Makers mark.

A maker's mark is a unique stamp used by jewellers to ’sign’ their work. In rings, it is typically stamped on the inside.

I did not want my initials as my stamp. I suppose it would have made sense to do this, since the actual jewellery maker’s mark is so small and the image I chose for my maker's mark - the warp and weft of fabric is sometimes hard to read.

It has never been important to me to sign my work; I especially do not like signing works on paper or paintings, especially on the front of the image. I now sign the back, as people ask for it.

Once I finished Gold and Silversmithing and started selling my work, I was told I had to stamp it if I was going to continue selling it through galleries. So, I had a stamp made with the image of the warp and weft of fabric, and I've been very attached to it ever since.

At the time I had the stamp made, I was researching the significance of storytelling in jewellery and textiles. I came across a number of texts that explored the notion that different cultures wove their belief systems into the fabric they made. Clothes not only protected the wearer but also marked an individual’s role in society as well as in the life cycle.

I have been greatly inspired by the writing of Trinh T. Minh-ha, a filmmaker and cultural theorist. A quote of hers, that I keep returning to is:  

“May my story be beautiful and unwind like a long thread…” she recites as she begins her story. A story that stays inexhaustible within its own limits.

Jewellery and storytelling are intertwined.
The symbol of the warp and weft for me is about storytelling. I think that it is beautiful as a simple image, and at the same time, it refers to something greater than itself.