The month of May is traditionally full of color, and this one promises to be especially so. May’s birthstone is emerald, which is also the Pantone color of the year, and I’ve been super busy sourcing gorgeous green stones for clients. This oval emerald is set in gold with a secondary bezel of chocolate-brown shakudo with vintage diamond accents on the shoulders. The orchard bark texture creates a more organic feel for a timeless design.

Since green is my favorite color (and it’s what my name means in Japanese) I have been having a blast working with not only emeralds but other amazing stones in all different shades of green: green sapphires, green amethyst (prasiolite) and demantoid garnets. After all, Green is what this company is all about in the first place!

green amethyst (prasiolite)

I’m constantly inspired by this beautiful area, and one day the idea of uniting the concept of pearl and apple struck me. A modern twist on the classic pearl studs or drop earrings: sterling silver apples with 14K posts or ear wires, with a coordinating pendant. I knew it was an instant hit when a client remarked on the lovely little “pearl” I had added to a charms necklace along with a tiny ruby!

Fool your friends or delight your Valentine with one of these sweet little treats and help spread the word to Save the Gravensteins.

I admit it took me some time to get over my own initial skepticism, but I have become a convert. Vintage diamonds have a marvelously mysterious former life and symbolic timelessness, and I still love using them for bridal jewelry, especially Old Mine-cut diamonds in a lovely antique cushion shape. But, it’s certainly appealing to know diamonds aren’t the only option for gorgeous, sparkly, colorless stones, especially if your taste exceeds your budget where diamonds are concerned. There’s no need to settle for a smaller stone or sacrifice color and clarity, and no one who sees your “diamond” engagement ring will be the wiser. (I recommend full disclosure to your beloved before you pop the question, though!)

If you’re considering moissanite for an engagement ring, you might try purchasing another jewelry item first to experience it for yourself. Our new vineyard rose-cut stud earrings are the perfect holiday gift and are sure to produce gasps of delight. The vintage-meets-modern rose-cut moissanite is bezel-set in 14K gold and encircled by a tiny silver vine, with 14K posts. One caveat, though: when you tell her it’s not a diamond, she may not believe you.

Here’s a peek at a rose-cut moissanite in our best-selling vineyard bridal rings:

That’s where Zultanite comes in. This rare color-change gemstone is found in only one place in the world, in a single Turkish mine that follows strict environmental practices. It’s an incredibly romantic conversation starter that changes color dramatically in different lighting conditions. In daylight it’s a warm, pale champagne with greenish overtones, and in candlelight it’s a rosy, salmon or raspberry color. Perhaps most surprisingly, it is a versatile neutral that looks amazing with literally anything you wear. It’s truly a chameleon stone.

The best part is how Zultanite mining sets the standard for sustainable mining worldwide by minimizing environmental impact; protecting water sources from toxic chemicals and undergoing strict land restoration processes; submitting to regular third party inspections; and providing insurance, fair wages, housing and food for workers. Purchasing Zultanite jewelry is not only easy on the conscience, it’s also casting a vote for an environmentally- and socially-conscious revolution in the industry.

We’re still fully committed to using entirely reclaimed metals in our jewelry until fair trade mining becomes more widely available. But we’ll continue to source ethically-mined gemstones and create new jewelry designs that honor your conscience as well as your impeccable taste.

What’s PARK(ing) Day, you ask? It’s an annual worldwide event where artists, designers and citizens transform parking spots into temporary public parks. Since the first parklet was set up in a metered parking space for just 2 hours in 2005 by San Francisco design group Rebar the event has been held on the third Friday in September each year. Today it came to my tiny town.

Using reclaimed redwood siding scraps and fiber cement panels, Cary and Amy created a little oasis next to their office right off the town square for friends and strangers alike to hang out and enjoy the lovely sunshine where a gas-guzzling SUV might otherwise have hulked. I hopped in my own SUV (um, yes, I am a mother of four! but at least it’s a hybrid) with my two-year-old daughter and drove over to join in the fun.

Now I’m all abuzz with ideas for next year. Not as a commercial venture (no pop-up okomido atelier here), but there’s no reason why you have to be a landscaper to participate. You just have to be civic-minded and have a love of beauty. Or maybe you just like playing in the street.

If only the work would create itself as well! As always, summer is wedding season, and with so many people proposing to their beloved, we’ve been working hard around here, especially designing custom engagement and wedding rings. Even if I’m not sunning myself on Hawaiian sands, I’m certainly not complaining. This work is way too important.

One of my recent favorite commissions was even more thrilling than usual, when my youngest brother told me he was popping the question to his adorable girlfriend in a matter of days. Naturally, I wanted the ring to be perfect (I always do, but of course this is something extra special) but it’s pretty impossible to create perfection in less than a week. Plus, while I’m a great believer in the surprise factor, I always keep in mind that this is probably the one jewelry item that most women want to wear daily, and ideally for the rest of their lives–and for this reason, it’s best if she can have some input into the design. So, we went for the “proxy” ring, which is a fantastic solution that gives her something wonderful to open at that unforgettable moment but still allows her to participate in the design process for the “forever” rings.

My brother wisely chose a sterling silver vineyard ring with vintage diamond accents, for that ever-important bit of sparkle when the box is opened. We also anticipated that she might be too sentimental to give up this ring even if she wanted to create something else after the proposal, so the relatively inexpensive materials were a perfect choice.

I love the photo of her wearing the ring–our first with ink! The romanticism of the vine motif against the italic Z reminds me a little of Sleeping Beauty.

Pretty perfect, right? So, imagine my delight when Jolie and her fiance Hunter contacted me about an engagement ring. Such an honor. When I went to deliver the completed engagement ring and matching band, Jolie and Hunter greeted me with an enormous sheaf of irises and foxgloves and some soap made from the farm’s French lavender.

They treated me to a tour of the grounds, with over 55 varieties of heirloom apples (including my beloved Pink Pearl), pinot noir vineyards and countless rows of flowers. The sweet William were in full glory, the lilacs and roses were tantalizingly fragrant, and the sweet peas had just started to pop out. I just couldn’t get enough of the incredible views all over the valley and pretty much wanted to move right in.

After I reluctantly said my goodbyes and got in my car, I glanced in my rearview mirror. Jolie and Hunter were holding hands across a rough-hewn table strewn with flowers and exclaiming over her “perfect” ring. I slowly drove through the gate with a lump in my throat and a little thrill at witnessing this unexpected gift of gratitude.

(Jolie christening her ring with soil, planting succulent logs)

You can find out more about their flowers and the magic that the Devoto family works on the farm (moth pheromones! Tuberose bulbs transported from India!) by reading her blog, and if you want to bring your own bouquet home, you can find them at farmer’s markets all over the North Bay throughout the summer.

I’ve used the mariposa lily as the inspiration for several items of jewelry, including the earrings with vintage Georgian amethysts in the sidebar image above the Shakespeare quote. Some time ago I was approached by a client to design a custom version of this motif for her engagement ring, using a reclaimed garnet and a vineyard band in palladium and rose gold. She was drawn to the symbolism of this triad and wanted an orangey-red stone, with the idea that the bloom was springing forth from the band naturally. The end result was very striking, as you can see.

The parade is a total small-town delight, with costumed dachshunds, school marching bands and crepe-paper festooned floats. This year, the theme of “Old McBlossom on the Farm” brought out quite a few goofy pig and cow costumes as well as relics of the county’s agricultural history in vintage tractors.

Lest you think this was a completely wholesome affair, rosy-cheeked girls from the local dance school busted a move in Daisy Dukes, the “radical guerilla marching band”, the Hubbub Club, staged a happening that interrupted the parade temporarily, and the requisite medical marijuana contingent was preaching peace and love in full force. My face hurt from grinning so much, and my two-year-old just stared in (unprecedented) silent amazement for the entire two hours.

After the parade, we ducked through the hordes on Main Street wilting in the unseasonable heat and headed for another West County must-see, K&L Bistro. In this Michelin-ranked (mostly) French bistro, my friends Karen and Lucas Martin serve show-stopping, creative cuisine worthy of loftier addresses by far. No greasy festival food for us here, just an incredible oyster bao starter followed by perfectly-cooked salmon on a bed of spring greens and baby beets, and “the yummiest pasta ever” according to my daughter Maud. We were spoiled rotten and drove home feeling deliciously guilty as the throngs of perspiring festival-goers stumbled back to their cars, overstuffed with waffle fries.

Unlikely as it may seem at first glance, I’m certainly not the first to associate butterflies with a call to action. Eco-friendly brand EDUN launched an ad campaign based on this same concept of transformation earlier this season, which I just discovered after investigating the backstory behind those animated sidebar ads that kept cropping up all over Internet. (Is it just me, or is that one with the model pulling a butterfly out of her shorts just a wee bit over-the-top risque?!) The inspiration for this provocative campaign is described as follows: “EDUN was born when two passions collided — a love of beautiful clothes and a desire to create change.”

Change is a good thing. I’d have to agree. The butterflies are on to something, and maybe it’s time to wake up and take notice. Since the founding of okomido in 2009, we’ve refused to compromise about one thing: making beautiful jewelry without supporting any new mining worldwide. Full stop. What that has meant is that all of the metals we use are completely recycled and all of our gemstones are vintage, which makes every piece of jewelry either one-of-a-kind or limited edition. I don’t know of any other designer who has committed this fully to the concept of “Green” jewelry, and it’s been kind of a badge of honor, I have to admit. However, it seems the time has come to re-evaluate the thinking behind that commitment.

I still love antique and vintage stones as much as ever, and the idea that every piece of okomido jewelry has a story and a connection to history is still a guiding principle for this company. But, in honoring the past and focusing on the present, I don’t want to ignore the future. I want to be part of that change, and a boycott should only last as long as there is no alternative to injustice.

Mining practices are now being affected by the passionate outcry of members of the industry like the No Dirty Gold campaign or the Alliance for Responsible Mining, and the artisanal mining industry is growing. These small groups of independent miners need support in order to survive (and not be exploited), and I’d like to be a part of that process.

We’ll still be using vintage stones like gorgeous Old Mine-cut diamonds as often as possible, but we’re also going to be carrying sustainably-mined stones soon. And, when organizations such as UK-based Fairtrade Gold make responsibly-mined gold available in the US, we may consider purchasing these metals as well.

Follow that butterfly. Change is good.