Icon Bricks Are Sterling Silver And Gemstone Lego Like Jewelry & Cuff Links.

above: Icon Brick necklaces are an elegant version of the classic Lego toys

A lot of crafty people (and I mean skilled craftsmen not deceitful or underhanded people) have created jewelry inspired by or made from Lego® blocks. But many of them are either plastic or metal, giving them a novelty and juvenile look and feel.


above: sterling silver Icon cufflinks are the grown-up and upscale version of Legos for men.

The sterling silver Icon collection by jewelry designer Max Steiner is one of the more elegant and tasteful versions of the jewelry homage to the childhood favorite. Available with real gemstones, the sterling silver pieces are fine jewelry with a fun flair.



Available as thick or thin Icon Brick pendants /necklaces, cufflinks and earrings, the Legos aka blox aka bricks are cast in sterling silver and faithful to the classic toy's design in front and back:




The pieces are available in plain sterling silver or inset with emeralds, rubies or black diamonds:




In addition to the actual pieces, the packaging for the necklaces and earrings is a custom hand-crafted and laser engraved Mahogany box:





Shop for them here

Got Your Nose! Belt Buckles, Pendants & Keychains Cast From Your Dog or Cat's Nose In Sterling Silver.

Incredible Things posted these fabulous custom pet pendants cast from the noses of dogs and cats the other day, so I simply had to dig a little deeper. And I'm glad I did or I'd never have discovered handmade jewelry designer Jackie Kaufman and her Rock My World, Inc.

Even better, these unusual pieces are made from "recycled" sterling silver. The jewelry is crafted from a major jewelry firm that no longer sells their items. Jackie "recycles" the silver by taking the jewelry pieces, melting them down and repouring the silver to make new pieces.

Cat Nose:



Dog Nose:


Using the lost wax cast process, Jackie will not only immortalize your beloved pet's nose as a pendant, but also as sterling silver keychains and belt buckles!

Sterling Silver Custom Cast Cat and Dog Nose keychains:


Custom Dog Nose Sterling Silver Belt Buckle:




The backs of the pieces are inscribed with your pet's name:


Jackie creates many forms of fabulous handcast sterling silver jewelry including human fingerprints and more. Be sure to see all her stunning work at her etsy store here.



You can also find some of Jackie's custom cast products at Uncommon Goods and at Daily Grommet

Limited Edition Bent Wood Bracelets & Cuffs By Gustav Reyes

One of the standouts at this year's Smithsonian Craft Show (which ran from April 14-17) was the contemporary jewelry of Gustav Reyes. On the Craft Show website, they only show his rings, but it's his limited edition series of coiled, twisted and knotted wooden bracelets that really appeal to me.

The modern and elegant bracelets and cuffs by the Chicago based woodworker are formed by hand using a cold bend process and finished with natural bee's wax. The Cherry, Walnut, Maple and Rockelm woods can be rejuvenated by simply applying more natural bee's wax. Several of the styles are available in multiple wood options.

Walnut:




Cherry:



Rockelm:


Maple:




above photography by Lauren Bost

Prices range from $120 to $320. Available from Artful Home.

"My training and personal development have led me to believe that humans surpass biological processes by creating. The desire to create is the vehicle by which we, as humans, extend our minds and souls beyond the limits of our physical selves."-- Gustav Reyes

As a young man, Reyes attended the Art Institute of Chicago, where his understanding of art was greatly broadened. He also studied at the Chicago Bauhaus Academy, where he developed an understanding of the finer aspects of woodworking. His formal training and years of dedication to his craft have allowed him to find the point where nature breathes through the form.

A Handful Of Art. Rockin' Rings From The Klimt02 Gallery Exhibit In Barcelona.

above: Untitled ring by Karl Fritsch

If you are a fan of very unusual fine jewelry, then the Klimt02 Gallery collection from their 2010 exhibition in Barcelona will be right up your alley. A collection of fine jewelry by 26 international artists, the pendants, neckpieces, earrings, rings, objects, chains and more are really wearable sculpture rather than simply ornamentation for the body.

The Beauty & The Best
Klimt02 | Gallery, Barcelona presents a selection of 140 pieces from 26 international artists. The selection of works, presented through this 2010 collection, aims to involve you in the implicit concepts, messages, thoughts, ironies, questions, answers, transgressions and languages that have taken shape and have become physical beings.

Here are a few of their eye-popping ring designs (which are all available for purchase) from their Barcelona "Beauty And The Best" 2010 collection:

Microrings by Marc Monzo:

Avondvlinder ring by Ted Noten:

Capri Seaside by Dominique Labordery:

Capri Hillside by Dominique Labordery:

MY VIRTUAL ME ring by Dominique Labordery:

Platinum Groove by Dominique Labordery:

Biobringe by Peter Bauhuis:

Biobringe by Peter Bauhuis:

Happy Family Mrs (silver) by Benjamin Lignel:

Happy Family Mrs (gold) by Benjamin Lignel:

L.N.32 by Benjamin Lignel:

Untitled ring by Karl Fritsch:

Untitled ring by Karl Fritsch:

Diamond Purple ring by Helen Britton:

Scull (sic) Ring by Helen Britton:



As they describe the 2010 Beauty and The Best collection on their site:
Klimt02 presents a selection of essential and benchmark jewels in contemporary jewellery. We wish to give you the chance as receivers to feel the emotion involved in appreciating a work of art, thus completing the artistic act.

These jewels incorporate different levels of language: tradition, innovation, history, present, words, sounds, notes, gaps, orbits and connections… as an exquisite way of discovering and understanding reality. These jewels deserve our attention: something is happening.

We are not striving for any kind of originality, trend or discovery but rather we simply wish to state that every single piece in the collection involves a high degree of creation with which we wish to address you as receivers of the message. We offer receivers and request of them the possibility of exercising choice, their selective affinity.

These pieces tell us how we understand things today. This is their contemporary nature. The creator, the artist or the jeweller is a catalyser of our reality.

Beauty is something more than ornamental; in this case it is the coming together of what is good, well made and essential. The Best, for us and now for you as well, is the selection of jewels on the basis of which to start to think and feel the best.

shop for all the above rings here.