Wings’s new collection of coil bracelets, a series of modestly priced gemstone spirals, has proven exceedingly popular: As of a few days ago, we had sold all but the most recent one. He has spent some of his studio time since in the creation of some new pieces to add to the series, and completed two of them this afternoon. We will feature one today and one tomorrow, both of them comprising substance, shade, and symbol that are consonant with the themes that have developed over the course of this week.
We begin today with one that is especially apt for this cold and wintry season, one that reminds us that, however bundled we are in blankets and coats, we may still free our spirits to soar. From its description in the Bracelets Gallery here on the site:
Taking Flight Coil Bracelet
Some call it the phoenix; others, the firebird; still others, a being with no given name. It is a symbol of metamorphosis, of rebirth, of freedom of spirit. Wings captures it here and then sets it free, spiraling upward into the air on a coil of earth and fire. Four small faceted garnet beads refract the light from either end; rectangular beads of earthy and colorful jasper, named for the great land-bound cat, alternate with nuggets of fiery iron pyrite. At the center, the small wingéd spirit, summoned from polished elk antler with inlaid eyes of jet, takes flight to soar above the world. Joint design by Wings and Aji.
Stainless steel; garnet; leopard-skin jasper; iron pyrite; elk antler
$225 + shipping, handling, and insurance
The materials he incorporated into this small bejeweled spiral are modest: two stones best regarded as semi-precious gems, and to materials not generally conceived as gems at all. The bulk of the beads are of leopard-skin jasper, a variant of a stone we’ve covered here many times. The reason for its name is obvious: It manifests in warm earthy tones, browns and golds and grays and even dark reds, in orbicular patterns that resemble a leopard’s spots.
Here, the beads have been cut into smooth geometric shapes, small squares and rectangles that create a smooth and subtle line. Wings has interspersed them with chunky, shimmery nuggets of iron pyrite, neither quite silver nor quite gold, but seemingly bold rough bits of fiery light, then anchored either end with a series of four tiny garnet nuggets, faceted bits of maroon flame.
The beads are strung in matched patterns that meet in the middle, flanking the larger bead at the center: a single fetish bird in the shape of a bird — one manifesting in vaguely eastern outlines, a nightingale or other wingéd creature of the spirits. Coaxed from a small bit of elk antler, with tiny inlaid eyes of jet, she shimmers in the light with an almost opalescent finish. It gives her an ethereal quality, as though she is not quite a part of the coil, but rather, hovers slightly above it, about to spring onto the winds’ more powerful spiral.
It’s a beautiful piece, and a beautifully symbolic one, one that evokes the warmth of earth and flame holding up the freeing lightness of the air. Today, when the cold and blustery winds have overtaken all of existence here, when it’s a battle just to stay upright and rooted safely to the earth, it’s a reminder that even on such days as this, our spirits may still soar freely.
~ Aji
All content, including photos and text, are copyright Wings and Aji, 2015; all rights reserved. Nothing herein may used or reproduced in any form without the express written permission of the owners.
