OOAK (one-of-a-kind) is one of those terms that's thrown around a lot in the craft industry and there's a spectrum of thought over what classifies as truly OOAK. For example, and FYI, I don't define my Bebop and Groove collections as OOAK pieces, but rather as limited edition pieces, even though some have argued that they are OOAK. In some ways they are but my feeling is that, while there are elements such as the polymer inlays that are unique to each piece, certain elements are cast—making it possible for me to recreate the designs in these collections and, importantly, giving me the ability to create cohesive collections that are priced competitively.
But as I continue to evolve my silversmithing, jewelry making and design skills, I have so many ideas I want to explore. That's what led me to create a series of rectangular silver and brass "plates" that contain repetitive patterns like dots, ovals, and lines. Now that I have these plates in hand after a lengthy process of development, I can cut them up in endlessly different ways, hammer form into them, add other elements like wire, bezels, etc., and create something completely OOAK, such as these silver and brass brooches. I'm still inspired to work with polymer inlays and completely excited by the possibilities of combining these materials. As I'm sure you can imagine, this work is more time-consuming so prices will reflect that and vary a bit from my other collections. Working this way gives me opportunities to experiment and explore new ideas without making big commitments to production and casting costs.
So with all that in mind I have developed a page dedicated to new OOAK work on my website. I'm still tweaking the brooches but I've come up with a couple of new pairs of asymmetrical earrings that I've decided to start the page with. Visit whenever the mood hits and find something completely OOAK!
Nancy :-)
