Alena Hesounová / Astrids Glass

Bubbles of oil inside bubbles of glass? Alena Hesounová is a genius. If this isn't enough to convince you, check out her other collections!

In case these rings didn't tip you off, she's from the Czech Republic.

Bonus link:
For more glass bubbles, plus scrumptious glass cake rings like the one pictured here, check out Astrids Glass (Astrid Hanssen and Willy Andersson, who work on a farm in Norway).

Even more jewellery:

• Ksenia Obukhova (Russia) - oil & caviar


• Ether/Ore (New York) - brass & leather


• Karsten Lank (Denmark) - gold & gems

TODESIRE / Anton Heunis / El Trébol de 4

Why so cagey? I might be, too, if I had to guard a stone. Rings above, top to bottom: silver with hematite balls from Thailand's TODESIRE (design duo "Tod" Thossapol Wachiradisai and "Joy" Yanin Uraiwanchai), gold-plated wire with Swarovski crystal from Madrid's Anton Heunis, and oxidized silver with red coral from Barcelona's El Trébol de 4 (Montserrat Bote).

Bonus link:
Here's a piece where the stone stands out more than the cage! Ring in stainless steel and citrine from the "cage" collection by German jeweller Jennifer Sauer.

Even more jewellery:

• Kage Jewelry (California) - bullets & agate


• Therese Stawlin (Sweden) - art jewellery


• Mirabelle (UK) - gold & stones

Ruta Reifen / Tamra Gentry

Jerusalem-born Ruta Reifen makes brass and concrete look as organic as branches and buds.

Above, rings from her "Floral Charades" series, featuring copper and car paint. (They must have very colourful cars in Israel.)

Bonus link: for more car paint, check out Chicago's Tamra Gentry, who enjoys working with colourful fordite (which comes from auto paint).

Even more jewellery:

• ZingHouse Unlimited (Australia) - car paint


• Richard Mawdsley (Illinois) - amazing & intricate


• April Reno (California) - gold & tassels

Tami Eshed / Ring Pen

These rings will definitely get you note-iced. Yep, that familiar neon comes from Post-It Notes!

More from the designer above: "Rorschach" and salt & silver rings. All pieces by Israel's Tami Eshed.

Bonus link:
Scribble on those Post-Its (or make a Rorschach inkblot of your own) with the ergonomic Ring Pen, designed to prevent carpal tunnel syndrome.

Even more jewellery:

• Thinknow (Seattle) - paper & wood


• Gabriela de la Vega (New York) - briolette clusters


• Manu (Germany) - clean twotone

Gofenshefer / Semilla Designs

Natural beauties: Latvia's Gofenshefer (Marina Gofensefera) grows pretty jewellery out of coix seeds and seed beads.

Bonus link:
For more coix seeds, also known as Job's Tears, see Seattle's Semilla Designs. They also work with tagua nut, as in the ring pictured here.

Even more jewellery:

• Christane Theise (Germany) - tagua & silver


• Boet (Oregon) - cool crochet


• Iuliana Asoltanei (Romania) - flowers & cabochons

Yaeli Nissan / Lauren Colover

Ending the week with some botanical silver and silicon by Israel's Yaeli Nissan.

Bonus link:
For more botanical metal, check out UK jeweller Lauren Colover, whose gem-encrusted pieces are based on the shape of the ginkgo leaf.

Even more jewellery:

• Colleen Jordan (Georgia) - wearable planters


• Vilma Vaiciule (UK) - felt & art


• Loren Stewart (California) - modern & minimal

DeeLyn / Claudia Corcilius

It's no coincidence that these rings strike a chord with me: they're made from recycled guitar strings! In her "RE:strung" collection, UK-based DeeLyn combines elements of movement, geometry and "a bold architectural aesthetic."

Bonus link:
Are you more of a piano person than a guitar person? Then you might appreciate this "Für Elise" ring by New York's Claudia Corcilius, inspired by the cylinder of a music box.

Even more jewellery:

• Audiowear by Elasticbrand (New York) - musical porcelain


• Vanessa Mooney (California) - tribal style


• Todo Joia (Israel) - simple gold

Criso Genesi / Delane Cooper

While Wednesday is traditionally known as "hump day," this one's going to be "jump day." That's your clue to the inspiration behind these silver rings by Italy's Criso Genesi.

Don't see it? Patience, young _______, and it'll come to you. That's right, it's grasshoppers!

Bonus link:
For some more swooping arcs of metal, in gold and steel this time, check out this "Hidden" ring by jeweller Delane Cooper of Toronto (by way of California).

Even more jewellery:

• Becka's Insects (UK) - insects & spiders


• Karen Keith (Florida) - vintage parts


• Petra & Elias Sabeh (Germany) - metal & gems

Boo and Boo Factory / Hep Design

When I came across L.A. jeweller Christina Anton's work, I thought to myself, "Oh my god, please have rings... [scroll down]... please have rings... [scroll, scroll]... please have rings... [scroll down some more]... YES, RINGS." For a geometric colour explosion, check out her leather designs at Boo and Boo Factory.

Bonus link:
For another colour explosion — or maybe it's just a deflation — check out this ring made of balloons by Turkey's Hep Design, a recycler-jeweller who's an architect by day.

Even more jewellery:

• Carolyn Kinnaird (UK) - colour & lines


• Noga Berman (Israel) - dinos & deer


• Whitney Stern (Seattle) - modern metal

Jan Smith / Kate Rieppel

Ease into the week with some easy-on-the-eyes enamel. Muted tones and organic forms feature prominently in the work of BC's Jan Smith, who "build[s] layers of colour, images, and texture" into her pieces.

Bonus link:
For more lovely kiln-fired colour, visit Washington, DC jeweller Kate Rieppel. This piece features silver, copper and vitreous enamel.

Even more jewellery:

• Alisha Louise (Oregon) - modern enamel


• Kerrie Yeung (New York) - bead clusters


• Poggi (France) - vintage style

Dania Bailey / Martine Harraca

UK jeweller Dania Bailey appeals to my love of resin and quartz with her "Crystal" rings that are actually resin on acrylic shanks.

Bonus link:
For resin and crystals of the Swarovski variety, check out these rings by French artist Martine Harraca.

Even more jewellery:

• Hélène Zubeldia (France) - crystals & studs


• Jen Ellis (Vancouver) - simple silver


• Kurt Neukomm (Switzerland) - contemporary metal

Gi Vade (Giedre Vadeike) / Silvia Suen

Et tu, Brute? This being the ides of March, I thought it'd be appropriate to post some bloody rings. This piece is by UK-based Gi Vade (short for Giedre Vadeike), an artist who turns metal, resin, ceramic and silicone into wearable sculptures... worn by blue creatures. Go check it out.

Bonus link:
Here's another Latin phrase for you: vena amoris. That's the title of this ring made of glass tubing, silver, ruby and fake blood, by Hong Kong's Silvia Suen.

Even more jewellery:

• Julie Teeples (Utah) - Latin phrases


• Rie Kakuda (Japan) - contemporary enamel


• Lucie Veilleux (Quebec) - silver & wood

Brianna Fano / MOJO Design

Spilling over from yesterday is more black and blue acrylic, but with a difference: this time, it's the necklaces that are the standouts of the collection, as opposed to the earrings! Of course, the rings are pretty attractive, too, quite literally — they feature moveable magnetic tops. If you love bold, chunky, geometric lucite, check out New York designer Brianna Fano.

Bonus link:
While Swiss jeweller Caroline Mojonnier of MOJO Design tends toward traditional gemstone jewellery, she also has these rings with changeable magnetic tops.

Even more jewellery:

• Magnabilities (Washington) - magnetic jewellery


• Maripossa (Australia) - crystals & chains


• IJA Designs (Oregon) - hammered metal

Andreea Mogosanu / Cooee

I love the lasercut acrylic designs of Romania's Andreea Mogosanu — especially the earrings! She also has a series of silver rings with wooden inlay.

Bonus link:
Catrin Åberg of Sweden's Cooee Design brings us another hit of black and blue acrylic with these "Waterlily" rings.

Even more jewellery:

• P1 Unless Otherwise Noted (New York) - acrylic & foil


• Lucy Palmer (UK) - forests & fairytales


• Konrad Mehus (Norway) - metal art

Aradia Nista / Jennifer Hayes / Elinor Cambray

Gorgeous tendril ring from the "Mystic Campanula" collection by Aradia Nista, an Italian jeweller now based in the UK.

More tendril-y rings, above, by Jennifer Hayes, also of the UK.

Bonus link:
Another UK jeweller with tendril rings is Elinor Cambray; her subtle designs are perfect if you're looking for something for everyday wear.

Even more jewellery:

• Misa Kuboyama (Japan) - pretty botanicals


• Vanessa Moore (Montreal) - chains & charms


• Maryla Dubiel (Poland) - pearls on wire

Georgina Orme / Confection Jewels

Georgina Orme calls this collection "Reed, Ribbon & Bark." Which reminded me of the Cocteau Twins' "Road, River & Rail." Which then reminded me, didn't they also have a song called "I Wear Your Ring"? While I go digging through my '90s-era non-mp3s, visit this UK jeweller's site for more...

... like this amazing piece!

Bonus link: while the rings above feature real bark, California's Confection Jewels (Yanique Venezia) goes for etched woodgrain metal. Visit the shop for lots of vintage cocktail rings.

Even more jewellery:

• Reloved (Nova Scotia) - bark & recycling


• Khara Ledonne (New York) - painted lockets


• Elodie (UK) - contemporary silver

Xin Ran Lu / Leaderline

China's Xin Ran Lu doesn't just grab the brass ring, he reinvents it twenty-five ways from Sunday. I'd add another idiom here but brevity is the soul of wit.

Bonus link: if you like playing with language, maybe it's because you played with alphabet blocks as a child. Italy's Leaderline channels those blocks with these glitzy initial cube rings.

Even more jewellery:

• Language Jewelry (New Jersey) - graphic & tribal


• Marita Carlborg-Olsson (Sweden) - knit metal


• Razu Creation (Japan) - gold & stones

Anndra Neen / Cecilia Wong

Inspired by "European jewellery, Egyptian motifs, Japanese design elements and Bauhaus graphics," these rings are truly for the modern global citizen. For more, visit Mexican sisters Phoebe and Annette Stephens of Anndra Neen.

Bonus link: speaking of Japanese design elements, this piece was inspired by the modern architecture of a church in the Harajuku district of Tokyo. Engagement ring in silver, marble and garnet by UK-based Cecilia Wong.

Even more jewellery:

• Oboro Designs (California) - Japan-inspired


• Alex Fraga (Toronto) - druzy quartz


• Frances Julie Whitelaw (UK) - silver wire

Bottega Veneta / Babette Wasserman

Gucci-owned Italian design house Bottega Veneta brings new meaning to the expression "jewel of my eye" with these blackened silver and zircon rings featuring a photographic print of an eye.

Bonus link: if you don't like feeling like you're being stared at all day, London's Babette Wasserman has a similar ring — circular shape, cz frame — but with blank obsidian in lieu of the eye.

Even more jewellery:

• Dana Reed (Illinois) - circles & ovals


• Syann van Niftrik (UK) - contemporary metal


• Lori Bonn (California) - gems & filigree

Karen Wuytens / Karen Dell'armi

Cameo or bottle stopper?

These rings by Karen Wuytens mimic the vessel shape that dominates her pendants and brooches. The Dutch artist likes to use non-traditional materials (such as nylon), as they lead to non-traditional techniques.

Above: her wire rings.

Bonus link:
For more vessel-like pieces, see Welsh jeweller Karen Dell'armi, whose "Serenity" collection is based on Buddhist singing bowls.

Even more jewellery:

• H for Hannah (California) - jewellery on vessels


• Lisa Crawford Jones (Australia) - granulated edges


• CLAS by Hiroko Takahashi (Japan) - classical metal

If this page is missing posts from the first few days of this month, it's because I've reached my Blogger page limit! To read all posts, see the full monthly archives at TheCarrotbox.com