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Artistic Approach "...I realized I wanted to focus my career around jewelry design and maintain my love for clay as a secondary focus." Artistic Inspiration Ever since my childhood, I have been fascinated by jewelry. Maybe it has something to do with the fact that I'm the only girl and the baby of 5 kids. Or maybe it was my mother's impeccable attention to detail. However this passion came about, I was hooked. Beads, baubles, you name it. The prettier the better, and the more the better. Making jewelry has now been an active hobby of mine for over 15 years. While the pottery business was going strong, I began to receive requests from friends to make custom jewelry items. Over the next few years, the word spread. The number of requests soon grew to a point where I realized I wanted to focus my career around jewelry design and maintain my love for clay as a secondary focus. For the past year, I have dedicated myself to making this dream come true. I have approached this process slowly and cautiously, allowing wonderful events to unfold naturally. My designs continue to evolve, as does my knowledge of beads, materials, technique, and function. Custom design is my favorite type of work. I love working one on one with a customer and designing a piece that is just the right length and style for their personality. This exercise helps me get out of the "design box" and forces me to stretch my imagination, ultimately keeping my work creative and fun. Technical Approach and Materials All of my pieces are one of a kind, although similarities and continuity are evident. I tend to work in series, making each piece slightly different from the last with an extra touch here or there. I purchase many of my beads in limited quantity, so many of my designs are limited editions, their availability contingent on whether I can find the same materials again. I only use sterling silver beads, wire, clasps, ear hooks, logo tags, and crimps; cultured freshwater pearls; and semi-precious stones. Customers may specify color preferences for all pearls and semi-precious stone beads. You may also specify a type of stone if you have a favorite. I will do my best to find a match or at least something similar to your request. Pearls tend to have the following basic color families: grays, whites, pinks, blues, greens, and browns/bronzes. Browns are actually harder to find these days, as new vibrant colors are coming on the market every season. The colors of semi-precious stones vary greatly. I recommend that you state a general color preference in addition to size and design, maybe something similar to what you see on the website or on a current CD Rom catalog. We can design from there. Some of my beads are made using is PMC. Precious Metal Clay was created by the Mitsubishi Company in Japan for professional Jewelers in the States. It is a silver powder that is suspended in an organic/polymer base. While being shaped, PMC has clay- or polymer clay-like properties. Once it is formed into the desired shape, the PMC is fired at 1470 degrees Fahrenheit, burning out the binders and leaving a cured hard silver piece. All of my PMC creations are one of a kind, the perfect marriage between clay and metal! Sadly, although it is a great deal of fun to work with, PMC is an expensive material. |
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©2008 Kathleen Cook Pottery Contact Us |
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