April 05, 2021
How It's Made: Our Beaded Necklaces
I have been making variations of these wooden beaded necklaces for about 10 years now, from smaller beaded versions with colorful tassels to my current offerings you see me wear daily. They seem to appeal to young and old and can make a simple tee shirt and jeans look like a complete outfit.
Several years ago, India Hicks was here in Atlanta promoting her book, Island Style. I went to her book signing at the Atlanta Decorative Arts Center and as she signed my book she complimented me on my necklace. I had a hunch that she would like it so the next day, while promoting her lifestyle brand at at another venue, I took her one of the necklaces as a gift. She wore it that day and to several events afterwards. The necklace received a lot of attention on Instagram and I began receiving a lot of orders including from different boutiques throughout the southeast. I soon named it the India Necklace.
On my last trip to San Miguel, I fell in love with the aesthetic that was consistent throughout the town. Natural fibers and colors, very different compared to the traditional colorful textiles one expects from Mexico.
I saw a lot of different macrame fibers incorporated into chandeliers, bedding and other interior applications and decided to make some of these tassels for my India Necklace.
I have always loved chunkier statement pieces for my personal jewelry so I began adding different sizes of beads and adding more strands to my creations.
Victoria Three Strand Necklace
Adjustable Wooden Beaded Necklace
Hand-knotting tends to add some dimension and makes some jewelry more interesting so I tend to incorporate that into my designs.
I am influenced by African tribal jewelry so I usually incorporate some vintage beads into my pieces like these vintage African brass beads pictures above.
About once a month I will retreat to my office and spend a day stringing beads. I have been designing jewelry all of my life and I love creating with my hands and the feel and movement of working with these beads is a very relaxing process for me. I love to see how my customers wear their necklaces so tag me when you wear one!