San Diego based Mandy Holasek of LadyDryad makes unusual wood jewelry. The word Dryad is a give away because a dryad is a tree nymph or tree spirit in Greek mythology. Mandy is tree spirited because all of her wood jewelry is sourced from naturally fallen tree branches! Recycling jewelry at its natural best!
She is also a whiz at pyrography or wood burning with fine heated tools. Some of her work is also hand painted - no easy task especially with some of her smaller design pieces! She finishes her pieces with resin for that shiny look.
Mandy says, "Wood burning became an unexpected fascination of mine after trying it for the first time in a college art course. I started Lady Dryad as a small hobby soon after!
At first, I only hoped to make a bit extra each month to help cover gas money (because my part-time job definitely wasn't doing me any favors with hours at the time!). I never imagined that I'd manage to stick to it and turn my art into a full time career, but that's exactly what happened!"
Mandy is a truly inspirational designer as she has stayed true on her path despite difficulties along the way. She added, " I've moved studios countless times, cycled through part-time jobs, dug my heels in, worked harder than I ever have, and invested carefully to help build my business from the ground up.
Many all-nighters prepping for art shows and craft markets were had! And don't even get me started on how crazy my sleep schedule gets around the holidays!
She still loves what she does and her passion for her art shines through her wonderful work.
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Original Post by THE BEADING GEM
Neat artwork but I'm a bit leery about fallen tree branches because of pests, especially if the bark is still there. There are restrictions on moving wood that's not kiln-dried across state lines (though I don't know if there is a minimum weight limit, it may just apply to larger amounts like lumber or firewood).
ReplyDeleteThat is a good point. It will depend on the particular areas. When I used to live in Halifax, a forested area with pests was isolated so no one could take out any wood from that place.
DeleteI have a friend who is a wood turner and he's never once mentioned pests when it comes to his artwork. I know he doesn't own a kiln and I'm thinking that when a piece of wood is too dry it's not workable. He has a large pile of wood stacked outside his studio and I've brought him pieces from Florida...to Canada for him to work on. You can also order wood online....
DeleteMaybe wood workers get to the point in their craft where they recognize pests and simply discard that piece.
That being said Sneaky Burrito....I have wood stacked beside my fireplace from a tree in our yard. It never fails that when temps warm up in these northern climes..that I can hear munching! And then soon enough....the bugs appear. It's always a mad race to burn the wood then! So IgI where you are coming from... definitely!
I think her work is brilliant and good for her for turning her passion into her full time job.
DeleteI am fascinated with wood burning, maybe a recessive arson-gene? ;) anyway, these are beautiful, and i love the combo of wood and resin.... oh, the wheels are aturnin'!
ReplyDelete