My ethos and the joy of clocks

As the name 'Rebejoo' comes from 'recycled and bijou', it's clear that at the heart of my jewellery-making is a recycling and re-use ethos - which means I have to be selective about what materials are utilised. There are a few areas where recycling isn't possible such as the gas needed to fuel a blow-torch - however, pretty much everything else can be sourced in such as way as to minimise the overall use of resources. This is important in our finite and limited world, and is all about being mindful. So, the metal I use all comes from items that would otherwise be thrown away, and as far as possible I use vintage tools which are often better quality anyway...

Some of the bits and pieces destined to become jewellery are things I already have (an excellent way to de-clutter!), some are 'found objects', and others are unwanted items given to me by kindly friends (who tend to get a pendant in return - more de-cluttering). The latter are great because sometimes, just sometimes, they include the holy grail of steampunk design - clocks! Broken and unwanted clocks are great - they are full of wonderful cogs and springs, and just the act of dismantling them is deeply satisfying - in fact almost every bit of an old (i.e. pre-plastic) clock is useful for something. And you can spin them like little brass tops - very therapeutic.

Not everything will become jewellery - some of these spiffy bits and pieces will - eventually - be mobiles, or parts of sculptures, or maybe something else as my ideas for Rebejoo evolve. As these ideas are driven partly by what materials I have (because I'm not buying new metal) I never quite know what I'm going to make, and that's one of the joys of doing what I do, not to mention ensuring every piece is unique. So, the bits are sorted - watch this (or the facebook) space to see what they turn into...