tortola surf classic

my son xavier on the beach in tortola 2011

my son xavier competed in the tortola surf classic this past weekend--gorgeous day but small waves, which the younger kids enjoyed.  xavier placed first in his heat but missed the opportunity to compete in the final due to first time event confusion.

fuddy and his backhoe

here is fuddy and his backhoe coming up our driveway to move some rocks and dirt for a stairway that my husband will brick.  evie, these pictures are for you!

neighborhood friend

please don't eat my orchids!

look who i found by the roadside on my way home from lunch at the beach.  he had just paid a visit to our house.  how do i know this? my husband showed me the unsightly pile that he left by our steps!

birthday lunch

i volunteer for an amazing bird rehabilitator here on st john, who works with an amazing veterinarian. here i am with them enjoying lunch by the beach at miss lucy's, a monthly occasion, which happened to occur on my birthday.  (note the chocolate chip cookie with the candle)  the breeze was competing for my wish!

honeybee necklace

honeybee necklace, banded dryhead agate, fine and sterling silver, pearl; kimberly nogueira 2011

i just completed this honeybee piece, with a sweet little banded dryhead agate cabochon, fine silver bee, and tiny pearl nested within a fine silver flower.  see more photos of this by clicking on etsy

as bees gather honey, so we collect what is sweetest out of all things and build...
                          rainer maria rilke

There is a force, an energy, a quickness, that is translated through you into action.  If you block it, the world will not have it. You do not have to believe in yourself or your work. It is not your business to compare yourself with others. It is your business to keep open and aware directly to the urges that motivate you.

martha graham

some stones and vintage toy fragments

agate, chrysocolla, included quartz, amethyst

pmc forms, enamelled disc, pink sapphires, vintage compass, frozen charlotte, cobalto calcite, agate

the collage on my work bench changes on a weekly basis, i would say. here is what is there now, and yesterday. the included quartzes are from brazil, recently arrived after about 6 months in the postal system. there are some vintage fragments, a bit of enamel, a bezel for polymer clay image transfer, some pretty cabochons, bits of silver and unfired pmc

the wilderness of within

wilderness of within (reverse), sterling and fine silver, 22k gold,  sonoran sunrise; kimberly nogueira 2011

wilderness of within, sterling and fine silver, 22k gold,  sonoran sunrise; kimberly nogueira 2011

"the wilderness of within"

this quote from rainer rilke was on my mind when i made this piece, of sonora sunrise jasper (chrysocolla and cuprite), sterling and fine silver and 22k gold. the chain is also fabricated.  see more photos and information on etsy

gift for a friend

swirl earrings, sterling silver; kimberly nogueira 2011

heat-textured happy swirl earrings i made as a gift for a friend who loves simplicity and truth.  i made another pair for my mother and listed a pair on etsy

a not-so-heart-healthy heart

i was just eating the leftover chips from my son's lunch bag, when i spotted this...

palm frond ring

the things you learn from tourists in your own town! i hear there is a taxi driver at the westin making delightful origami rings out of palm fronds and i have the ring to prove it, an impromptu gift from a lovely visiting couple, Doug and Debbie. they say he is very modest about his folding skills

open back bezel

included quartz ring, sterling and fine silver, included quartz; kimberly nogueira 2011

included quartz stones are magical miniature crystal balls. you can look but never enter these frozen worlds

open back bezel

fire in ice ring, lepidochrosite, sterling and fine silver; kimberly nogueira 2011

i'm teaching myself to set stones--here is my first open back bezel piece. i love the clean, modern look of it. are you familiar with lepidocrosite in quartz?  it is a bewitchingly glittery inclusion in clear quartz, whose red flecks of iron oxide dance and glow as you move the stone.

sand casting

kissing rings, sterling silver, sand cast and fabricated; kimberly nogueira 2011

my kissing rings need to go in the gumball machine now!

kissing ring, sterling silver, sand cast and fabricated; kimberly nogueira 2011

my first sand casting project--i recreated a vintage gumball charm kissing ring. the casting part was fun, albeit with some hits and misses, and overall a great learning experience. the bands are fabricated.  i made several more that my grandmother would not have found in the gumball machine when she was a child, but my world would be happier if they could be.

sand casting

kissing rings (in the works), sterling silver with sprue buttons; kimberly nogueira 2011

the sprue is a lovely shape in itself

sand casting

kissing ring (in the works), sterling silver; kimberly nogueira 2011

i am really enjoying this technique. although i think i might have overloaded my crucible with boric for its first "curing". here is what it looks like when you open the mold after the pouring

a ring

bird without a nest ring, sterling and fine silver, turquoise; kimberly nogueira 2011

here is a ring that i made--so pretty!--my first big ring. i was thinking about how good it feels to jump out of the nest, experiencing freedom. it is called "ave sin nido", which means bird without a nest