I try to be brutally honest. Mainly because I wasn’t always. A learned trait from childhood that still has some in my life always insisting I am full of it and has me constantly telling on myself in ways that are not always necessary. My way of sharing that I will always be (overly) transparent with you in these journals dear reader. Probably more than necessary but I find that a lack of full transparency when creating sustainably puts a lot of creators in the green washing camp of which I am staunchly against.

There is a reason I say low waste vs none— because there is no way to exist on this planet, especially under the systems in which we live, and not create it. Zero waste, while sometimes well-intentioned is a dangerous marketing ploy.

When I say my jewelry is mine free it means the metals I use. Aluminium I find myself secondhand or on the street and a recycled silver for all ear wire and some connections (one aspect we are going to experiment in creating in this space is wire without gas). But the sand I use to cast is mined as is the clay that binds the sand together. But perfection is something I try my hardest not to get in bed with.

Petroleum-free is the big one as a jeweler, and I am proud to say that with the launch of this site, I've achieved this goal. This means for me: no plastic waxes for my molds, no gas torches for soldering or welding and no oil-bonded sands to cast into. But there is always plastic (oil) in this world of ours: binding together sandpaper, tools delivered wrapped in bubble wrap, plastic containers for drill bits, the list goes on. To some, these might seem trivial, I am just one maker after all, but I strive to see what can be done as we survive these systems and work toward a different world.

I will talk about each of these things more in depth as is the purpose of this journal and how I have learned while I value transparency, it mustn’t come with shame and perfection. I have used materials both mined and petroleum-based as I learned and fine-tuned this process over the past five years. I am still learning and tuning and now inviting you along for the journey.

The arrival at aluminium as a material to work with was a long one. I was working with different materials for the first eight years of my jewelry making life. From brass fireplace frames turned shiny statement earrings to bone found in the forests of my home state to wood from a broken chair, the insides of burst bungee cords and a lot more. Each collection was more than a small work of jewelry— they were deep, research-heavy dives into the materials themselves, their histories, harms, benefits, etc.

What I learned most was the harmful materials we often use in the jewelry industry is not just limited to the mined metals and gemstones but the compounds, finishes and even the processes we use. So I took what I learned and applied it to this one material. An intimate journey into the history of aluminium and other metals’ social and environmental impacts as well as the impact of the materials we use in the process of jewelry making.

I love to tell on myself. I love to research and tell on this industry I am a part of too; helping me dig into the darkest and weirdest corners of metal working, colonialism and what I like to think of as an indoctrination of modern value.

So here we go: a Process Journal that’s going to be a little ‘dear diary,’ a lot of exposing of what we thought we knew, with some hopefully helpful tips on how to create from waste without harming yourself or the earth. I hope you find it all as interesting and mind-changing as I have.

With love and learning,

Lu