For more than ten years, my jewelry has evolved into a line of wearable art, collected by women nationwide. Having a fondness for pattern, I use symbols, universal or ethnic, to subtly convey a sense of place.

Primarily made of porcelain, my jewelry is entirely hand-made by me, using a layering process of various techniques and colorants. Porcelain slabs are layered with porcelain slip (liquid porcelain) , then stenciled and etched with an overall background pattern. Tiny stamps of previously fired porcelain are then impressed into the wet clay to create an overall textural pattern. From this decorated slab, I cut my bead-shapes.

After a high-fire for the body of the clay, glazes are applied into the depressions left by the stamping. Bead-pieces are further enhanced with the application of opal lusters, over the now glazed depressions, and highlighted with a 14K gold luster. Finished beads are then assembled with other porcelain, metal (hand-forged) and acrylic components, using sterling silver wire and small glass spacer beads.

Because of the nature of its design and construction, no two pieces are ever the same. Though the techniques I employ are simple, the making of these pieces is time-consuming and very exacting. In that I make all of the components myself by hand, a multi-pattern, mulit-component necklace is a long time in the making.

Colleen A. Williams