This stone combines an unoxidized stainless steel band with a black moissanite set into it's face.

Maker's Notes (9/17/24):

Growing up, I seemed to occupy many different worlds. The ring, my family, school, my friends. Every thing and every one exerted their will, attempting to mold me into a version of myself that wasn't who I wished to be.

It was if I was constantly traversing different worlds. Speaking in one manner in one world, only to jump into a portal and come out having to behave like a completely different human in another.

In one circle, I was shamed and punished for expressing anger. In another, I was shamed for a lack of anger. In others, I was shamed and punished yet again for expressing any sort of emotion at all.

And at the end of all that— and with where I've managed to move to in the present— I've come to realize that I never felt as if I belonged anywhere. 

It's been a lonley road.

I've become a fearful traveler, one terrified of moving in any direction, for each step was punished. And each further step was punished still.

I became stuck in this world between. With my tormentors long gone, I constantly recalled experiences of shame and abuse in an attempt to cement my feet further into the muck of the past. Stuck meant familiar. Familiar meant safe.

Except it doesn't. We all know this.

In truth, that internal shame spiral served me. It hurt terribly for all those years— but the pain was preferable to what would come if I showed any attempt at claiming my human priviledges to exist as an individual with their own interests and needs.

I honor the sacrifices I and others have made so that I may have the experience of not only creating this beautiful piece of jewelry, but of having the opportunity to contemplate and write the story behind this piece.

The world between is a place I find familiar and painful. And also a place that taught me so much of what I don't want out of this brief life I get to experience. It was a time and place of observation. And of much learning.

I learned that people that can be pretty bad. Extremely hurtful. And act with so much intentional contempt toward me that I sometimes regress into a state where people as a whole are the most vile untrustworthy creatures that have been placed on this planet.

But I was also lucky enough to meet so many great people, too. Ones who continuously extended their hands, urging me on with a patience I have not on only admired but eventually decided to attempt to emulate and incorporate into my values.

The world between is filled with much pain and melancholy. But it is also where I came from. Considering most of my journey has focused on allowing all of me to come back together, I choose to welcome this. To see myself as a traveler of roads and paths that others will never get to witness. Ones filled with ruin, glory, love and heartache. Ones that I hold dear to my heart. And ones that with each passing day, week, month, and year I appreciate in ways I never dreamed were possible.

With all of that said— I extend my hand to you. 

Welcome fellow traveler.

My black and polished steel pieces are made using grade 304 and 316L stainless steel.

My brass or copper colored pieces are all made with grade 230-H58 brass.

These rings will survive a lot.

That said, if you want to keep your ring's finish pristine, I recommend you take care of it.

Don't expose it to harsh chemicals. Take it off when cleaning/ showering. Remove jewelry when working with your hands, both for your safety and the longevity of the piece. For an exhaustive jewelry care list, click here.