Brown Lariat Necklace

in (surprise) Brown and Silver

The shells from this piece come from a family reunion in Norfolk, Virginia. The hotel where we stayed is right on the beach, and the weather was sunny and unseasonably warm for winter ---at least to my Michigan trained sensibilities. I couldn't resist the numerous fragments of pretty shells as several of my family went on a stroll to enjoy the weather. I distinctly recall my mother saying that I hadn't changed, because she remembered me doing this when I was 10.

We had another family reunion recently; same beach. No shells this time, though, so I was awfully glad I got some the last. However, I got to jog in the ocean barefoot at near freezing temperatures, which was an interesting experience.

A lariat is one long string of beads, traditionally without a clasp. It can be looped around the neck (or waist, for that matter) in a variety of ways.

After looking at a number of other people's websites and railing at the lack of closeups, it finally occurred to me that I might want to apply this principle to my own...thus the update, showing the two dangles. Of course, I used the necklace to prop them up, so it's still difficult to tell what's going on. But at least the confusion is magnified!

Materials and Techniques: Caramel (picture jasper), riverstone, picasso jasper, dalmation jasper, bamboo (?), frosted hematite, sterling and Indian silver; stringing, wirewrapping.

collection of the artist