Artist
Jen Burrall creates her beautiful jewelry in a studio in the East End neighborhood of Portland, Maine, a short walk away from breathtaking views of Casco Bay and its collection of islands. Jen comes from a family of artists, and grew up on the coast of Maine where she inherited both an appreciation for art and a strong connection to nature. Jen uses recycled metals and fair-trade gemstones to minimize the ecological impact of her metal-smithing practice.
About
Topaz is a precious gem stone that is found in a variety of colors ranging from clear (called silver or white topaz) to a golden yellow, pink, and blue. The word ‘topaz’ is thought to have a few different origins: ‘Topazios,’ the ancient name of St. John’s Island in the Red Sea which was known for the yellow gems mined there; an Arabic word meaning ‘subject of the search;’ or the Sanskrit word tapas meaning ‘heat’ or ‘fire.’
The poet Pablo Neruda wrote an ode to the beauty of topaz in his poem ‘El Topacio’: it begins, “Whenever you touch topaz, it touches you: it awakes / a gentle fire, like wine awakes in grapes.” The topaz is a particularly captivating stone, having high qualities of color, clarity, and hardness. White topaz is one of April’s birthstones, and can be given in celebration of 4th and 19th anniversaries.
Details
- handmade with recycled sterling silver and white topaz
- 6mm fair trade topaz in 9.5mm "nested" bezel setting
- sterling silver french earwires
- 3/4" total length of earrings
- TLC for your sterling silver and precious gemstone jewelry
