My boyfriend asked for birthday present ideas, so I turned to etsy.com for handcrafted suggestions. As someone in thrall with nature, I love botanical material frozen in time and resin. And, dandelions are among my favorite. (I like lavender, too, but already have that in my jewelry box.)
Dandelion seed puffs evoke memories of warm sunny days gathering rich offerings of the field …tiny, flavorful wild strawberries and crowns of bright yellow blooms. I remember drawing deep breaths to launch wishes into the universe for more books or cats. If I can’t stay the freshness of childhood at least I can freeze those delicate seeds and carry them as symbols of hope.
A quick search on etsy.com shows that, with a simple nod to PayPal, I have many options for frozen puffs. Myriad artists encasethem in resin and turn them into jewelry and baubles. So many choices.
To satisfy my curiosity, I interviewed one of the “herbiest” jewelry-makers I found — Amber Barnes, of McKinney, Texas, who works with dandelion seeds and other herbs in her home studio.
How did you start making herbal pendants?
I started with the dandelion seeds first around 2012. My preteen daughters and I would find fields of them near our house and pick some to take home. They helped me make the resin pieces and they turned out lovely! Our next style was to look at dried flowers. From there we started trying out different combinations and blends.
What herbs do you use?
So many. Calendula, hyssop, lavender and more. As well as combinations.
How did you come up with the idea for mixing herbs?
I had started out actually only making a single herb per pendant. Later we tried experimenting with different colored flower petals and went from there.
What “properties” do ascribe to them?
I love the metaphysical properties of herbs and try to incorporate that into the pendant pieces. The various blends have different herbs known for different uses. There are several books to help with the properties of certain herbs and it’s a great place to start!
For example the one I created for Chakras.
Herb blends consists of Dandelion Root for the Root Chakra, Rosemary for the Root Chakra, Calendula for the Sacral Chakra, Rose for the Heart Chakra, Sage for the Throat Chakra, Mugwort for the Brow Chakra, Lavender for the Crown Chakra, and Anise for the Solar Chakra.
Then I added essential oils in the mix using the Aura Cacia brand Chakra Balancing oils.
What inspired you to get started?
Like many of my projects, I get an idea in my head of something I want and can’t find it. I remember years ago seeing these tiny yellow flowers in the lawn. They were so gorgeous and I started to wonder if they could be made into pendants to forever preserve that look. That led me to start researching how to dry flowers and spiraled from there. My favorite to date is still using the dandelion seeds. They represent childhood magic. My daughters pick them and blow the seeds and make their wishes.
To peruse Amber’s work, visit RiverSilverWolf at Etsy.com.
