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Gemstones & Pearls / Grand Prize
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Buffalo Spirit
Artist: Svetlana Hinkle (Spokane Valley, WA)
Grand Prize; First Place, Gemstones & Pearls
"I grew up reading Jack London's stories about the Native Americans, and from a young age I was fascinated by their culture. After having moved to Washington State and marrying a man who is part Cherokee, I came in closer contact with the life and traditions of the Native Americans. The opulent nature and abundant wildlife of the Western United States added to my deep inspiration in creating Buffalo Spirit ...
"It was immensely rewarding creating Buffalo Spirit, however I did face several challenges along the way. The first was carving and shaping the central stone, which is druzy calcite. I had to make sure the original structure and shape of the stone remained intact, as it is fragile and delicate in nature. It took several hours of careful work to prepare it for setting. The second challenge consisted of making sure that the beading around the stone was even and proportionate, as the shape of the stone was not smooth or uniform. The third - and biggest - of the challenges was attaching the fringe to the edge of the piece. I had to sew through a layer of feathers surrounding the necklace, which was exceptionally difficult. In all, the work took three months to complete." — Svetlana Hinkle
No photographic image can do justice to the three-dimensional beadwork on this piece, which includes seed-bead towers topped by corn pearls, and the focal stone's intricate setting, carefully crafted out of seed beads and "rice" oval pearls.
View more 2006 First Place winners. Or, check for details about our most recent contest!
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