    | Secretary's Necklace Sterling Silver, Labradorite and Found Objects 16 inches Price Upon Request Inspiration: The Tuesday Market in San Miguel de Allende, Guanajuato, Mexico smells like tacos, avocados, chicken, tortillas, and dust. It is a wonderful place to lose yourself on Tuesday mornings, wandering around eating amazing green chorizo tacos or drinking pineapple agua fresca. One of my favorite places in the Tuesday is the "antiques" or junk area. Perfect piles of old cannonballs, human skulls, religious relics, test tubes, seat belts, old mining lamps, mirrors and furniture lay spread out on threadbare blankets and are sold to willing buyers. The secretary necklace was born out of an old Underwood typewriter that I found in this part of the market for 50 pesos. It looked like it had sat out in a field for the last several decades, was covered in milky white spots and clearly was no longer a useful piece of typing machinery. But, the beauty of it struck me, and I bought it and brought it into the studio. With the help of my teacher, Billy, we attacked it with metal shears and cut out all the old hammers from the insides of the typewriter. After many soakings, de-rustings, and cleanings in the Ultrasonic, the hammers were clean and shiny and ready to be drilled into beads. This necklace will forever be one of my favorites because of the many details. The pendant swings on a gold-headed rivet, the labradorite cabochon shines out from an dark, oxidized background. I made the chain by smashing my chain links repeatedly with an old chunk of concrete to make them looked chewed up and aged. The necklace sits just at collarbone level and I receive complements on it whenever I wear it. If this piece is for you, please email me at patience.meliora@gmail.com |
