Product Features:
- Dimension: Length: 1.6" x 0.8" W
- Weight: 0.01
- Color: Silver
- Material: 925 sterling silver
- Made in Mexico
Story Behind the art:
I was born in Juliaca in southern Peru. It's also known as the 'City of Wind' and the 'Pearl of the Highland Plain.' I grew up with my family in this beautiful city. Thanks to my parents' hard work, I was able to finish school. Even so, times were tough. The weather varied greatly and the winters were so cold. The future was uncertain and unpromising, and my parents were worried. Then things got even worse and we had to make a difficult choice. I couldn't keep living there so, shortly after my 18th birthday, I started my journey to the capital. I had only the clothes I was wearing and 300 soles in my pocket. That was the family's savings. I knew some people in Lima and had lined out a few part-time jobs to survive. I looked up my friends as soon as I arrived. I felt sad and lost away from home and far from my family but I knew I had to do something to make it in life. So I worked in a thousand temporary jobs and worked in stores and workshops by the hour, as a messenger boy, in whatever I could to make a few coins for my daily expenses. This is how I came to a jewelry workshop very close to where I lived. They crafted jewelry and hired me for a while. In fact, I imagined it was only for the season and that this was just another temporary job. This was the first time I was in contact with silver and my only task was to polish the finished jewelry or help the craftspeople put the pieces together. But I was very curious and silverwork attracted me. When I'd have a piece of jewelry in my hands while working, I felt amazed. I began to wonder day and night if I could create something like that. Finally, I said, 'I want to learn to work in silver and specialize in jewelry crafting.' I convinced myself that, if I enjoyed an activity so much, I should learn as much as I could. I decided that jewelry would become my life. So I got going. Little by little, I began involving myself in the process. Now I not only polished a piece of jewelry. I assembled it, sanded it and polished it. But I felt like there was never enough time and I had to finish my shift. I wanted to stay late to be able to practice. At work, I paid close attention to everything that was being done. If someone was needed to work overtime, I volunteered to be able to use the tools there. The owner never let me set gemstones and would never teach me the entire process, but my curiosity and willingness to learn won in the end. When I'd stay for overtime in the workshop, I'd practice with scraps of leftover metal. I learned to melt the metal, to solder, to create silver strands.
The handmade touch of artisan skill creates variations in color, size and design. If buying two of the same item, slight differences should be expected. Note: Color discrepancies may occur between this product and your computer screen.
Imported