I recently found a dead male hummingbird in our yard. I hoped he was merely stunned, but upon closer inspection it became clear that he was deceased. I buried him in a pleasant area near some bushes and pondered the life of this small, amazing creature, one of my favorite birds. My friend, Kathy, suggested I create a piece of jewelry "to honor and celebrate the fragile, yet beautiful life of the hummingbird. It reminds us that all life is fragile." Another friend, Julie, suggested creating one of my Ring A Week rings in his honor. I thought these were lovely ideas.
This ring has resulted from their suggestions and from some design motifs I've been working with lately. I hand cut the tiny hummingbird and flowers from a sheet of 14K gold and soldered them to a sterling circle which I then cupped and soldered to a hand fabricated sterling band. I oxidized the silver and I really love the striking contrast between the blackened silver and the gold. This ring is one of my personal favorites, perhaps my favorite piece that I've created to date.
Below is the ring before I oxidized it. I've also posted some progress photos to my facebook business page, which you can see here.
I've made several other mixed metal pieces combining silver and gold that are now available in my new Etsy Shop Here are four of them:
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