I found it at the Urban Craft Uprising

Why is it that self imposed deadlines are always the hardest deadlines to manage? For someone who has a critical eye on what's new in jewels, I sure as hell missed this posting by a few weeks. I've been spinning the post in my head for a while, just never got the chance to put it down.
A few weeks late, but always better late than never--I know the world has been on pins and needles awaiting the next posting; you can sigh and feel relieved now. It's okay to admit it. Otherwise, I'll be a priest during the Spanish Inquisition and beat myself bloody with a whip for penance. Fair enough? (Just watched The Fountain for the millionth time, in case a question about how that metaphor came up--and FYI, I know it sounds completely bizarre, but whenever I watch the Spanish priest beating himself, the song Whip It by Devo pops into my head. Sinister.).

Back to my original thought: My most recent obsession is with found object jewelry. I love the idea of taking the ordinary and making something extraordinary out of it. It's very true, the old adage, "one man's trash is another man's...", you get the idea. Plus the idea of a story within a story intrigues me. The materials at one time had an original purpose and when that purpose was no longer needed, a completely new narrative formed when these materials bonded and created jewelry. And again, when the pieces are finished and then purchased, the wearer has a chance to tell their own story with it as well in how that person chooses to wear the piece. <Insert Circle of Life metaphor here> 

I've thought about found object jewelry for quite some time as I always seem to be drawn to it. And it just so happened that the recent Urban Craft Uprising crawled with jewelry artists taking my obsession and almost taunting me with the treasures. From jewelry created from antique tins to pieces of camera fittings, I found a piece that I loved at every booth of found object jewelry I came across. A little scary, I must say, because I think someone read my mind when putting this little event together. A few highlights:

Betsy and Iya: Made from African beads and pieces of old records, the Betsy and Iya collection, The Music, sparks images of African tribal jewelry. I envision men and women dancing to a drum beat outside huts in the steamy Congo night-- hence the title, The Music; the combination of the beads and the tiny record discs are delightful. The artist used songs as well to inspire the designs so we have music of the literal sense because of the vinyls usage, but then also music evoked through the use of song and of African beads and the culture represented. 

My fave: Blue Bicycle.

Littleblackrabbit: I love vintage designs with Art Nouveau details. Littleblackrabbit uses antique tins cut and backed with sterling silver to create necklaces, bracelets and earrings. Some pieces even have a corroded look from the metal that gives the pieces a wonderful historic backdrop.

My fave: Oriented.

Material+Movement: Who knew porcelain pottery could be re-created into necklaces? It's one thing for the owner of Material+Movement, Heather, to use reclaimed pottery in her jewelry art, but I love the heft and chunkiness of some of her bigger pieces. The bigger pieces are what drew me in because of the dichotomy of the smooth porcelain, dainty designs and fragile shapes versus the large scale of the pieces. 

Case in point. 

You're killing me! Come on now, that's just fantastic.

Maple XO: Now, I may have hung up my skateboard and JNCO pants in 1995-- who am I kidding? I only toted that thing around to look cool-- but Maple XO took their love of skateboards to the next level with their collection of earrings, bangles and rings made out of old wooden boards. I love the lightweight simplicity of the pieces and the '80s vibe with the bold colors. Another uncommon note is that the grind marks and scratches are left on the jewelry to uniquely create character.

My fave: Notice the inimitable dark grind marks on the lower portions of each piece.

Lastly, Focal Length Design was the show stopper for me. The creator, Isaac Watson, uses camera fittings and parts to make his bangles, necklaces and earrings. The cuff I got is divine-- laser cut aluminum from a zoom lens casing, I believe. Cool guy, this Isaac dude. He wasn't scared off by my creeper/stalker ways when I shop. Typically, when I go to one of these events, I like to scout out all the major players that catch my eye. I do a quick scouting trip of all the booths, then the booths that caught my attention gets a second glance where I dig deep into the jewelry offerings and figure out which specific pieces I like. Then I do a third trip-- narrowing down the selections before I finally purchase. But then there are also those times when caution is thrown to the wind when I see something I particularly like, I just buy it. I hemmed and hawed over this cuff because it was slightly too big but Isaac spent quite a bit of time with me fitting the cuff to my wrist perfectly. And... SOLD! My favorite part is wearing these pieces as part of your everyday wardrobe.

Slice and Burn: My cuff is similar to this piece here.

Big fan of the use of graphics as the focal point of design here.

And behold, a picture of me wearing the cuff in an everyday situation. 

Because, you know, Jenga is played everyday.