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Kester Black or rather, the designer of Kester Black, New Zealander Anna Ross has been gracious enough to bless us with another collection from her jewellery label in the spirit of silver, recognisable patterns and words as well as raw crystal. There's a more teenage and best friends appeal in this collection, which I was a little affronted and let down by but I do rather like the use of unusual crystal glimmering in colours for each cut surface. This collection, presumably for 2012 in the Spring/ Summer season has a greater focus for silver as well as clean white enamel and pure, semi-precious stones such as pearls and crystal.
I've never really payed a lot of attention to commemorative jewellery for platonic friendships- it's all very elementary school age and juvenile, but if you are that way inclined then at the very least you could buy a metal you can clean after tarnishing. These 'Forever Friends' rings come with a flat face and fancy scripted writing fit for two people, may as a parting gift and a memento/ reminder to keep in contact with one another. My mother and her best friend, whom I refer to fondly as my Aunt have been friends since high school in Malaysia despite my mother now living in Australia and my Auntie Gwen living in Vancouver.
My second favourite piece in the collection and favourite necklace is this piece above, known affectionately as the 'Northern Lights Flower Necklace' in the shape of a folded tulip made of silver and a pollen centre of a crystal. I have seen this affect achieved with Dichrotic glass, but even if this is a lower grade quality type of crystal quartz I am still drawn to the mysticism of this piece as well as the pure white and blue tones of the stone. When worn and seen from afar it can look like a rather simple pendant but when inspected more closely with gentle fingertips it's prepossessing nature can be discovered by any person.
My first choice of piece in the Thick as Thieves collection by Kester Black is of course an ornate ring with thick silver band and face inscribed detail and another crystal of unusual colour at the centre. It reminds me so much of cheap movie affects and lasers shot from the foreheads of fortune tellers and psychics- it must be the strong floral petal and claw setting around this jewel. I would love to see more fine detail in the inscribed shoulder detail on the ring and the lines brought out by the use of oxidation to highlight the design.
My personal preference of the Northern Lights Flower Necklace over the Pearl Flower Necklace is more to do with my love for the quirky, weird and unusual. I have a pearl necklace and bracelet gifted to my for my eighteenth birthday from my boyfriend's mother. It's a nice combination, the silver and the pearl but still I admire the twinkling of the crystal stone held in the petals of an open flower and should you be desperate enough, it's a secret place for you to put your chewed gum- thought I would personally discourage this and scowl at anyone eager to attempt such a manoeuvre.
We've seen nuggets of stone before which chose to imitate raw crystal and stone alike from Kester Black but this collection has a more polished and bubbly effect to it. Many of the necklaces whether they be long or or small little chunks have been named 'Mother Earth' in reference to the life giving nature and beauty of out planet (some speculation from myself). It's not really the Kester Black style that I've come to know and love- I adore the roughness and edge of raw crystal and oddly cut stones instead with oil slick colours bouncing off the edges od her pieces.
Bloodmilk Jewellery runs an amazing blog, if you enjoy the evil looking photographs I sometimes post and dark magic in general you should have a peak over there and at their Etsy store as well. I could liken their pieces to that of Pamela Love in that dark, grunge tradition of using oxidised silver and creating bird skulls as well as Ouija board pointers, bones, raw crystal and pentagrams. I like the gritty style and darkness of it all, not that I'm anti-religious but I think it's easier to embrace something that's dark and alluring. Besides, I read a lot of books about witches as it is so I don't see them as evil, more like rich characters with interesting stories to tell.
Instagram seems a fitting tool to take a photograph of this pentagram necklace made of chunky sticks of silver in its rough shape. The chains used for these two necklaces aren't overly decorative and I think it would look rather nice against a clean and crisp blouse. It's a shame I don't have a spare hundred dollars lying around, I could really splash out on the pentagram star necklace as well as an amazing rune stone cuff. Grit, character and intuitive design in jewellery will always win over boring plain pieces that are made poorly in basic metals. I don't understand why some people my age still buy from stores like Diva, they're so cheap and nasty.
Another alluring feature of photographs from Bloodmilk Jewels is there studio space- out of focus in the foreground of this photograph is a perfectly dried out starfish. The exoskeleton is as hauntingly beautiful as it is creepy and there's something intriguing about the mixture of those two features. When I was a little girl I loved going to the beach and collecting as many seashells as possible- I still have that quirk when I go down to the beach with my friends but most of the time I throw them back in.
I've wanted to have a claw ring for a while but I'm not sure whether I want to have a really gritty and realistic claw sitting on my finger from Bloodmilk or something smoother and with sleeker lines from Unearthen. Between the two pieces there won't be a massive difference in price and with Unearthen I also have a choice of different metals and stones. While I go like the large talons and oxidised details of this ringing sitting around with petrified eggs, I'm more attracted to the perfect shape of an orb and it's association with magic and wizardry.
After pouring my eyes over the Bloodmilk website I got in the mood to cut out some thick paper in the shapes of bones and a skull but I don't think I would ever be game enough to collect bones and taxidermy also creeps me out a fair bit. Although I have aspirations towards becoming a veterinarian I would prefer to concentrate on keeping animals alive rather than preserving their corpses, even if it was for the benefit of science and learning.
Something that won't creep me out though is the use of smoke flares in photography and the colourful smokescreen effect it creates. I have no idea where one would find such an item except maybe a small boat but I don't really want to sabotage and risks people's lives and safety in the name of art. If I knew the location of an excellent location of forest in Winter or Autumn then maybe I would go out of my way to purchase them but my heart's not really into it at the moment. I just enjoy seeing all the different colours and the shades and shadow they create when used.
I'm not in my usual dark and mysterious, black-magic-loving mood but I still can't help but sort out some of my favourite images conveying a mystical mood. I am attracted to the notion of shutting myself away in my room, burning a scented candle and reading 'The Hitchiker's Guide to the Galaxy' but after being in a frenzied shirt for my work shirt as well as my wallet, I turned the place upside down and into another mess so that's a no-go zone for the next few days till I have motivation to clean and fold clothes once again. So although I'm off my usual mood of loving black and have been buying colourful things as of late, I wouldn't turn down the opportunity to create some of my own magical photographs by using a shattered lens cap to create warped images such as this. Since Kodak is on the verge of delcaring bankrupcy I find myself moving towards creating photographs that can't be created using a digital camera in a sort of vendetta against the digital age.
Another mystical tool I'm longing to decorate my room with is a lovely set of healing chakra crystals- sat on top of a desk or wardrobe but first I have to wait to get the guts to clean all the dust away. Still, it may be a worthwhile endeavour to see the different shards and spectrum of colours sealed within the walls of these darkly coloured crystals. The hexagonal points lets the light bounce off in all manner of wonderful ways but it also looks a bit like jelly too.
As well as updating my room I'd love to update my hair but I'm also wary of the way everyone around me would take to it! I don't have the pale complexion and blue eyes of this lucky girls to be able to wear soft pink hair, my nose is a little too broad and features aren't all that delicate. The only thing I've managed to start off this year is shaping my eyebrows in the way I want- I still don't know whether I'll dip dye my hair... I'm happy just to admire others who have taken the plunge and accepted the commitment.
While I am in a bit of a colour-loving mood, I still want to get my hands on some creepers. Currently my staff-discount is a ticking-time-bomb waiting to expire so I'm hoping to get everything I can out of my retail experience before it all comes to an end. Unfortunately my manager had no information that was of use as to whether I'll be kept on or anyone else being kept on, when my discount ends and when I have to hand in my keycard. Maybe I'll be able to get a few good book bags, satchels and a pair of black shoes in creepers style before it all comes to an unholy end.
I haven't totally abandoned my love of dark magic, I really want a Nick Von K necklace of a cow skull which comes in brass and sterling silver. While I would never be allowed to display a real cow skull in my necklace my mother can't put up too much of a fuss if I were to wear a smaller one around my neck. It would look fantastic against a black plain dress and I also wouldn't mind seeing the colours of the metal clashing with a vintage, floral patterened dress. I have now given up on buying a cheaper and smaller cow necklace skull from one of my local shops, instead I've got my eyes on the lovely creations from Nick Von K and his four collections.
Despite hitting the middle of Summer, wearing black patterned tights won't go out of style for a while- I should invest in a few pairs of myself. I'm thinking of getting dotted tights as well as tights dotted with hearts. I have no idea as to what brands are good and bad and I don't exactly like buying non-branded stuff from eBay so maybe I'll just stick to hunting around Myer's ladies accessory department.
I've been after mystical and healing crystal jewellery for a while and I found the perfect solution to my search while looking on a New Zealand shop's blog! Superette are a store I added to keep in contact with brands such as Deadly Ponies, Stolen Girlfriends Club as well as D_Luxe Jewellery but I have now discovered another gem of a brand to add to that list. Clink Jewellery have created and harnessed some of the mystical properties believed to be carried in some semi-precious stones in the forms of gorgeous pieces of jewellery. The first photograph shows the raw crystal characteristics of an amethyst coloured quartz geode, hung aloft on a chain necklace and a silver bail. 
I was most impressed with this netting necklace which supports a small carved piece of quartz in an amethyst colour in the shape of a skull. I have a small addiction with skulls in pretty shapes and sizes at the moment; along with this piece there's a cow skull in sterling silver I'm thinking of buying down at one of my local shops as well as a small glass bottle of vodka in a skull shape I'd love to display on my window sill. I can't find this piece available on the shop's website so I think someone else may have beaten me to it but it would have been a lovely necklace to wear while on public transport- being able to touch and feel over the sculpted curves and dips of the skull as well as the neat and square teeth. The polished and tumbled look of the rock is what really speaks to me in the design of a skull.
In the traditional shape of a healing crystal comes this pointed and pyramid shaped stone on the end of a silver chain necklace. It looks more like a prop to be used by a hypnotist rather than something you'd wear around your neck but it still looks lovely. I know the perfect thing to wear with this jade coloured stone: a red coloured jumper! Subconsciously I've been wearing red and green as well as favouring my green turtle backpack when going out to work the last two days... I've come down with an infectious case of tinisilitis and holiday Christmas fever. I much prefer the clean lines and sharp point of this necklace compared to the rough and raw look of crystals bound by netting, but I'm morning the loss of the skull stone necklace still.
This Jade Point Necklace is definitely a must have! Jade is known to strengthen the heart, kidneys and immune system. Helps cleanse blood and is a powerful emotional balancer.
Kester Black or rather, the designer of Kester Black, New Zealander Anna Ross has been gracious enough to bless us with another collection from her jewellery label in the spirit of silver, recognisable patterns and words as well as raw crystal. There's a more teenage and best friends appeal in this collection, which I was a little affronted and let down by but I do rather like the use of unusual crystal glimmering in colours for each cut surface. This collection, presumably for 2012 in the Spring/ Summer season has a greater focus for silver as well as clean white enamel and pure, semi-precious stones such as pearls and crystal.
My first choice of piece in the Thick as Thieves collection by Kester Black is of course an ornate ring with thick silver band and face inscribed detail and another crystal of unusual colour at the centre. It reminds me so much of cheap movie affects and lasers shot from the foreheads of fortune tellers and psychics- it must be the strong floral petal and claw setting around this jewel. I would love to see more fine detail in the inscribed shoulder detail on the ring and the lines brought out by the use of oxidation to highlight the design.
We've seen nuggets of stone before which chose to imitate raw crystal and stone alike from Kester Black but this collection has a more polished and bubbly effect to it. Many of the necklaces whether they be long or or small little chunks have been named 'Mother Earth' in reference to the life giving nature and beauty of out planet (some speculation from myself). It's not really the Kester Black style that I've come to know and love- I adore the roughness and edge of raw crystal and oddly cut stones instead with oil slick colours bouncing off the edges od her pieces.
