Roots

Japanese family crests, called mon, can be really beautiful. They range from simple geometric patterns to elegant swirling flowering plants. There are even cartoony animal mons and scary demon-like masks. (Check out Japanese Design Motifs by the Matsuya Company for great mon designs.)

I wanted to make a special necklace for my grandmother in Japan, and I thought she might like a necklace with her family crest on it. I thought it might be a nice touch if I could put my mother's calligraphy on the back with the family name on the back. Well, this was definitely something I couldn't do by hand! So...I decided to check out CAD/CAM.

I had Vasken Tanielian of 3 Design in SF's Phelan Building help me with the designs. Vasken milled me a beautiful wax, which I had Anthony (the nicest guy!) of Fancy Jewelry cast in sterling silver. I soldered on a simple jump ring bail and polished it as well as I could with just a flexshaft. I attached it to a 22" chain fastened with a magnetic clasp.

I hope she likes it!