I’ve been working on a little something that is near and dear to my heart (literally) for over a year now in collaboration with the incredible Brooklyn-based jewelry brand Aili. One of my favorite things about my job(s) is when the opportunity arrises to help take part in the design process with brands that I love and admire.
When Aili founder, Monica Ruzansky, asked if I wanted to collaborate on a piece, I was thrilled. It seemed like the perfect opportunity to create something special and personal. Not only is the Aili aesthetic very complimentary to my own, but Monica, too, has an appreciation for simplicity, intention, and small-batch productions.
After much initial brainstorming, emailing, and conversations back and forth, we finally decided on the concept of a hand—a symbol that I really love. When speaking candidly with Monica, she has mentioned that the process she originally anticipated being fairly straightforward was actually an amazing challenge that helped her grow as an artist and designer. As most artists do, she started with initial sketches. From there, she carved the hand from wax and cast it in silver. After creating three different versions of the piece, each with unsatisfactory results (some too realistic, others with the wrong proportions), she finally decided to cut tiny hands out of paper, something she’d never before explored. The result of this out-of-the-box, creative exploration led to the perfect model, our final product, the Aili x Bleubird Necklace. A 14k yellow gold hand made from recycled materials. It’s small and delicate, but purposeful, and goes with just about anything—just what I had envisioned.
If you’re still looking for last-minute Mother’s Day gifts (or simply want to treat yourself), Aili is also selling our collaboration necklace on their website. We also have a handful of them available for purchase in our Nashville store, if you’re local. There are limited quantities available for purchase now before they’re distributed on a made-to-order basis. The made-to-order process typically takes 2-3 weeks. I hope you enjoy this piece as much as I do!
