Destiny itself is like a wonderful wide tapestry in which every thread is guided by an unspeakable tender hand, placed beside another thread and held and carried by a hundred others.
- Rainer Maria Rilke

As an artist, sometimes your materials write their own stories. These earrings are a celebration of the wild, rare chance that someone found such a beautiful landscape hidden inside humble bedrock. Not to be held back, these statement stones vibrate with colour and pattern, and are simultaneously lifted and grounded by glowing pears and a touch of gold. Thanks to these incredible stones, these earrings are absolutely one-of-a-kind.
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Ocean jasper (also known as orbicular jasper, for its circular patterning) is a member of the quartz family of stones, and is specifically an opaque quartz made up of combination of microcrystalline quartz and/or chalcedony that is coloured and patterned by various mineral and formation phases. It comes in almost every colour and pattern imaginable and has been one of the most historically relevant and revered stones throughout the ages thanks to its durability, global availability and value as a useful and decorative material. Its strength and ability to hold a finely carved edge meant that it was often fashioned into tools such as blades and bow drills, as well as being carved into fine decorations such as wax seals, vessels, beads and sculptural items. Jasper's intense colours and inherent strength were believed to help one to feel more present in their physical body, more conscious of Nature, and more grounded, while providing a sense of comfort, security and strength.

The rosy pink, ethereal freshwater pearl is ultimately the product of a negative situation - born of an irritating grain of foreign matter trapped inside an oyster, the oyster deals with this stress by turning it into something beautiful (and a lot more comfortable!) Pearls have been coveted seemingly since the beginning of time; many historians consider them humanity's first gemstone, as they were likely discovered by ancient people's in their search for food. They were recorded as being gifted to Chinese royalty as early as 2300 BC! All pearls (marine and freshwater) are said to be cooling, soothing and balancing, and glowing symbols of happiness, wisdom and self-worth.

These gorgeous, luxe earrings are set with almost-matching, elongated triangular ocean jasper cabochons that spark with incredible colour and pattern within their simple, polished silver frames. The stones are set with open backs so that their beauty can be appreciated from both sides. Fresh-water pearls, wire-wrapped on custom, hand-made 14k gold tipped headpins, swing below the jaspers, their glow and colours reflecting those above. A luxuriously long design, these measure just over 2.5" (6.5 cm) long by approximately .6" (1.6 cm) wide at their widest point, and are fun and swingy to wear thanks to their segmented construction and the pendulum effect of their substantial stones. A pair of clear silicone stoppers is included to keep them securely on your ears.
I have recycled some of the silver and gold used to make these earrings; melting sterling scrap down to form silver ingots, flattening and drawing the silver down to plate and wire using hammers and my rolling mill, and then using this newly reclaimed metal to create my work. These ocean jaspers were sourced from PierreRouge in Marieville, Québec; the pink fresh water pearls have been in my collection for years and were generously given to me by a friend who had purchased a luscious strand of them while traveling through Israel.

All of my jewelry is made by me in my cozy home studio and will be shipped to you as shown, beautifully packaged and ready for giving as a gift for someone special (like yourself...?)

Thank you for shopping and supporting handmade!