the rings pictured are an exploration of my love for repetition, candy colors & mobility. one of these beads alone is not so exciting to me but to put them amongst a collection of the same and give them a way to freely move about brings these rings to a life all there own. just like with my dangle earrings with the sterling or copper balls but with these rings they have the addition of color which i love. these rings remind me of the little polyps that make up the beautiful creatures that live in the ocean. i had many a fish growing up....and still have great fondness for little guys that swim in the ocean or as it were...my fish tank. it started with a gold fish in a bowl (RIP: Shoeshiner) and then graduated to a 75 gallon tank with a dozen or more fish. i always thought when i grew up that it would be the best thing ever to have my own salt water aquarium with the live rock that would grow and become a grand collection of sea anenome with all of their tubular, free flowing polypy under water waving glory. i was in love with the little clown fish and the trigger fish. i guess childhood daydreams are meant to inspire jewelry.......at least that's what it is in my case :O)
i would like to make some that have beads that i fashion out of the plastic handle from a toothbrush, or a broken reflector, or maybe some sewn pillows out of a beach ball. i am excited to see what feeling or mood these pieces will take on by changing just the color of the beads or size of the beads, whether they are handmade and irregular or commercially made, or even the opaque or transparent quality of the beads. i think all of these little shifts will change the overall feel of the piece. some may seem to crafty or sewn teddy bear-like, which is the fine line i am walking and definitely not the look i am after. we'll see how the experiment goes after some time and studio hours pass.........
p.s.--i actually love sewn teddy bears and other little softies....just not in my work