Kirsten Muenster 'Cardita' Cast Silver Ring

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Kirsten Muenster works with Sierra Pacific Casting, a local, family run company with over 30 years of experience. They are environmentally aware and source their supplies responsibly. They strive to create a shop environment that is safe and comfortable for their employees, as well as environmentally sound. They recycle their metal to the fullest extent they are able, and buy new silver grain that is almost entirely recycled.

Practicing the ancient art of lost-wax casting, the Cast Silver Collection utilizes repeatability and integrity. Nature, energy, signs of growth and change are captured in bold oxidized patterns. Each piece is hand finished and signed.

I work with a local, family run casting company. They are environmentally aware and source their supplies responsibly. Their shop environment is safe and comfortable for their employees, as well as environmentally sound. They recycle their metal to the fullest extent, and buy new silver grain that is recycled.

Cardita Ring
Materials: Recycled sterling silver with oxidation
Dimensions: 3/4�L x 15/16�W
Size: 7.5

Price $250.00

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Information

Metal is in my blood. My ancestors were coppersmiths, sheet metal workers and artists. I am a jeweler.

I�m inspired by nature and its signals of growth, rebirth and change. The Japanese refer to the observation and appreciation for the cycle of life as wabi sabi. It�s a simple aesthetic that appreciates the beauty in imperfection and the elimination of the non-essential. This is a guiding principle of my work.

I am drawn to the rich diversity of colors and patterns in the stones I use. I love exploring rock formations, fossils, tree rings, fractals and nature�s simplicity expressed in its irregular lines and shapes. Wabi sabi is modest, almost underplayed. In my work that means letting the materials I use speak to the wearer. I strive to create wearable landscapes.

Choosing the materials is the most exciting part of the process for me. The color, pattern, shape and story come together as pieces evolve to reveal the inherent qualities of the individual objects and their relationship to each other.

As a jeweler, incorporating found objects and vintage parts into my work is a natural part of my construction process. I repurpose vintage buttons, mother of pearl belt buckles and other recycled materials in addition to agates, jaspers, and ethically sourced stones. In my new line, with the exception of the thin snake chain, the sterling silver is 100% recycled content. All pearls and some stones are recycled from vintage jewelry. I also use some unique repurposed materials, things that are less common and not as easily recognized as being either recycled or reused, including copper fire brick, fordite, and recycled bowling balls.

Although I enjoy working with repurposed objects, my love of stones is very strong. I use agates and jaspers that are found in gravel pits, along lakeshores and riverbeds. The new stones I do purchase are from small, family owed mines. When these areas are no longer being worked, the entire disturbance is recovered, reclaimed, and seeded or planted. I also do a lot of my own stone cutting from rock found in the 1940�s, 50�s and 60�s.

I believe it�s possible to have a beautifully designed piece of jewelry made with interesting materials whose cultivation does not fund corrupt organizations or promote unfair labor practices. I do not use diamonds, tanzanite or other questionable gemstones. It remains virtually impossible to assess whether they have entered the international trade legally or if the sale of these stones has provided aid to terrorist organizations. There is no universal standard in place for labeling ethical gems at this time. And until there is a more reliable process for determining a gem�s provenance, I will not use them in my jewelry.

I educate myself about the materials I work with to understand where they come from and whose lives they may impact. I�m always exploring more conscious and sustainable options for my jewelry materials.

Kirsten Muenster