Warning: dramatic post about jewelry

I love jewelry. I love learning about jewelry, I love reveling with jewelry, and most of all, I love wearing jewelry.

That's why I've quit my job at the paper. I will be doing some occasional freelance writing, but most of my energy will be spent working at the local jewelry store, reading and learning about jewelry, and of course, tending to Cherche'.

Maybe my post on Ashleigh Brandstetter spawned something in me. I never aspired to be GIA certified, but I must say, there's been a little bug in my consciousness to gain more knowledge in the world of jewelry. So thanks, Dad, for being so adamant that I look up a successful jewelry designer in The Advocate that day. It was inspiring.

Working at the local jewelry store, I have access to endless books on jewelry, jewelry making, jewelry design, findings, mountings, and the list goes on and on. With permission, I took a large stack home a few weeks ago.

One of them being this:

This book retails for well over $100. I am really delving into all 100 dollars-worth! Much of it is over my head (i.e. Acrylic autoclave casting and electroforming a brooch), but my interest in the sociological aspect keeps my attention. 

"Anthropologists tell us that our first ornaments were of animal origin, by-products of the hunt, in which animals were killed for food, their skins, or because they were a threat to human existence. Flesh was eaten and the blood drunk, and those inedible parts- teeth, claws, horns, tusks, and vertebrae- that were not used to make tools and weapons were strung or pierced and worn as ornaments."

 

I hope you're still reading. I promise Cherche' will not turn into "The History of Jewelry 4000." As I learn more on a daily basis, though, I will share. 

I plan on posting more Cherche' images this weekend! (Jewelry show in Anderson on July 22!)

In closing, I leave you with the introduction of my fascinating {borrowed} book:

"Because the motivations for wearing jewelry involve elemental and eternal human concerns, and because jewelry is portable, intimate art that can be worn and constantly enjoyed, it is safe to assume that the use of jewelry will persist, in one form or another for as long as the human race survives."