Making the Persimmon Tree

An exquisite, one-of-a-kind pendant inspired by bird-and-flower painting.

On a delicate winter branch, a curious bird inspects a bright persimmon fruit. The fruit is set with natural, unheated sapphire, and rendered with detail on both sides of the jewel. The design is reversible, and can be worn alone as a pendant, or made part of a custom necklace.

 

Starting point

I make all of my solid gold jewellery using the lost wax method. I use a small knife to carve the model out of jeweller's wax, then have the wax model cast in metal. For this project, I started by freely carving different components of the design, such as the leaves, fruit, and bird.

My favourite part of handcarving is watching a shape emerge from what used to be nothing :)

 

Creating the composition

Once I had a few elements on hand, I began to sketch out possible compositions. The only thing I really knew at this point was that I wanted something with clean lines and a sense of sparseness, as in traditional bird-and-flower painting:

After coming across some photos of a nuthatch in its signature vertical pose, I decided on a lariat-style necklace, and began to connect the parts together.

 

Details of the wax sculpture

My favourite detail is the design of the bezel (the frame that eventually holds the stone). In this design, the bezel forms the persimmon fruit. At the back, or base of the fruit, there is a small window for light to pass through the stone. The window is framed by the four-lobed persimmon leaves below.

I wanted to make a natural-looking connection between the bezel and the rest of the pendant, without blocking the lovely shape of the persimmon leaves. So I have the stem floating above the window as though attached through the negative space. 

 

Metal finishing and stone-setting

With the help of my local caster, the wax model is transformed into metal! I completed the final polishing and stone-setting in my home studio.

In the original design, I had planned for the necklace to be worn like this, it its vertical orientation:

But at some point during the finishing process, I began to focus on the landscape orientation of the design, because I really loved working from the bird's point of view. Persimmons ripen in the coldest months of the year, just as other trees and crops are becoming barren. To find a plump persimmon must be such a treat!  I wanted to capture the excitement in the bend of the bird's knees; the tilt of the head.


I am thinking now that I might like to set the pendant in a custom chain one day, to further express the delicate and flourishing feeling of bird-and-flower art. I took this photo when I happened to have four Peony charms on hand, just to imagine what a custom necklace might look like!


But all of that for another time. For now, here is the finished work again, set off by bright afternoon sunlight. I think the video really does better justice to this work than the still photos!

 

Learn more about the craft of jewellery

If you'd like to know more about my work, you can find more information by clicking back to the main blog below. You can also connect with me on other social platforms, where I share different bits of content for those of you who are interested in the making & appreciation of art jewellery!

  • Pinterest: A gallery board where you can see photos and videos of everything in the collection together.
  • Instagram: My primary social media account, where you can see work in progress and other behind the scenes!
  • Email: For all other questions, you can always reach me by the contact form on this website, where you can expect an email response from me within a few working days.


Thanks for reading!

 

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