Black Pearl Earrings Inspired by a California Memory

I have loved the look of pearls and silver since I first saw my cousin wearing a silver pearl ring when I was 13.

She was long and blonde, 16 and from California.

She was the most exotic person I had ever seen, and she was a surfer. When she arrived to my house from her California home late one night with her parents, I was surprised to see her on my living room couch.

I remember studying her while she slept.

She looked like a landlocked mermaid, and her jewelry had that California ease that looks like a person was born with their jewelry on them.

Skin tan, hair unwashed but still looked just right. I longed for that comfort in my own skin at 13.

Everything was changing on me, and from my point of view, she was the perfect model for effortlessness.

I struggled with everything. She looked like she never struggled at all.

It was one of the most important moments of my life, and still is, as I try to express this sort of effortlessness in my work as a jewelry designer.

Pearls and silver. These earrings are moonlit nights on the ocean as the sand and surf relentlessly change the landscape wave by wave.

When you go to the ocean, and immerse yourself in the water, it can feel shocking to merge with the strongest force on earth.

I remember body surfing in California years ago. At one point, I lost control of myself and balance and just had to surrender to the waves as they tossed me about.

It was humbling and something I’ll never forget.

The last 5 years has been like that for me. Surrendering to the emotional waves I’ve experienced after losing both of my parents, and my husband’s, too.

These earrings, and my obsession with pearls, are my way of reconciling my fight with change and effortlessness.

Like a little black dress, these earrings can dress up any outfit and remind you to ride the waves, and surrender to the moment when you find yourself knocked down and off-balance.

Eventually, life will feel right again. And pearls? They are strong. They were formed by the push and pull of the water, and are always right side up.

Sometimes, we all need a little help righting ourselves.