Feature Friday: Bluestocking Designs
From elegant historically inspired designs to whimsical creations, Bluestocking Designs features a wide range of jewelry and accessories perfect for modern or costume wear.
Artist and founder Yoshi Stokes hand cuts all of her designs, and each piece is made to order. She has been making jewelry in some form or another for most of her life, starting with hot glue and spray paint as a pre-teen, moving to vinyl later, and finally transitioning to finer materials like sterling silver and brass. “My clearest inspiration probably comes from historical jewelry and ornamentation, but I have a soft spot for just making things I think will be cute too, like miniature knives and saws or snails and mushrooms,” she commented.
She went on to add, “Any piece with intricate saw piercing is probably my favorite because it can require an almost meditative focus, and I usually spend the most time designing those pieces, so seeing them come to life is always the most creatively fulfilling.”
Some of her designs are based on specific historical examples. For example, these recycled silver guillotine earrings are inspired by memento mori jewelry of the French Revolution. Each guillotine has a dangling blade with a faux sharpened edge to add an extra bit of realism.
In the same vein, she also has a beautiful replica Georgian mourning ring in her shop. Set under a faceted glass cabochon, the ring showcases a hand-printed etching of a weeping willow and urn, a motif that was particularly popular in the 1780s and 1790s, set in figured sterling silver band.
However, many of her most unique pieces pull inspiration from period architecture, like this trefoil gothic tracery ring or these long gothic tracery earrings. Both designs were inspired by the stonework and metal support structures used in Gothic windows as well as the trefoil shape of a clover leaf, and the earrings can be made in an oxidized black finish or standard sterling silver.
She also has a line of period-inspired brass hair pins that can be worn for everyday looks or special occasions.
With its swirling design, this Regency chignon pin would look equally stylish at a modern wedding as it would at a Bridgerton ball.
Perhaps you want something with a more witchy aesthetic? This Art Deco inspired spiderweb chignon pin is elegant and sophisticated with a hint of the macabre.
Or maybe you just want something small to show off your love of sewing and crafting? This sterling silver scissor necklace is an understated way to wear your passion daily. The coolest part? While the scissors aren’t sharpened, they open and close just like a real pair!
You can find all these pieces and lots more designs in Yoshi’s Etsy store: www.etsy.com/shop/YoshiStokes and you can find her other creative works on her Instagram @bluestockingdesigns