A couple of my favorite items and the stories that go with them
The Hawaiian Connection
In the early 1900’s, the Chinese came to Hawaii to work the plantations and brought their cocaine bottles with them. This bottle was found at an antique store on Maui. The key is an antique barrel key on the bottom of an ancient Chinese coin. There are 3 trade beads on the top. The two rust colored beads are called green heart beads. They were traded by the Hudson Bay Fur Company in the 1800’s for furs brought in by the Native Americans. The white bead is an ostrich egg shell bead. Beads like these are among the oldest type found in archeological digs throughout the old world |
This Necklace Is Revolutionary
Many revolutionary war artifacts can be found through the south. Two of these pieces were purchased at an antique store in Charleston...the blue pottery piece, and, above it, a key hole cover from a door. The two blue beads on the top and bottom are vintage Chinese ceramic beads. |
Kale is Not Just a Vegetable
The pendant on this piece is KALE dipped in titanium to harden it and give it a turquoise color. There are 5 Raku pieces...the scarab on the kale, the two beads above the kale, and the two beads at the top of the copper discs. Raku is the ancient Japanese art of firing pottery. These beads are made in that tradition. The necklace is completed with small turquoise beads, copper beads, and copper tubes. Turquoise is one of the oldest stones and is a stone of strength and protection |
Shells of the Sea, Stones of the Earth
The pendant is a slice from a Lion’s paw scallop shell found in oceans throughout the world. The colorful sticks are made from polymer clay. The blue beads are lapis lazuli from Afghanistan. Lapis Lazuli is called the “Wisdom Keeper” which supports spiritual transformation and spiritual enlightenment. The turquoise beads support strength and offer protection. The beads at the top and other orange colored beads are from a shell called spiny oyster found primarily in the Sea of Cortez. |
Three Types of Glass - Ancient, Sea, and Man Made
Sea glass can be found on many beaches throughout the world. Sea glass is made from glass that is tossed in the ocean until smooth or made into interesting shapes. The sea glass pendant here that is wrapped in copper wire, was found on a beach in Cozumel, Mexico in 2011. In 2005, a hurricane wiped out the high rises and swimming pools in that area. After spending 6 years tumbling in the ocean it began washing up on the beach. The larger cream beads above the pendant are powder glass beads made In Ghana by the Krobo tribe. These beads have been traded for hundreds of years. The remaining beads are Roman glass beads that are 1000-2000 years old made by artisans from that time period |
Crystals Galore
The pendant on this necklace is a 50/100 million year old fossilized druzy shell found in India and dug from a rocky hillside by hand. The shell is unique in that only 10% of shells are of a left hand coiling variety. The druzy shell pendant is strung with Chinese fresh water pearls and Swarovski crystals. Fresh water pearls are grown in mussels as opposed to oysters. Swarovski crystals, first made in Austria in 1895, are made in a secret 12 step chemical and polishing process that maintain their integrity |