Marissa Saneholtz / Soldoeyo

You should not be reading this right now. One look at these rings and you should have already clicked over to the site of North Carolina-based artist Marissa Saneholtz. (Be sure not to miss her "Corrupt Fairytales" series featuring comic-style images!)

Bonus link:
Speaking of comic strip images, Argentina's Soldoeyo (Maria Soledad Rodriguez) has these rings from her latest "Comics" collection.

Even more jewellery:

• Lio Jewelry (Belgium) - comics & pinups


• Joanna Lynn Taylor (Arizona) - paper in resin


• Bete Noire (UK) - hearts & scrolls

Gregory Larin / Kate Gilliland

Despite collections with such names as "A Gory Story" and "Necroscopia," Gregory Larin's work is a feast for the eyes. Don't miss this Israeli artist's anatomically-inspired jewellery!

Bonus link: if you happen to like gory stories and necro-jewellery, UK jeweller Kate Gilliland has this "squashed frog" ring. She also has a "sleeping" mouse brooch featuring a real, but not so live, rodent.

Even more jewellery:

• Alchemie (Australia) - mounted heads


• Esteelee Neufeld (Israel) - framed cabs


• Naomi Tachibana (Japan) - contemporary metal

Jay Song / Mecurialist

These rings are the result of exploring lanterns as a communicative form. They "are meant to hang from hands that pray or meditate" and "suggest a quietude that is, at its essence, personal."

For more gorgeous work, visit Georgia metalsmith Jay Song.

Bonus link: stay in that meditative mood with a "Little Ruin Temple" ring, inspired by a meditation on mortality and life's transience (in the spirit of ubi nunc), from Australia's Mecurialist.

Even more jewellery:

• Santitos (UK) - totem saints


• Juhos Janka (Hungary) - cool cuffs


• Feliks + Adrik (New York) - chains & metal

Ura / Annie Moran

Maybe cheerleaders should abandon traditional pompoms and switch to these ruffled balls of plastic, because these rings are an instant, colourful pick-me-up. Goooooooo team! Rings by Norway's Ura (Toril Slokvik).

Bonus link:
For ruffles sans the cheery colour, see New Orleans jeweller Annie Moran, whose ruffle ring is available in both silver (plain) and gold (with diamonds).

Even more jewellery:

• Sophie Breitmeyer (UK) - ruffled metal


• Mother of Men (Washington, DC) - tribal beading


• David Benlolo (New York) - metal & moonstone

Amy Logan / Erica Klein

Does this ooze elicit "ooh"s or "ew!"s? (Don't worry, it's just glue.) Rings by UK jeweller Amy Logan.

Bonus link:
This ring isn't so much oozing as it is dripping. "Long Drip" ring, available in various metals, by New York's Erica Klein.

Even more jewellery:

• Estelle Dévé (Australia) - molten metal


• Less (New York) - chunks on chains


• Anne Holman (Ohio) - vintage maps

Kerstie Whiley / Cass Partington

To fully appreciate today's ring...

...you really need the full set suit. Playmobil Knight jewellery (including helmet ring) by England's Kerstie Whiley.

Bonus link: for another hit of childhood nostalgia, electronic edition, check out this Space Invaders ring from Australia's Cass Partington (who has lots of nice, minimal rings).

Even more jewellery:

• Anastasia Dedonaki (Greece) - toy charms


• Laurent Gandini (Italy) - lacy metal


• Metal Monk (New York) - vintage flowers

Sarah Richardson / Christi Reiterman / O Bliss / Suman Mishra

Circles in circles by California's Sarah Richardson (top), Georgia's Christi Reiterman (bottom left) and Australia's O Bliss (bottom right).

If you prefer semicircles on semicircles, there's this piece by India's Suman Mishra.

Bonus link:
For more open circle rings, like this one in gold and diamonds, visit LFrank (Los Angeles jeweller Liseanne Frankfurt). It's from her "Stack" collection.

Even more jewellery:

• Megan Auman (Pennsylvania) - circles & ovals


• Naomi Takahashi (Japan) - wire crochet


• Selin Kent (New York) - silver & resin

Alina Alamorean / Bernadette Trainor

This is how to accessorize in a Terminator-style post-apocalyptic world. Just for future reference. Amped-up skull rings by French designer Alina Alamorean.

Bonus link:
For a happier, more peaceful skull ring, Australia's Bernadette Trainor has this piece wreathed in cheerful anodized aluminum flowers.

Even more jewellery:

• Attilio Codognato (Italy) - skulls & snakes


• Paranee Ongwat (New York) - modern metal


• Sophia & Chloé (California) - Morocco-inspired

Shelly Dahari / Vintage Soul Designs

Ever seen a cool cufflink that you wish were a ring? It happened to Israel's Shelly Dahari, only she actually did something about it! Check out her "Basic" collection for these gold-plated brass rings with vintage cufflink components.

Bonus link:
Vintage Soul Designs (California's Jana Perkins) has the same idea, turning monogram cufflinks into monogram rings. She also works with vintage (even antique) buttons.

Even more jewellery:

• Louy Magroos (UK) - cufflinks & jewellery


• Sarah Hurtigkarl (Denmark) - liquid splashes


• Susanna Fab (Mexico) - modern metal

Paro Paro / Patricia MB Gotthilf

Get on an all-natural diet of accessories with ingredients like wood, horn and feathers from Australia's Paro Paro (Faye Maramara).

Bonus link: some more simple, chunky, natural rings, this time from Brazilian jeweller Patricia MB Gotthilf. Beyond materials like bone, ivory, seed and wood, she also uses metal and gems.

Even more jewellery:

• Georgiana Paraschiv (Romania) - painted wood


• Metalepsis Projects (NYC/LA) - architectural geometry


• Paige Barbee (Tennessee) - metal & crochet

Sofia Eriksson / Whimsy Milieu / Shihara / Eleonora Ghilardi / Christina Odegard

Do you smell that? Yes, it's a fresh batch of Random Pluckings from My Bookmarks, starting with this piece from "Intangible Embrace" by Sweden's Sofia Eriksson.

Double vertebrae ring in clay and rope by Australia's Whimsy Milieu (Jacqueline Chan).

Minimalism in contrasting finishes by Japan's Shihara / Yui Creates.

Porcelain and platinum by Italy's Eleonora Ghilardi.

Cloud ring from Christina Odegard of California's Matin Gallery.

Bonus link:
Sticking with that pale colour scheme, here's an ivory resin dome ring with gold studs from New Jersey-based Vince Camuto.

Even more jewellery:

• Bobby White (UK) - shiny metal


• Collette Ishiyama (New York) - Egyptian deco


• Lorina Bijoux (Romania) - eclectic & busy

Dark + Dawn / Romeing Panda

I feel trapped — by indecision! Wide open, closed shut or dangerously ajar, this bear-trap is one ring that can be worn three ways. It's up to you, if you can bear to choose. Find lots more cool pieces at Dark + Dawn (L.A.'s Tyler Durtschi).

Bonus link: of course, the only bear I care to trap is a gummibear, and New York's Romeing Panda has that taken care of with their awesome lucite rings!

Even more jewellery:

• Ursa Major (New York) - modern & tribal


• Le Creative Sweatshop (France) - sculptural paper


• Kate Earlam (UK) - arcing rectangles

Olga Noronha / Myriam Oude Vrielink

I do like keeping Kleenex handy.

These may not just be clean but surgically sterile! In her "Conflict" series, Portuguese artist Olga Noronha uses real surgical tools — but without dissociating them from their original function, as in these rings using bone staples and ivory. The tissue ring is from her "Dirty Issues" series. (If you like these, you may also be interested in these.)

Bonus link: with surgery on the mind, this looks like a brain ring to me — but it's actually based on the celosia plant. Gold ring by Myriam Oude Vrielink, who runs the Zigt jewellery gallery in Rotterdam with Neeltje Huddleston Slater.

Even more jewellery:

• Fiona Redfern (UK) - anatomical silver


• Meredith Anne Sutton (North Carolina) - studded frames


• Nazanin Rostami (Montreal) - contemporary metal

Archetype Z / Michal Piasecki & Krystian Kwieciński

Yesterday was just the hexagon appetizer. Today, we go full board, with hexagons made of hexagons, sometimes even topped with hexagons. Hexagons squared, if you will, though squaring a hexagon could leave you with four sides instead of 36. Still with me? Good, because there's more:

This 3D-printed stainless steel honeycomb/hexagon ring, as well as the bamboo rings above, by California's Archetype Z (Alia Hasan).

Bonus link: here's another 3D-printed ring that's much more squared than hexagonal. Based on a genetic algorithm, it's the "Evolve" ring by Polish designers Michal Piasecki and Krystian Kwieciński.

Even more jewellery:

• Summerized (California) - 3D-printed


• Stämpel Studio (Australia) - painted wood


• Jill Newbrook (UK) - mokumegane shapes

Katherine Agnew / Katzi

Katherine Agnew based these hive-like hexagon cluster rings on The Decemberists' "The Hazards of Love," an album that serves as a unified narrative. From the UK jeweller's "...Undone" collection, "each piece represents a pivotal scene from the album." (Look closely and some of the shapes are actually diamond-shaped pentagons.)

Bonus link:
For a cool, non-hive spin on hexagons, check out these hexagonal pyramid rings from Katzi, an Australian purveyor of jewellery and leather bags.

Even more jewellery:

• Arc * Hive Design (Arizona) - wooden amulets


• Rachel Ann Phillips (UK) - conceptual perspex


• MelleSan (France) - earrings & headpieces

Martin Verner / Monomer

This copper ring might feel at home with yesterday's mermaids — it's the squid-like "Sea Creatures" ring by Czech jeweller Martin Verner.

Visit his portfolio for more pieces, like the molecular "Zoom In" collection (pictured above) and the "Tinkling" ring that features worms. Live worms.

Bonus link:
For lots of cool 3D-printed rings with a molecular feel, check out Germany's Monomer (Antje Bott & Thomas Mrokon).

Even more jewellery:

• Expression CJ (Romania) - molecular rings


• John Tzelepis (Arizona) - metal engineering


• Dana Kellin (California) - glam gems

Emili White / Night Sky Jewelry

"I have heard the mermaids singing, each to each"... Or maybe what J. Alfred actually heard was these enamelled, coral-inspired "Mermaid" rings by London's Emili White.

Above, a ring from her "Patinated Palms" collection. Dare to eat a peach, then check her site for more nature-inspired work!

Bonus link:
For more sea- and fantasy-inspired jewellery, including mermaid bracelets, check out the resin works of Colorado's Night Sky Jewelry (Liana Turnbull Bennett).

Even more jewellery:

• Daja Lindner (Germany) - fish & loops


• Larissa Sobon (Massachusetts) - art & animals


• Dream Mullick (New Mexico) - Bali-inspired

Kirstin Dunn / Julie Kirk

Scottish artist Kirstin Dunn infuses her folded jewellery and art installations with the airy dreaminess of translucent plastic.

Bonus link:
For translucent resin, check out another UK jeweller, Julie Kirk. I love the fresh colours of these simple rings.

Even more jewellery:

• Scattered Light (Texas) - collage & botanicals


• By Invite Only (Singapore) - chunky quartz


• Victoria Sánchez (Calgary) - metal & fibre

Alice Cicolini / Pietro Nicoletti

* Please note: *
The blog will be on a short summer break.
Next post will be Wednesday!

I bow to the ebony temple (rings) of Alice Cicolini. The British designer, who was inspired by "the sacred architecture and patterns of the Silk Route," is a founding member of IKKIS, "a foundation [which] supports world-class craftsmanship in India."

Bonus link:
Here's another ring that may have been inspired by a trip to a Hindu temple. Green rubber ring depicting the Trimurti deity by Italy's Pietro Nicoletti.

Even more jewellery:

• Temple St. Clair (New York) - gold & gems


• Anabel Campbell (UK) - bead mosaics


• Akshat Raghava (Virginia) - rollercoaster earrings

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