface of the bands to look like a lightly trod footpath over fresh snow.

I am in love with this design, I have been wearing the aquamarine ring all morning, tilting it into the light to look down into its crackling depths. These are truly rings made for queens of winter. Made for holding snow squalls in the palm, and reaching into frozen pools towards the deep undercurrents.  Rings for February.
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The rest of the February Rings are unfinished and waiting for bands, there will be a few dozen made for the collection. If this design is calling to you, let me know in the comments your ring size and whether you prefer shimmering white moonstone or icy aquamarine! (These rings fit a smidge snug as the bands are about 6mm wide, but I think ordering your true size is just fine.)
I am positively thrumming with excitement about my I am positively thrumming with excitement about my upcoming North Wind Collection! I only have a few designs that I will be revisiting from last year (thank you to everyone who weighed in on the polls!), which means my bench is covered in brand new sketches, prototypes, eager piles of gemstones, and tools just itching to be used.

This morning it snowed a fresh blanket, cedars dipping under the weight and the pond all but swallowed up. And it arrived just in time, because I was able to reach my hand out the window and pluck some snow crystals from the air for these February Rings I am making. Shimmering white moonstones and deep, icy aquamarines will be set beside some daintily resting snowflakes and mounds of snow.

Keep an eye out here because I am going to send out a call for ring size requests so I can know how many to make for all you snow queens and winter walkers.
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