You know those exercises where you write a letter to your future self? I should be doing that right now, seeing as I’m typing these words in 2021. Let’s see: Dear 2025 Wendy, I have no expectation that you’ll remember to share this Associated Press report about the assassination of Abraham Lincoln on the actual…
History
Jewel of the Month: Wear Wolves
Right in time for Halloween, I’ve got something for werewolf lovers … or anyone who wants to wear wolves. These Isabella wolf-fang earrings are actually one of my “vintage” pieces, but I haven’t had an 18K yellow gold pair available for quite some time. Now they’re available both on my website and 1stdibs.com. My gorgeous…
20 Years After 9/11, Part I
“The days are long, but the years are short.” I think of that saying every September 11. On that date in 2001, in the wake of the deadliest foreign terrorist attack on U.S. soil, it felt like time stopped, or, at least, that it should have, because how could life ever be the same? Instead,…
Jewel of the Month: Queen Min Earrings
I’m extra excited to share June’s Jewel of the Month here, albeit at the last possible minute, because this is the first significant new gold design that I’ve created since 2019. Last year was a washout for jewelry design, but the pandemic wasn’t to blame. My manufacturers actually masked up and went back to work…
Activism Inspiration: White Rose Leaflets of WWII
On this day in 1943, Nazis beheaded three young Germans — Christoph Probst and siblings Sophie and Hans Scholl — for their part in writing, printing, and distributing six leaflets urging nonviolent resistance to the fascist regime. Embed from Getty Images The leaflets were produced by the White Rose — the name chosen by a…
Role Model: Auschwitz Activist Róża Robota
January 27 is designated as Holocaust Remembrance Day to mark the liberation of the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration/extermination camp. This year’s Remembrance Day is the 75th anniversary of the liberation, which makes it even more atrocious that the Supreme Court today reinstated the “public charge” immigration policy that prevented Jews from escaping genocide by taking refuge in the…
The History of the Nixon Protests, From L.A. Kauffman
Despite what you may read or hear, it is morally right and MEANINGFUL to speak out against a ruling party that commits crimes and undermines democracy. Any “backlash” talk is designed to keep you passive, even though there is ample historical evidence that appeasement is a failing strategy. That doesn’t mean that fighting back is…
Jewel of the Month: Inspired by Empress Eugenie
Thank you to Brecken Branstrator of National Jeweler for alerting me that on Nov. 27, Christie’s in London is auctioning jewelry that once belonged to Eugenie, who was the last empress of France via her marriage to Napoleon III. I appreciate that the auction house has the full provenance of the jewels listed: Provenance is…
Jewelry That Tells a Story
Just the other day, I was writing about how jewelry — especially jewelry created by individual designers — can rise to the level of art, with real meaning beyond physical adornment. So thank you to Tony Cooler, who pointed out this remarkable brooch by Phyllis Bowdwin, which was posted by the Smithsonian on Instagram. The…
Recommended Reading: Anne Thériault’s Queens of Infamy
I’ve been scolding myself for nearly a decade (seriously!) for giving up my Thursday Book Club posts, most of which focused on the bad-ass historical women who inspire my jewelry designs. The last book-club post was the finale of my three-parter on A Distant Mirror, Barbara Tuchman’s book about the 14th century, which I posted…