BRUNSWICK

Nestled in the mill at Fort Andross in Brunswick is the studio of Heather Perry, who has been making and re-imagining jewelry since 2003.

“I specialize in heirloom redefined — custom-designed,” Perry said from her workshop/retail space.

Perry said if you are the proud recipient of a family member’s favorite ring but can’t get yourself to wear it because it was set in 1963, she can save the stone in a new setting you will continue to treasure.

Perry’s current collection is called Shieldmaiden — inspired by the strong women in her life. Designs are textured metal silhouettes of ancient shield weapons and fortifications.

Pieces from previous productions between 2003 and 2006 are also displayed in her studio along with custom jewelry and pieces in development.

For Perry, quality comes with conscience — utilizing high-quality materials with the lowest possible impact on the environment, recycling and working with conflict-free stones.

The majority of Perry’s work is cast — a process that begins with jeweler’s wax. Perry said the wax is much more dense than you’ll find at the candle shop and she can carve the wax down to the thickness of one millimeter.

“I use that to make a model of a piece of jewelry that I may make a mold of, to cast in silver or gold,” Perry said.

Although she’s no stranger to pouring casts, Perry said she sends out her molds to be cast elsewhere. She explained that it’s a tricky business that can be done much more efficiently by those who cast every day.

The work is in the wax, though, and Perry uses hand tools to carve textures into the wax that will translate into the final product. It takes a lot of hand-eye coordination, sometimes requiring magnification for creating small settings.

Perry said she probably spends about 70 percent of her time working on custom pieces with the remainder on production work. She explained it was a long process from inception to completion creating one-of-a-kind jewelry to order.

One custom piece that sticks with her is a ring for a client turned friend. The Dark Horse Ring still adorns Perry’s website.

The ring began its journey as an heirloom. It was the first ring her friend’s mother was able to buy herself with her first job around 1930.

“She just was not going to wear this garnet ring in the setting that it came in because it was not her style, so I took it out of the setting — this beautiful art deco carved stone,” Perry said.

Perry said her friend gravitates toward natural, “woodsy” jewelry.

“I created a branchy, foresty feel in dark silver for her with accents of 18 karat gold to highlight the deep red of the garnet,” Perry said, noting the garnet was inverted from its original setting to create a different look to the top.

Perry said it was a wonderful piece to work on as it gave her creative license to run with as well as a client whose aesthetic she understood. Perry said in the end, she was able to honor the history of the stone but also create a ring her friend would want to wear every day.

As well as selling her wares through her website and studio, Perry’s jewelry can be found at the Portland Museum of Art, Wylers and KoT gallery in Ellsworth.

Perry purchasing

• AS WELL AS SELLING her wares through her website and Brunswick studio, Heather Perry’s jewelry can be found at the Portland Museum of Art, Wylers and KoT gallery in Ellsworth.

dmcintire@timesrecord.com