Articles
Self Taught in Sterling Silver
by Alayna Orozco
What would I want to know about someone who makes jewelry? I guess I would want to know what inspires them, and maybe a bit of background, too. I find inspiration in many things … nature and cartoons and thoughts of what it means to be a woman. I like feminine things, soft things, but also things that are bold and make you have a second thought.
My day job is as a secretary in a law firm. I also go to grad school here in Albuquerque, New Mexico. When both are in full swing, you won’t hear from me as much, but even when I’m busy with other things, I’m always dreaming up new things to do with sterling silver, mostly wire. Why that material? Well, it looks like liquid when it’s polished, and there is something more down-to-earth about it for me than gold, although gold is also fascinating. I grew up right next to the Navajo reservation, and I’ve seen the most amazing things done with silver. I just can’t leave it alone.
I’m self taught, which means my skill has evolved kind of slowly. I started out stringing beads, and I’m still a beadaholic. Then, I became fascinated with kind of “drawing” with wire. Then, on a day I’ll never forget, I bought all of the basics for soldering. You know you are doing something different when you start waving a blue flame around!
Please drop me a line if you have questions or ideas! I enjoy custom work and some of my best ideas have come from custom requests. My buyers are another beautiful source of inspiration.
Piano_Bench AT hotmail DOT com
