The First Piece of Jewelry I Ever Made

by Cristina Hurley

I have had this piece back for a while now, but had never had a chance to take pictures of it until now. It is the first piece of jewelry I made. I took a class with 5 other beginners many moons ago in Puerto Rico, with a jewelry designer and metalsmith named Jeannette Fossas. After the course was over, she gave me the opportunity to be her apprentice and that was the beginning of my jewelry career. That was in 1990.

 The piece is a bracelet. It is made out of copper tubing, silver wire, and malachite beads.

 After I made it, I gave it to my mom. She wore it and kept it for many years. she gave it back to me for good luck when I opened my retail shop and studio in Canton, MA.

 It has stayed in really excellent shape and has a nice patina, considering it's age! I can't remember if the holes you see on the left had a wire through them, and fell off, or if i made a mistake and drilled too many holes.

I keep the piece now on my desk in my shop, and I take it with me to shows and put it in my money box for good luck.

You can see this piece and all of my new designs at my shop:

Cristina Hurley Jewelry Design

3 Rockland Street

Canton, Ma 02021

781-562-0421