From the Ruins of an Opulent Jungle Kingdom

This bracelet makes me think of ancient and grand civilizations, their splendor long passed away, secreted beneath a millenium's worth of lush vines and foliage in the heart of an impenetrable Mayan jungle. Only this small relic survived, a faint echo of their culture's high art.



(Angling for a job writing for Sundance catalog so I'm working on my pretentiousness. How'd I do? Should I add something about fierce jungle goddesses or something? "Unleash your fierce inner jungle leopard goddess with this opulent and rough-hewn wristpiece." Or maybe "I was captivated by the rough, atavistic opulence of this breathtaking piece; under its spell I began a voyage into my past lives and discovered I had once been--yes--the fierce and revered empress of a vast and lavish Mayan kingdom." Still seems a little wishy washy to me. How about "This stunning and opulent royal wristpiece, refulgent with luminous copper pearls and burnished copper, was wrought in the blazing forge of GOD HIMSELF who personally delivered it to me and commanded that I list it on Etsy." Did I nail it? I'm SO into the word opulent today. And atavistic. I love that word. Hard to find opportunities to use it in daily life. Although I have found it on occasion to be a less offensive alternative to the terms "goddamn Neanderthal" and "effing caveman." Mostly because nobody knows what it means. I'm not even entirely sure I know what it means.)



Copper green opal with hammered bead caps, freshwater pearls, moss agate, hand-forged toggle clasp, and fabulous "borneo" rollo chain from Ornamentea. A necklace in the same design is forthcoming soon. As soon as God finishes it.

The Dune Queen

I've always been drawn to the desert. I loved the barren, arid expanses of southern California, soaked up the searing heat in Egypt like a lizard, and wanted to wander off into the hills in Tucson and never come back. The design for this necklace has been on my mind for several months--sand, sun, heat and golden treasures. I was finally able to bring it to life last week. For more details on this item click here.

I just know I was a queen of some desert kingdom in a former life--I feel so at home in desert climates. Or an empress. At least a princess. Definitely not, like, a beggar or a prostitute or a peasant or something like that. Well, maybe a consort or a concubine. To an emperor. The top concubine. But not some street walker.

The sun is out today here in northwest Montana, for a change, and I can feel summer just over the horizon. Soon we'll be splashing happily in the numbingly frigid waters of Flathead Lake, basking in the long month of summer. Can't wait.