This is my design bench in my studio. It’s separate from the workbenches where the jewelry is made so that I have plenty of room to spread out stones, sketches, and tools. There is a scale and a calculator for weighing and pricing, pencils and paper, and a much-needed big pink eraser.
The sectioned trays of stones function as a color palette. When I was a child, and now when I’m lucky enough to be on a coastline, beach combing has always been a favorite activity. Choosing stones to work with holds the same “treasure hunt” appeal for me, searching for colors, shapes, and textures that inspire an “aha!” moment.
Though I’m typically very tidy and organized, right now there are sketches, stones, and groups of stones scattered everywhere, a manifestation of the multi-level whirling going on internally as I prepare for my first major show of the year. One idea can lead to the next, so I group stones as inspiration strikes, and if I can’t work it out yet, I’ll leave them to look at while moving on to the next design. It’s a quiet, but not peaceful, process.
