As a gift to his wife, a client asked me to create a hairpiece using a garden theme. Inspired by her love of gardening, I spent several weeks looking at pictures, sketching flowers and plants, and working to create the most beautiful composition. I finally settled on a detailed piece with five different plants that we agreed were perfect for his wife: sunflowers, cosmos, yarrow, phlox and sedum.
The proceeding weeks involved hours of precise wax carving to get the floral details just right. Then I was ready to cast the separate pieces that would then be trimmed and smoothed. I chose 18K white, rose and yellow gold with Maine amethysts, sapphires and diamonds that came together in colorful bouquet!
It was an inspiring project, and we were both wild about the finished product and confident his wife would love it…and she did!
I really enjoyed working on the piece and loved not only the finished product but also the detail of the separate elements. I realized they were substantial and interesting enough to easily stand alone, and so, a new series was born.
I am calling the collection Julie’s Garden in honor of a close friend who recently passed away after a yearlong battle with cancer. She loved flowers and nature, and I can’t think of a better way to recognize her.
I’ll share some of the individual pieces soon, so check back in!