✒Studies
About the Studies
Each study page records the thinking behind a completed work.
Here you'll find the ideas, symbolism, references, and observations that informed a finished piece, a single symbol, or a combined symbol.
These pages exist to provide context and preserve the story behind the work.
Works in progress, experiments, and developing concepts are reserved for Field Notes.
The study pages begin once a piece has reached its final form and become part of The Archive.
THE PATH AND THE BELL
Combined Study No. 001
I imagine travellers setting out with barely more than they could carry and a rough idea of where they were headed.
Across many places, bells travelled with people. Hung from walking staffs, stitched to cloaks, or carried close at hand, they marked arrivals, called people together, and broke the silence of a long road.
Pilgrims have rung bells at shrines and sacred places for centuries. A small way of marking their arrival.
The path they followed wasn't always straight. Sometimes it seemed to disappear before showing itself again.
The path reminds us that most worthwhile things are reached gradually.
The bell reminds us to notice them when we do.
I like the way they seem to belong together.
Together they speak of a journey shared, and of the importance of noticing its milestones along the way.
Available As
- Sterling silver pendant with chain
- A wedding band
Inscriptions
Every step, with you; Beside you, always; Direction; Wherever the path leads; Here, and onward; Still moving forward; Mark the moment
The Rope and The North Star
Combined Study. 005
This study didn't begin with two symbols. It began with one.
The connection came later, after I came across an old method of navigation using a small board and a knotted rope to measure the height of the North Star. The two had been working together for centuries without me ever thinking about it.
After that, it became difficult to separate them.
The North Star remained the point of direction. The rope became the quiet act of staying connected to it. One gave something to steer by. The other gave something to hold onto.
From there, the study almost finished itself.
The two symbols didn't feel paired for the sake of symbolism. They felt like they already belonged together.
That's also why it found its way into my wedding work. The more I thought about it, the more those same ideas seemed to belong there too.
Available As
Wedding bands
Inscriptions
True North; Home by the Stars; By One Star; One Path; Always North
The Archer and The Vine
Combined Study No. 003
This study happened gradually.
It began with the Archer. I knew I wanted the arrow to be aimed at a single word, but I didn't know what that word would be.
Around that time, I was working on the Aster, Sterne, Stjarna North Star pendant, so old languages were already on my mind. While searching, I came across the ancient Greek word Thouros (θοῦρος). It describes spirited courage, fierce resolve, and the impulse to move boldly forward. It felt like the word I'd been looking for all along. Once I found it, the story began to unfold. The Vine seemed to grow naturally from the idea behind Thouros.
The moss agate belonged too. Its branching patterns echo the vine, and it has an association with growth.
I never really set out to make a study about courage or growth. I just followed one idea until another arrived to complete it.
In an interesting way, these Combined Studies aren't always about combining symbols. They're a record of how ideas can jhfind one another naturally.
Available As
- Sterling silver pendant with chain
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