Trend spotted, Wonder Woman Arms

The “bracelets of submission” are worn by DC comic book Amazon Diana Prince, better known as Wonder Woman.  Recently this comic book princess was depicted by Gal Gadot in the heroine’s record breaking silver screen debut.  Canonically the bracelets were a reminder for the Amazon women to balance their power.  If removed, the Amazon would rage into a destructive frenzy, but when worn, the cuffs are a tool of protection from harm.  We often seen Wonder Woman able to deflect bullets with her arm wear.

More than breathtaking cinematography, the film re-ignited the cuff jewelry trend.  Cuffs have always been around, since the ancient Romans to Disco Divas in the 70’s. I personally always associated them with my grandmother, since she liked loud costume jewelry and meticulously styled the perfect piece for every one of her outfits.  One of her staples was to have a large bangle pushed up her forearm. So naturally, I love that Gal Gadot’s depiction of Wonder woman has brought this accessory back to the forefront, empowering a new generation of women to wear bold jewelry.  

Gal Gadot graces this month’s Rolling Stone cover fully featuring her Wonder Woman arm gear. Here’s to hoping to see fashion editorials to follow suit of having large cuffs and Athenian styled dress for fall.

Below I took a look into some Philadelphia fall fashion inspiration for the inner Amazonian.

LAGOS Cuff

Forge and Finish Warrior Cuff

Moon and Arrow Crescent Shield Neck

My Engagement Experience

I have spent a significant amount of my career finding the perfect ring for others, when finally last June came my turn.  Unconventionally I set out ring shopping with my mother.  Josh was open to me styling my own ring since jewelry is something I’m incredibly knowledgeable and passionate about.

To start, the best advice I can give is talk to your friends then try on everything before making any kind of decision. Try on styles that you would never imagine trying on, try the big stone and a small stone, try different metals, try everything. By doing this you’ll positively know when you found the perfect ring.  By talking with friends they will tell you where and who they went to, what they liked and didn’t like about the process. This really helps you to know what to expect when going to different shops.

My adventure started out just like that. I asked around and conceived a list of places to look, then tried on EVERYTHING, even if it wasn’t my style.

In the end I decided on a local jeweler Bario Neal. I knew I wanted a three stone style with a yellow center.  Why did I choose yellow? Well, I knew I was going with a simple design so I wanted a way to give the ring a personal twist. Having worked extensively with jewelry, I have seen so many engagement rings and really wanted something of my own that I have not seen repeatedly.  Also the journey of the yellow diamond intrigued me, so I liked the idea of having a little bit of history on my finger.

Photo by Bario Neal

Happy with my sketch, I waited for the jeweler to receive in a choice between two yellow cushion cut Kalahari diamonds from their contact in Namibia.  In cooperation with De Beers, this Namibian source mined and manufactured these diamonds. So not only am I aware of the origin of my stone, I also know I was ethically supporting the diamond economy locally in Africa.  Having this much information about my ring really got me curious and I further delved into how the yellow diamond came about as a engagement choice historically.

I found that India has been the birthplace for some of the world’s most incredibly colored stones.  These stones were very much part of past Indian culture. In fact, different colored diamonds were used within India’s caste system in the sixth-century.  

Brahmins, the priests and rulers, had white to colorless diamonds.

Landowners and warriors were defined by brown diamonds.

The merchant class, yellow. The lower classes then had heavily included grayish to black diamonds.

Beyond using colored stones as an identifying tool, fancy colored diamonds were seen as a nuanced novelty.  They did not garner popularity until the discovery of the Australian Argyle Mine in the 1980’s.

Now we have coined trade terms such as Canary and Champagne as well as other tantalizing titles to describe a diamond's color.

A diamond's journey to discovery is an arduous one where nature incubates the stone into existence in a very specific way.  The mineral carbon under intense heat and pressure within the earth’s mantle is nature’s recipe for a diamond.  Once created that diamond is then carried to the earth’s surface by a release in pressure, often some sort of volcanic activity.

Colored diamonds are produced because of the presence of trace elements. In my yellow diamond’s case, nitrogen is the reason for color the stone. The amount of nitrogen determines the color intensity. I loved the softness of the yellow in my stone in contrast to the hard yellow color of the 18 karat metal I chose.  The stone had a delicate feel, giving off a nurturing sensitivity about the beginning of this new part of Josh and I’s relationship.  It fit exactly how I felt.

So on top of color I was intrigued by story that this particular diamond had to tell, it became unique to me as well as being aesthetically pleasing to my taste.

You can check out Bario Neal's Spring 2017 collection here as well as other fun jewels:

http://bario-neal.com/

Awesome Kickstarter for a Bangle from Beacon & Lively

So my fellow Tyler Alumni has been involved with developing a very chic way to wear modern technology.  The company she works for, Beacon & Lively, have been working on a kickstarter for a bangle that lights up when your receive messages, email, phone calls, etc.

                   

 I love the design, it's very futuristic with an exaggerated curvature to accentuate the grooves that light up various colors via LED.  I love the concept of wearable technology, personally I always have my phone in hand so it would be nice to have a fashionable element that alerts me of messages versus carrying around my cellular.

                          

                          

However, I did show this bangle to a couple of my friends to see their reaction to the idea, and the consensus was the same. What else can it do?  That's where I get stuck with my excitement, I got so caught up in design that I didn't really consider functionality.  The every day jewelry wearer isn't going to be provoked into purchasing something that just lights up when their phone does the same thing.  Same goes for the tech nerd, with all the technology in Garmin watches, why would they buy something that just lights up?

                         

For me this kickstarter is about where technology and style can go.  This is the start of something incredibly classy, sophisticated, and tech smart.  I'd love to see this company take on the ever so design savvy Apple, and create a bangle that displays messages, connects to the internet, GPS compatiable, the works.  I can see this concept going places and would love to see people support a small independent company interested in a bright convenient future.

If you feel so inclined to donate to their cause, I have provided their link below.  Graciously they are providing incentives to people that donate, so if your looking to get your hands on one of these bad boys, donate.

Beacon & Lively Kickstarter Information

Images provided by Beacon & Lively

Lamina Production Show at Tyler School of Art April 24th-27th

                                  Hello All! Just a quick plug to my Alma Mater!

Tyler School of Art is hosting it's annual production show, Lamina, in it's atrium April 24th through the 27th
9am to 5pm.

If you are in the Philadelphia area, I highly recommend checking out this show held by the metals department. Perhaps even feel inclined to purchase some of the jewelry on sale.  I know I already have my eye on a resin ring that will be on display.

This is a great way to see fresh work in a field of tired recycled designs, and a chance to see up and coming artists in the area.

I will update on the exhibition with photos and a review when I attend this Saturday, so for now here is a link to their Facebook page for a sneak preview.

Lamina Facebook link:  Lamina

Flower Show 2014

Having been a Philadelphian for several years now I find it surprising I had actually never been to the Philadelphia Flower Show, a showcase of bursting colorful flora in contemporary design.  This year I finally made the time to take in this exhibition of living medium.  I have always worked with painting, drawing, and metalsmithing, but I have never dappled in the botanical arts.

                So I ventured into the dimly lit convention center with an open mind to be met with a floor to ceiling floral sculpture.  Reminiscent of Tim Burton’s Alice in Wonderland, these structures were saturated in color and made up of several types of plant life that blended together effortlessly to give the illusion of soft pillow-like structures.   It was a wonderland of a garden that we could walk through and interact with,  a 360 degree installation that keep me in awe no matter which way I turned my head.

                Moving away from the show-stopping structure that stood immediately in the doorway, you were able to mill about different exhibitions that all focused on the floral medium.  To the right of the entrance we were able to look at black and white project concepts jump from the flat, untelling, restraint of the sketchbook into the tangible universe where all the facets of its design could be fully appreciated. 

                What I really enjoyed of the show were the installations based off of famous artists, such as Van Gogh, Mondrian, and Kandinsky.  Artists for centuries have drawn inspiration from nature so it was delightful to see the role reversal and have nature channel these artists.  In a similar realm of creativity I was thrilled to see student work at such a large public show.  We always see the polished professionalism of veteran art works but rarely get to see the humble beginnings of an artist’s portfolio unless it is sought out at student shows.  The student work that particularly drew my attention was of course the jewelry made out of items found in nature.  These works were based off of designers such as Valentino, Chanel, and Tiffany and Co.  It was incredible to see a vibrant red brooch give the illusion of lace with the use of a colored skeletal leaf.  As well as the use of painted poppy seeds used to create intricate beaded work in the series based off of Faberge Eggs.

                                     

                Another aspect of the show I appreciated was that they brought it back to gardening basics of the ostentatious displays in the showroom.  In the “PHS Hamilton Horticourt”, there was just a focus on the beauty of growing healthy happy plants.  It was segregated by plant, with information of how each of the plant was judged.  This was a simple and clean display of the nurturing of nature for those that enjoy the hobby of gardening and were not there for the avant-garde world of design. 

                Overall I was truly impressed by how much was squeezed into the showroom.  There was a little bit for everyone, and the show keep switching gears to keep it fresh and new.  I constantly felt like I was switching rooms when going from display to display because of how different each exhibit was.  One moment I was looking at a desert themed Subaru display then I turn around and see a Zen inspired bonsai showcase.  I can honestly say that I didn’t get tired like I do at craft shows because there was no repetition.    However, my criticism of the show was there were a lot of elements that did not fit with the theme of the show.  Such as the indoor market, I felt was really tasteless to have people selling clothes and bags at a flower show.  It cheapened my experienced to be corralled right into a pop up market after seeing such incredible, beautiful, well thought out things.  With that said I did thoroughly enjoy myself and very much do look forward to next year. 

For more pictures feel free to browse my g+ gallery: google.com/+ShannonHenry