About the Artist

An Interview With the Artist {By the Artist}

To start, can you share an unusual fact about yourself? Any superpowers?
I AM pretty obsessed with color, and my weird ability is to memorize colors on sight and match them later with freakish accuracy. It's not a superpower that saved anyone from a burning building... but as an artist it comes in handy.  Looking to match a color from a random photo or inspirational scrap to that massive fan deck of color chips? I'm your girl.

The website definitely reflects an obsession with color choices.
I've always been inspired by colors, geeking out on color theory and the unique properties of natural pigments and materials.  The same semi precious stones used for beads can also be ground down to be used in paint - how cool is that? The imperfections and variations in natural materials are beautiful to me.  And color preference is so personal; if my colors speak to you - you're in the right place!  I include a color inspiration section on the website because this is what fuels me - photos I've taken where the colors or textures have sparked ideas.  I like to sort by color and I'm guessing there are a few other color geeks out there who enjoy this too.  Inspiration is a wonderful thing to spread around.

And your favorite color is...?
Hard to narrow down to one - it's like asking which is my favorite child! I gravitate to neutrals, blues and greens. Also I'm working to overcome my dislike of pink. There's no recovery program for that, but I know I'm not alone. The struggle is real.

You've got an interesting background, how did Zynk Palette come about?
Slowly.  It's been an evolution, but there's nothing so inspiring to me as the idea that you can reinvent yourself at any time.  I studied fashion design and art in NYC, focusing on fashion as it had better income earning potential than "fine artist."  Having to pay your own student loans will do that to you. I was involved in design, manufacturing, and merchandising for other people's companies, then switched gears to form my own company that designed websites and marketing materials for fashion and interior design clients.  Bringing out the unique aspects of each business, through words, images, descriptions, graphics, and of course, color, was interesting, but after years of working on a keyboard, I was feeling desperate to create something tangible and REAL. To put the "made by hand" in handmade.  After so many years, it was a challenge getting my inner critic to shut up and let me make stuff without shutting myself down. To stay inspired, I started going to more art events and openings, talking to creators, writing up interviews with photos that I meant to publish on a blog but never quite got around to.  Eventually procrastinating for so long about what I felt so strongly called to do, I reached a tipping point.  It was simply easier to give in to it (inner critic be damned) than to avoid it.  I starting with making jewelry for myself, got a lot of good feedback, which gave me the initiative to reinvent myself yet again.

Is your “hand-made” jewelry made by your hands?
Yes, hand made by me and fueled by coffee. Every so often one of my kids might help string beads, but the assembling and construction is all done by the hands of yours truly.

How long does it take to make a piece?
Some of the construction processes like bead knotting or stringing tiny beads can be very time consuming. I love the look, which adds to the overall quality and durability, but the time to do the work factors into the cost to create a piece.  Every individual knot, between every individual stone... it's a process, upwards to 2+ hours for the more complicated pieces.

How do you develop the jewelry pieces?
A lot of my stone purchases are things I see and instantly fall in love with, without a master plan of how to use them - love at first sight, budget be damned! (I shoe shop in much the same way). It might be the color, unusual inclusions in stones...  laying everything out in my studio by color family gives me a huge palette of choices to work with, and I like options. I then wait for inspiration to strike in how to put everything together which sometimes hits quickly, sometimes slowly.   I like to use specific findings throughout the collection; a sort of 24K gold or sterling silver thread that carries through the entire jewelry story. In the end, I'm making pieces that suit my personal style and aesthetic.  If I wouldn't wear it, you won't see it on the website (except for the pink items, which, as I said, I'm working on trying to have love for). Sometimes I like very minimal styles, often a chunkier piece with more presence is what I opt for, or both at the same time. Why not? I figure the women who are drawn to my jewelry are much the same - we want choices and versatility!

And the reason there are so few pieces that are made and available for sale?
That's partially intentional, partially a result that I may not be able to get the same quality or color materials to make more than say, 6 items. While they are not one-of-a-kind, the limited availability and variations that result in a hand crafted product versus a mass produced ensures the owner that what they have is uniquely special. There are styles that I'm able to make more of because they don't feature the intricate knotting or semi-precious stones.  These are the "everyday wardrobe staples" as I like to think of them, and the wearer can personalize the look by keeping it minimal or layering with abandon.  For my art, there are original pieces for sale (one of a kind) and there are numbered limited edition prints  (ex: 1 of 20). I have respect for all artists selling their work, but for now, I'm not interested in creating inexpensive print reproductions so more people can have the same thing. That might not be the best business decision, but I like the exclusivity of creating this way.

The website features inspirational quotes - to wrap up, can you tell us your favorite quote?
“We’re all different… there’s something kind of fantastic about that, isn’t there?” {From The Fantastic Mr. Fox}