...as he creates beautiful pieces of wearable art.

James works exclusively with custom-blended porcelain clay. The clay is rolled out thin and jewelry component shapes are cut, a few at a time, from the sheet of soft clay. James pinches each cut shape with his fingertips to give it a slight dome shape & smooth the edges. Holes are carefully hand drilled where jump rings, ear wires or beadwork can be added to the finished pieces.

James uses stamps or found objects to impress intricate designs into the soft clay for his pictorial pieces. Chamfered holes are created in the soft clay for pieces that will be accented with Swarovski crystals. Once dry, every shape is painstakingly hand sanded to smooth the edges & refine the shape. A certain number of pieces are broken during this stage as thin greenware (dry clay) is very fragile.

After a kiln firing, the pieces are handpainted with underglaze colors. James paints the edges of each piece with multiple layers of underglaze color to "frame" and accent the design details. The holes are drilled again to remove excess underglaze and the pieces are fire again.

Clear glaze is sprayed on the front of each piece and the holes are drilled again to remove glaze which might seal the hole closed. The shapes are fired again; during this critical firing, the glaze melts onto the surface at a very high temperature, producing a glass-like finish that makes the components shiny & more durable than fused glass or many semiprecious stones.

Mother-of-pearl overglaze is hand-painted onto each piece with a small brush and the pieces are fired again. Mother-of-Pearl, when applied and fired perfectly, results in subtle translucent shimmers of color on the surface of each piece. The original underglaze designs are still visible, but when the piece is tilted back and forth, shimmering colors dance across the surface.

It's impossible to photograph this effect since the piece must be physically tilted back and forth to see the colors shift as they react to surrounding colors and light sources. The effect is quite striking, almost mesmerizing, and is the reason James' jewelry can be worn with many different colors in your wardrobe. Show patrons always ask why they see different colors as they move the item; they have discovered James' secret sauce!

At this point, many of James’ porcelain “bits”, as we call them, are finished & ready for their custom neck cord or ear wires. The items that are designed for Swarovski crystals accents in the clay will have their crystals double glued into the specially engineered holes, and then they are ready for their new forever homes.

With each firing, James' pieces which started as wet clay shrink & become more durable. When porcelain is fired multiple times it becomes strong and will never fade or tarnish. Treat James' jewelry like you would Grandma's vintage teacup and you'll be able to pass it down to the next generation.

Many ceramic artists use colored glaze on rough clay designs, their pieces are ready to fire in a few minutes & ready to sell after 1 firing; these pieces have a very rustic primitive look. James' glazed porcelain components are highly refined through multiple steps and fired 3 - 4 times as the multiple layers of color, clear glaze & iridescent overglaze are added. All these extra steps & firings result in a product which is highly refined, loved by our customers, and found nowhere else.

A custom length satin neck cord or stainless chain is available for each pendant. Sterling Silver or Gold-filled ear wires accented with Swarovski crystals or surgical steel posts are used on our earrings to assure comfort & lasting beauty.

James' timeless classic heirloom-quality designs never go out of style, we have customers who still love to wear pieces they purchased over 30 years ago. When you purchase our designs you are investing in an original miniature piece of wearable art, as unique as you, and supporting a small veteran-owned business.

Thank you for “visiting” our studio! Carole