Arty by nature
\nSisters cast jewelry line from seeds, sticks, and beans
\nHeather Goodwin loves winter.
\nBoston Globe,\u00c2\u00a0United States<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
“When the trees are bare they all look like big twig necklaces to me,” the 35-year-old silversmith said.<\/p>\n
Goodwin means that literally. Goodwin and her twin sister, Kerry Alice Collins, are the duo behind the unique Nahant-based jewelry line Twigs & Heather. Using wax and burnout casting methods, the sisters make sterling silver necklaces, bracelets, and earrings from the sticks, bark, and seeds they collect around New England.<\/p>\n
It is jewelry for the true nature lover: Birch bark curls into a wide cuff bracelet; rippled maple seeds dangle from earrings; and small acorns bob along a silver chain.<\/p>\n
“You’ll see us at night with backpacks and big scissors looking for twigs,” Collins said, laughing. The twins both have easy laughs; they speak over each other and finish each other’s thoughts.<\/p>\n
“I’m constantly looking up to find the right trees to use,” Goodwin said. “We’re always outside.”<\/p>\n
To make their one-of-a-kind pieces, the sisters put organic objects onto wax rods in heat-resistant plaster. Slowly they heat the mold until the wax and natural material burn out, leaving a recess in the plaster. Finally, melted silver is poured into the mold, creating a near-perfect replica of the original.<\/p>\n
When the sisters work on custom orders they are actually preserving moments in time, memories. Goodwin and Collins gush about a man who asked for a twig necklace made from the tree under which he and his girlfriend fell in love. Then there was the mother (apparently with a sense of humor) who asked them to cast the shriveled black beans her toddler stuck up his nose. Goodwin made her husband’s birch bark wedding band.<\/p>\n
Although the sisters were always artistic, they got into casting by chance. After graduating from Swampscott High in 1990, they enrolled at Northeastern University, but both quickly realized college wasn’t for them.<\/p>\n
“I was this weird punk rocker who should’ve gone to art school,” Collins said. “We stuck out like sore thumbs at college.”<\/p>\n
They dropped out after a year. Collins worked at the Army Barracks on Newbury Street, sewing and making clothes and bags. Goodwin waited tables and landed an apprenticeship with Amory Casting. She liked working with her hands, so continued waitressing until she had enough money to buy a kiln and other casting supplies.<\/p>\n
They launched Twigs & Heather in 2000, but it wasn’t until last spring that they found a house in their hometown of Nahant with a basement space perfect for a studio.<\/p>\n
In addition to their nature pieces (they also work with sea glass), Collins has launched an edgier line of jewelry that features skulls, hearts, and rabbits. Prices range from $40 to over $300. Twigs & Heather is available at etsy.com and locally at Magpie in Somerville and Turtle in the South End.<\/p>\n
“We don’t meet many other women casters,” Goodwin said. “We are proud that we melt the metal, that we do all the work on our pieces from designing to finishing.”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Arty by nature Sisters cast jewelry line from seeds, sticks, and beans Heather Goodwin loves winter. Boston Globe,\u00c2\u00a0United States “When the trees are bare they all look like big twig necklaces to me,” the 35-year-old silversmith said. Goodwin means that literally. Goodwin and her twin sister, Kerry Alice Collins, are the duo behind the unique […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[411],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\n