Accessories – Connecticut

My story begins when I was a young child. I have had a fascination with rocks and minerals for as long as I can remember. My first collection was a baby food jar filled with bits of gleaming mica which I collected around my Connecticut home. My best friend Sarah and I spent many hours smashing up fist - sized boulders in hopes of finding just one crystal-filled geode ( we never did!) We also spent many hours sifting through the refuse pile of a rock and mineral shop called Nutmeg Minerals, which happened to be within walking distance of my house. So, I became a Rockhound, a collector of stones, fossils, rocks and minerals at the tender age of ten. As time progressed, I continued to love the Stone Beings, but my loves widened to include plants and mushrooms. Today, I still collect mineral specimans, but I am an Herbalist and Licensed Nutritionist by profession, with 34 years of experience working with and teaching about plant medicines. I also love mushrooms-- I had the opportunity to study them in depth at the College of the Atlantic in Bar Harbor Maine, with the late Walter Litten. A long time member of The CT Valley Mycological Society, I am somewhat of an expert on medicinal mushrooms and their uses. I have written and taught workshops about the Fungal World for many years. In 2000-2002 I was fortunate to have apprenticed as a Silversmith to a wonderful goldsmith, artist and close friend, the late Ginger Panikoff, at her shop The Village Goldsmith. I have been making and selling beaded and silver jewelry ever since. I use only the highest quality materials -- Sterling Silver and 14K Gold Filled wire and findings, Vermeil, Gemstone Quality Beads and Pearls. The stones that I choose to work with are those that speak to me and which I find beautiful. I will not sell you an item that I myself would not wish to wear. I believe that stones have energy, and that we can enhance ours by wearing them as jewelry.