March 5, 2008

Science Friction

Vesper Jewelry

And here you thought the only thing conceived at a sci-fi convention was the lovechild of a Xena fan and a Trekkie.

Apparently not. When then 10-year-old Jessi Frenkel made earrings to sell at a convention with her sci-fi writer mom, an artist was born.

Hyper-speed through puberty, metalworking classes, and a relocation to Seattle, and you land at Vesper Jewelry, an adorably offbeat line of etched silver and copper pendants.

Frenkel’s process involves toner-resist etching and roll printing. No clue what that means, but no matter: The unique results have a refreshing sense of humor.

We love the totem pole pendant and the Seattle-perfect dangling thundercloud, but our fave is the ass-kicking copper owl. A surefire attention-getter, it’s not suitable for shrinking violets.

Or Klingons, for that matter.

Available at Fancy+Pants, 1914 Second Avenue (206-956-2945); online at vesperjewelry.com.