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Mostly Metal Category
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Sugilite Samadhi
Artist: David Twerdochlib (Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada)
Honorable Mention, Mostly Metal
David used several variations of the Byzantine chainmaille weave to create this piece, which features sugilite rounds and amethyst double-drilled watchband beads. David explains “I was inspired to create this piece when I noticed that V-neck style tops really had no jewelry to accentuate their basic linearity. I decided to use a basic Byzantine weave with variants as it lends itself well to structural and design modification. The lower half of the necklace is blocky by design to imitate the ‘squareness’ of a V-neck top, while the upper half has more flow and uses curvaceous lines to draw the eye up the wearers neck. Some of the obvious difficulties involved changing the wire into rings, as well as weaving the rings themselves into the weave I desired. The rings are wound around a metal rod three times to insure that they get work hardened enough to support their own weight as well as the weight of the stones that they need to support. While the Byzantine weave can be quite simple, the denseness of the weave when it becomes wrapped around a stone can make the connections difficult and ring closure near impossible. This piece is made of approximately 1025 sterling silver 20g rings, with an inner diameter of 1/8 of an inch, and a further 90 rings made of 20g sterling silver wire with an inner diameter of 3/16 of an inch. This piece is named for the two key elements that compose it. Sugilite is a great balancer of the mind, the body, and the spirit, and is said to attract healing power. Samadhi is the pure bliss of total inactivity. This piece is meant to be worn as an aid to balance the mind and help achieve the state of Samadhi ....” – David Twerdochlib
Review the 2007 contest details to see what this contestant was up against. And remember, it’s never too early to start planning for the 2008 contest!
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