Saturday, July 27, 2013

The Amber Stickpin


This is a pewter stickpin set with a nice oval cabochon of amber.  I believe it is a reproduction of a Victorian piece, with all the sinewy metalwork.  My daughter gave it to me, knowing of my love of pins (you remember that she doesn't wear jewelry herself).  So I don't have any knowledge of its provenance (maybe it really is from an antique store somewhere!).

This is an easy piece to wear, but I have put it permanently on an alpaca dress coat.  That way I know where it is, and I don't have one more thing to think about when getting dressed.  But I have a taupe fedora that I might be bold enough to try it with one day.


Monday, July 22, 2013

The Spider






This silver and malachite brooch is a favorite.  I got it at a sale at the old natural history museum at the U. of Oklahoma before they tore it down and made the colossal structure that stands now.  (By the way, in the basement of the old building were all those phenomenal dinosaur bones that are now proudly on display, and were, I swear, forgotten for decades.)  The brooch really is a bit creepy, the way the legs are all splayed out.  When I bought it, the young woman, a little diva who should have been selling clothes at Forever 21, shrieked and said she couldn't touch the brooch because she was too afraid of spiders.  Oh for godssake!  So I had to take it out of the case and wrap it up myself.

This brooch goes with a lot of different jackets.  It gets a lot of looks, though most people are too polite to actually comment on it.  Here it is on a wool and cashmere jacket from -- where else -- Harold's, and cut in a style that's a bit out of date.  Most of my looks are retro at this point, by default.


Monday, July 15, 2013

The Sculpeys






Quite a few years ago a new kind of polymer clay was developed and caught fire among the world's children.  It was originally sold as Sculpey, and my five-year-old son was one of the first great artists in this medium.  The advantages of Sculpey over Play-Doh were that the many colors could be permanently blended, and the clay did not harden unless baked (at 250 degrees).  (The disadvantage was that it didn't smell delicious the way Play-Doh did.)  My son made many Sculpey articles, among them jewelry for his mother.  One of the designs that my son was enamored of was the calico cat.  His version always had green eyes ("green like mine," he'd say).  This example is notable for the details such as little sculpted claws, a curved tail, outsized ears, and of course the prominent green eyes.  I was able to glue a standard pin assembly on the back.

The little rose was made to be worn on a ribbon as a choker.  My son scotch-taped a piece of hem binding to the rose.  I find this original assembly to be too adorable to change, so I just keep it as a memento.

I enjoy wearing the cat brooch as if it were fine jewelry, essentially daring anyone to comment.  Here it is on a collarless olive-brown jacket.

Wednesday, July 10, 2013

The Cow


This whimsical little painted cow comes from a shop in Santa Fe I stopped in while on a family vacation.  I really like the colors:  pastel pink and blue, and especially the idea of bold painted clouds on a blue sky over a deep pink field.  I would have never thought to do this; no other animal pin I have, no matter how creative or abstract, comes close to this level of artistic cleverness.  When I bought this,  I also bought a pin for my daughter in the same style, but a coyote.  I came to realize over the years that she really doesn't like jewelry:  I never saw her wear the pin, and strongly suspect she got rid of it at the first opportunity.

Because of its overwhelming cuteness, it takes a bit of daring to wear this pin.  I often wear it when I teach, because after a long day being lectured at, those students need a bit of humor.  Here it is on a nubby light-gray heather boxy jacket.



Tuesday, July 2, 2013

The Lizard Brooch






This large brooch in the design of a lizard is made of sterling silver with inset stones of lapiz, turquoise, and jet.  I bought it at the Red Earth festival in Oklahoma City quite a few years ago.  At that time lizards were popular with the Navajo silversmiths, and I was able to choose from the wares of two or three of them.  I have to say the price was very reasonable!  (Always buy your jewelry from the maker if at all possible.)  I like this one because its face, with the big eyes, is properly menacing.  I also like the stylized limbs with the vertical etching.  The brooch has a ring in the back as well as a pin, so one can wear it as a pendant.  But it really is too big for a pendant; it flops around in a very unattractive way.  It can be oriented in any direction, so one can make the lizard appear to be crawling across the body up, down, or sideways.

This brooch is very dramatic and needs a good dark plain background to show to advantage.  I like to wear it with this navy wool jacket.  Here I have it crawling downward.