I love the idea of suspending a taonga, special stone that has been beautifully shaped from your neck. Sometimes you can incorporate a hole into the design to hang it from, sometimes you need to drill one just for the purpose. I really prefer keeping the carving as intact as possible, for me it feels…
This is a project long time in the making. I carved and finished the Pounamu the start of 2015 and it was presented for the first time at the end of 2016. It is a collaboration between myself, a student at my school, and the Maori/Technology teacher. I did the Pounamu and they together did…
I really value having an adjustable cord for a Pounamu pendant. It means I can take it on and off easily for sport, sleeping, swapping jewellery, etc. I always put it in a safe place near where I sleep though. [kad_youtube url=”https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PEv86ls3Fek” ] It also is good for gifts as then they recipient can choose…
This set was made for a special couple that had a beautiful wedding we attended recently. They are from the same stone, a stunning bright green colour with some inclusions that add some striking patterns. Making sets for people that share a strong connection is something I really love about carving pounamu. The primal forces…
This is a commission that had a really cool goal. To represent both and Australia and New Zealand and bring them together. There were several concepts talked about before deciding on this one. I liked this on the best. The stone is shaped like a wave when held on the side, this is to represent…
This set is made for my special niece and nephews. I was asked to make a matching set for my twin niece and nephew for their first birthday. The flower type design is an important symbol for the family. It is all made from a beautiful translucent bright green pounamu. The flowing lines are what…
This is a sculpture I made for a friend of mine to give to her midwife as a sign of gratitude and appreciation for her going above and beyond in helping with the birth of their first child. This is the first koru I have made and the combination of stone on wood was new…
I have only made a few sets of earrings so far and they are a challenge creating something on a small scale. They are beautiful and hold a special sort of mana for the wearer. I have had to learn about moulding and shaping stirling silver as well, something that I had never intended on…
This toki was made for a special guy on a big round birthday late last year. It has beautiful colouring with light to mid green swirls. It carves really well, pretty consistent and didn’t flake or chip at all, a really nice stone. It held a good edge to and I put this to good use…
I have already made several of these for the organisation I work for. It is a school and they use a metaphor of paddling in a waka for teamwork. The Hoi (paddle) symbolises the effort that someone puts into to pulling the waka in the collective direction with the team. These are given to staff…