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ABOUT JAN, The Process, The Dream
I love to draw, create distinctive jewelry, marvel at cascading & uplifted forms in nature, admire unique architecture, use my imagination, revel in waterfalls, look at artwork from various eras, enjoy many forms of dance, think, talk when I want to say something, write, and observe nuances in people and animals. I am a native New Yorker, and I thoroughly enjoy riding my bicycle, going to the beach, reading, playing with and caring for animals, and exploring new places. I am living most of my dream.
The sole owner, designer, and metalsmith of Jan Peyser Jewelry, LLC, I strive for many of my designs to convey an essence of movement. Passionately engaged when turning sheets of metal into sculptural, balanced, and inviting works of art, either representational or abstract, my joy is multiplied when others are moved by and wear my jewelry. I hope the piece you see and fall in love with, or choose to purchase, wear, or gift, brings you as much joy as it brought me during its conception and creation. Here’s how it all began:
I grew up extremely shy outwardly, yet I always knew I would, someday, let my voice out and be heard. I found solace in drawing jewelry designs, going to the library, reading nearly all the time, taking ballet from ages four to sixteen, and watching my beautiful mother sit at her dressing table tastefully adorning herself with elegant costume and fine jewelry throughout my formative years. I studied those pieces, the metals and the designs, wondered who had made such beauty, and I was completely captivated by the possibility that I, too, could learn how to create jewelry. But, it would be many, many years before I would be able to pursue that dream.
Eventually, I ended up a single parent, and when my children were five and three, I packed us up in our little, white Honda with the long stick shift, the cat on my head, the hamster in its cage, and a roaring thunderstorm, and we travelled to Indiana University, Bloomington, where, after four, intense years of study, I received a bachelor’s degree in English, and, ultimately, a master’s degree in English, Secondary Education, and Administration. I had found my voice, so I became a high school English teacher, theatre director, and public speaking coach. At that time, I also thoroughly enjoyed ballroom dancing with the Arthur Murray® Dance Studio three evenings a week.
After my fifteenth year of teaching, in 2002, I finally took a daring leap during a summer break to cross the country to beautiful Mendocino, California, where I learned the basics of metal smithing from a visiting, master goldsmith at the Mendocino Art Center.
The dream to turn my designs into jewelry now was in sight.
Six years later, I left what had been an enjoyable and intrinsically rewarding, twenty-one years of teaching, and I went on the road for another ten years displaying and selling my jewelry in juried, fine art and craft shows. It was a valuable experience in many ways, for I learned people loved and bought my jewelry, but setting up and tearing down my booth grew to be a physically demanding lifestyle, ridiculously so. Therefore, I left the road and made my jewelry available wholesale for galleries and shops throughout the USA Now, I joyfully continue custom designing for private customers and providing pieces wholesale for galleries.
I also sell a few pieces of my jewelry in my little Etsy shop:
https://www.etsy.com/shop/JanPeyserJewelry
THE JEWELRY, THE PROCESS, THE DREAM COME TRUE
I work primarily in highly tarnish-resistant, Argentium® silver, which is a high-end sterling that consists of 94% fine silver, a small amount of copper (less than in standard 92.5% sterling), and germanium, a white, crystalline element that inhibits tarnish. My collections also incorporate NuGold® brass and pure copper. Fusing silver to copper is my newest project, which is proving to be quite enjoyable, even as controlling the flow is complex. Drawing my designs, sawing, forging, texturing, hammering, piercing, fusing, and manipulating the metals via fire and hand-sculpting takes quite a bit of time and grit, and I absolutely love using my patience and body to create these little works of art. I hand-stamp the Argentium® silver hallmark, a flying unicorn, and my name, or JP logo, on the backs of each sterling design, and my name or logo on the NuGold® and copper pieces. Finally, the jewelry is hand-burnished and tumbled bright in steel shot. It’s a long process, because I make each piece by hand, but the intrinsic rewards are infinite.
A licensed user of the Argentium® silver hallmark, I was contacted by Argentium Silver International, Ltd., the founders of this pristine metal, and they did a feature article about me, which was seen in publications around the world. Recognized by them, I am one of several silversmiths featured on their guild’s website highlighting artists who work in Argentium® silver. https://www.argentiumsilverguild.com
Now, in addition to working the metals, new ideas for creating multi-chain, decorative jewelry, some with colorful gemstones, using sterling, antiqued brass, gunmetal, silver, NuGold®, copper, and my hand-wrought, interchangeable charms keep me inspired daily.
Enjoy browsing through my world today, When you find the piece of jewelry that speaks to you, wear or gift it with joy, for it was made from a dream just for you.
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