The Carrotbox

The Carrotbox is obsessed with rings. Please enjoy your stay.

Alice M  ·  Vancouver, BC

While the shop is metal-free, the blog is not! Links are never repeated so there's always something new.

I post only what interests me. No ads, no paid promos.

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Blog > March 2012

Friday, March 30, 2012

Bubbles of oil inside bubbles of glass? Alena Hesounová is a genius. If this isn't enough to convince you, check out her other collections!

In case these rings didn't tip you off, she's from the Czech Republic.


Bonus link:
For more glass bubbles, plus scrumptious glass cake rings like the one pictured here, check out Astrids Glass (Astrid Hanssen and Willy Andersson, who work on a farm in Norway).

Even more jewellery:

Thursday, March 29, 2012




Why so cagey? I might be, too, if I had to guard a stone. Rings above, top to bottom: silver with hematite balls from Thailand's TODESIRE (design duo "Tod" Thossapol Wachiradisai and "Joy" Yanin Uraiwanchai), gold-plated wire with Swarovski crystal from Madrid's Anton Heunis, and oxidized silver with red coral from Barcelona's El Trébol de 4 (Montserrat Bote).


Bonus link:
Here's a piece where the stone stands out more than the cage! Ring in stainless steel and citrine from the "cage" collection by German jeweller Jennifer Sauer.

Even more jewellery:

Wednesday, March 28, 2012

Jerusalem-born Ruta Reifen makes brass and concrete look as organic as branches and buds.

Above, rings from her "Floral Charades" series, featuring copper and car paint. (They must have very colourful cars in Israel.)


Bonus link:
for more car paint, check out Chicago's Tamra Gentry, who enjoys working with colourful fordite (which comes from auto paint).

Even more jewellery:

Tuesday, March 27, 2012

These rings will definitely get you note-iced. Yep, that familiar neon comes from Post-It Notes!

More from the designer above: "Rorschach" and salt & silver rings. All pieces by Israel's Tami Eshed.


Bonus link:
Scribble on those Post-Its (or make a Rorschach inkblot of your own) with the ergonomic Ring Pen, designed to prevent carpal tunnel syndrome.

Even more jewellery:

Monday, March 26, 2012

Natural beauties: Latvia's Gofenshefer (Marina Gofensefera) grows pretty jewellery out of coix seeds and seed beads.


Bonus link:
For more coix seeds, also known as Job's Tears, see Seattle's Semilla Designs. They also work with tagua nut, as in the ring pictured here.

Even more jewellery:

Friday, March 23, 2012

Ending the week with some botanical silver and silicon by Israel's Yaeli Nissan.


Bonus link:
For more botanical metal, check out UK jeweller Lauren Colover, whose gem-encrusted pieces are based on the shape of the ginkgo leaf.

Even more jewellery:

Thursday, March 22, 2012

It's no coincidence that these rings strike a chord with me: they're made from recycled guitar strings! In her "RE:strung" collection, UK-based DeeLyn combines elements of movement, geometry and "a bold architectural aesthetic."


Bonus link:
Are you more of a piano person than a guitar person? Then you might appreciate this "Für Elise" ring by New York's Claudia Corcilius, inspired by the cylinder of a music box.

Even more jewellery:

Wednesday, March 21, 2012

While Wednesday is traditionally known as "hump day," this one's going to be "jump day." That's your clue to the inspiration behind these silver rings by Italy's Criso Genesi.

Don't see it? Patience, young _______, and it'll come to you. That's right, it's grasshoppers!


Bonus link:
For some more swooping arcs of metal, in gold and steel this time, check out this "Hidden" ring by jeweller Delane Cooper of Toronto (by way of California).

Even more jewellery:

Tuesday, March 20, 2012

When I came across L.A. jeweller Christina Anton's work, I thought to myself, "Oh my god, please have rings... [scroll down]... please have rings... [scroll, scroll]... please have rings... [scroll down some more]... YES, RINGS." For a geometric colour explosion, check out her leather designs at Boo and Boo Factory.


Bonus link:
For another colour explosion — or maybe it's just a deflation — check out this ring made of balloons by Turkey's Hep Design, a recycler-jeweller who's an architect by day.

Even more jewellery:

Monday, March 19, 2012

Ease into the week with some easy-on-the-eyes enamel. Muted tones and organic forms feature prominently in the work of BC's Jan Smith, who "build[s] layers of colour, images, and texture" into her pieces.


Bonus link:
For more lovely kiln-fired colour, visit Washington, DC jeweller Kate Rieppel. This piece features silver, copper and vitreous enamel.

Even more jewellery:

Friday, March 16, 2012

UK jeweller Dania Bailey appeals to my love of resin and quartz with her "Crystal" rings that are actually resin on acrylic shanks.


Bonus link:
For resin and crystals of the Swarovski variety, check out these rings by French artist Martine Harraca.

Even more jewellery:

Thursday, March 15, 2012

Et tu, Brute? This being the ides of March, I thought it'd be appropriate to post some bloody rings. This piece is by UK-based Gi Vade (short for Giedre Vadeike), an artist who turns metal, resin, ceramic and silicone into wearable sculptures... worn by blue creatures. Go check it out.


Bonus link:
Here's another Latin phrase for you: vena amoris. That's the title of this ring made of glass tubing, silver, ruby and fake blood, by Hong Kong's Silvia Suen.

Even more jewellery:

Wednesday, March 14, 2012

Spilling over from yesterday is more black and blue acrylic, but with a difference: this time, it's the necklaces that are the standouts of the collection, as opposed to the earrings! Of course, the rings are pretty attractive, too, quite literally — they feature moveable magnetic tops. If you love bold, chunky, geometric lucite, check out New York designer Brianna Fano.


Bonus link:
While Swiss jeweller Caroline Mojonnier of MOJO Design tends toward traditional gemstone jewellery, she also has these rings with changeable magnetic tops.

Even more jewellery:

Tuesday, March 13, 2012

I love the lasercut acrylic designs of Romania's Andreea Mogosanu — especially the earrings! She also has a series of silver rings with wooden inlay.


Bonus link:
Catrin Åberg of Sweden's Cooee Design brings us another hit of black and blue acrylic with these "Waterlily" rings.

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Monday, March 12, 2012

Gorgeous tendril ring from the "Mystic Campanula" collection by Aradia Nista, an Italian jeweller now based in the UK.


More tendril-y rings, above, by Jennifer Hayes, also of the UK.


Bonus link:
Another UK jeweller with tendril rings is Elinor Cambray; her subtle designs are perfect if you're looking for something for everyday wear.

Even more jewellery:

Friday, March 9, 2012

Georgina Orme calls this collection "Reed, Ribbon & Bark." Which reminded me of the Cocteau Twins' "Road, River & Rail." Which then reminded me, didn't they also have a song called "I Wear Your Ring"? While I go digging through my '90s-era non-mp3s, visit this UK jeweller's site for more...

... like this amazing piece!


Bonus link:
while the rings above feature real bark, California's Confection Jewels (Yanique Venezia) goes for etched woodgrain metal. Visit the shop for lots of vintage cocktail rings.

Even more jewellery:

Thursday, March 8, 2012

China's Xin Ran Lu doesn't just grab the brass ring, he reinvents it twenty-five ways from Sunday. I'd add another idiom here but brevity is the soul of wit.


Bonus link:
if you like playing with language, maybe it's because you played with alphabet blocks as a child. Italy's Leaderline channels those blocks with these glitzy initial cube rings.

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Wednesday, March 7, 2012

Inspired by "European jewellery, Egyptian motifs, Japanese design elements and Bauhaus graphics," these rings are truly for the modern global citizen. For more, visit Mexican sisters Phoebe and Annette Stephens of Anndra Neen.


Bonus link:
speaking of Japanese design elements, this piece was inspired by the modern architecture of a church in the Harajuku district of Tokyo. Engagement ring in silver, marble and garnet by UK-based Cecilia Wong.

Even more jewellery:

Tuesday, March 6, 2012

Gucci-owned Italian design house Bottega Veneta brings new meaning to the expression "jewel of my eye" with these blackened silver and zircon rings featuring a photographic print of an eye.


Bonus link:
if you don't like feeling like you're being stared at all day, London's Babette Wasserman has a similar ring — circular shape, cz frame — but with blank obsidian in lieu of the eye.

Even more jewellery:

Monday, March 5, 2012

Cameo or bottle stopper?

These rings by Karen Wuytens mimic the vessel shape that dominates her pendants and brooches. The Dutch artist likes to use non-traditional materials (such as nylon), as they lead to non-traditional techniques.

Above: her wire rings.


Bonus link:
For more vessel-like pieces, see Welsh jeweller Karen Dell'armi, whose "Serenity" collection is based on Buddhist singing bowls.

Even more jewellery:

Friday, March 2, 2012

I'm going to spend all day tied up with Korean artist Sung-Yeoul Lee. And so should you.


Bonus link:
I like the atypical knot rings from New York's Langoliers (Pamela Liou & Zon Chu), like this large silver piece with four knit stitches.

Even more jewellery:

Thursday, March 1, 2012

Pretty in pink: rings from Swedish designer Sarah Borgegard's "Pink" series.


More pink, in the form of powder-coated copper, from Quebec's Studio METHOD(E) (Marie-Hélène Bélanger & Emily Lewis).


Bonus link:
Also playing with pie-slices of pink (rhodochrosite, in this case), set against oxidized silver, is Spanish jeweller Arnald Climent.

Even more jewellery:

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