All posts tagged: jewelry

Béton Brut Concrete Jewelry

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  Industrial designer Amanda Nogier creates Béton Brut concrete jewelry in a process similar to the forming of architectural terrazzo. These one-of-a-kind pieces use locally-sourced concrete and a selection of aggregates, concrete pigments, and other additives like semi-precious stones and brass flakes to create surfaces that resemble little moons or planets. The concrete is prepped in small batches and poured into handmade molds, after which they are hand-polished and sealed with wax. $30-$115       All images courtesy of Béton Brut Jewelry.

Dream of Songs Jewelry by Minna Kao

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Dream of Songs is a Brooklyn-based jewelry brand that produces ethereal, modern, 3D-printed jewelry pieces in Brooklyn and Long Island City, New York. Minna Kao, the 41-year-old founder and creator of Dream of Songs, has been a fan of designing jewelry since she was a little girl, when she sold a collection of plastic bracelets to her elementary school classmates in her hometown of Houston. After graduating from the University of Texas, Kao went to Paris for a six month apprenticeship under designers Diane Pernet and Alan Faye. After some more time studying in New York City and soaking up the Japanese sensibility of Wabi Sabi in Tokyo, Kao opened MinnaK, a bridal and evening wear company in 2006. In 2013, she fell in love with 3D design and launched Dream of Songs two years later. We recently asked Minna a few questions about herself and her design process.   DT: Are you still designing bridal pieces or are you a full-time jewelry designer now? MK: I’m not designing bridal pieces anymore, I’m a full-time jewelry designer now. DT: Do you work with a partner …

DNA Jewelry from Identity Inside

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The concept of giving someone your heart is so overused and cliché, why not give them your DNA instead? As science-fiction as this might sound, a group of scientists based in Switzerland have figured out a way to embed fossilized DNA into a piece of jewelry. It all started when Swiss chemist Dr. Robert Grass wanted to find the perfect present for his wife to celebrate the birth of their first child. So, like any curious man of science, Dr. Grass wondered if he could combine his research of DNA preservation to create the worlds most unique “push present.” He developed a patented process to store his DNA in a diamond that he placed in a custom-designed ring, which has expanded into a small collection of jewelry including a custom-made watch and an 18kt rose gold pendant. To get your DNA in the jewelry, you simply provide a mouth swab sample which is then (not simply) fossilized in glass particles to form a white powder that safeguards the DNA, similar to what is found in …

Paper Punk Jewelry Fold

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There is something very satisfying about folding the paper jewelry from the Paper Punk Jewelry Fold kit. Designed to make 3D necklaces, bracelets, and earrings, the kit includes easily foldable punch-out shapes with tabs that are inserted into numbered slots. These create geometric forms in a sort of instant-origami that you can then stick to paper bases and decorate with stickers. While the kit says the recommended age range starts at six, I think that eight would probably be a more likely age that kids would more easily begin to master the tab-insertion process. Inside every kit are punch-and-fold shapes (in either triangle or square options), glitter stickers, gloss stickers, metallic stickers, adhesive dots, and an instruction booklet. The best part is you don’t need any glue or scissors for the kit— everything you need to go from a flat piece of paper to a 3D piece of art is included. You don’t even have to be an arty person to successfully get the final result – it’s pretty foolproof, even for someone like me. $19.95 Back of the box. …

Sun and Moon Miyamoto Watch by Mr Jones Watches

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London-based Mr Jones Watches has launched their latest unusual timepiece, and this one will appeal to the old-school gamers out there. Named after the designer of the Super Mario video games, Shigeru Miyamoto, The Sun and Moon Miyamoto Watch features graphics inspired by the cartoon landscape of the world of Mario that many of us know only too well. Printed and assembled by hand in the watchmaker’s London workshop, the watch is produced in an edition of 100 pieces with each one numbered on the back of the case. The case is made of brushed stainless steel and the strap is navy and grey leather with pink stitching. “Sun and Moon” watches were first produced in England in the late 1600s during a period of experimentation with ways to represent the time. The position of the sun or moon in the crescent-shaped sky indicates the hours. As the hour disc rotates, the landscape changes from day to night. The minutes and seconds are displayed in the center dial and these run in the conventional way, so each …