Current Project

Open sketchbook and coloured pencils. shows colourful drawing and sketched contemporary jewellery designs.

Current Project

The Colour of Survival

Follow my journey as I create a new jewellery collection beginning with the initial design idea and all the steps to produce a new series of beautiful pieces

Inspired by the beautiful and very colourful salt lakes of Australia, through this project I will be exploring shape, colour. and chain forms as I work towards my collection for my grauduation show in June 2025.

Colourful chains

The first finished piece of the new collection. This colourful blue acrylic chain has been made using the loop-in-loop chain technique. Bright and bold.

Button label

Loop-in-loop chain made using thick copper wire in large size.

Exploring loop-in-loop chains

One of the most ancient of chain designs, these chains have been made for over 5,000 years.

Four loop-in-loop chains made in copper wire in various sizes from small to large.

Exploring scale

Several loop-in-loop chains made using purple acrylic sheet. The link shapes vary in size and are either oval or rectangular. The chains are all large in size.

Exploring material and colour

Green loop-in-loop chains in various shapes including triangular and rectangular. The chain is made using green acrylic sheet and the links are very large.

Yellow loop-in-loop chain with oval shaped links made using acrylic sheet, with a copper coloured clasp matching the link style and size.

How to add a clasp

Exploring clasp solutions that work with this style of chain. A clasp should be well considered and feel part of a chain's design.

1 5

A textured strip of Mitsuro Hikime wax twisted around showing striations running along the length of the twist. This is being held in a hand.

Ancient Japanese lost wax technique

Mitsuro Hikime is an ancient and disappearing lost wax technique that requires much time and patience. The wax produces a beautfiful texture as it is pulled and shaped but it cannot be rushed.

I am exploring this technique within my project because the texture is reminiscent of the surface texture of salt when viewed under the microscope.

Loops of wax arranged to make a ring sitting on a hand.

Playing with wax

Exploration of an ancient Japanese technique

Beeswax and pieces of tree resin in a brown bowl.

A very special recipe

Mitsuro Hikime is a mix of beeswax and pine resin. By making my own recipe I can control how soft or hard the wax is and work with the environment rather than against it.

Salt viewed under a microscope showing pyramid shapes joined together in an adhoc way.

Salt, Microscopic

The texture of each grain of salt has striations similar to those in the wax.

Strips of wax looped around above a simple ring band being worn on a hand.

Ribbons of Wax

The wax can be pulled into long ribbons which can then be carefully shaped. This is a slow process, the wax cannot be hurried but must be kept warm while it is being worked. Warm hands are required!

1 4