Meet a Zing vendor: Kathleen Sirois

February 6, 2015 at 6:16 pm · Filed under Warner and tagged: copper, jewelry, Kathleen Sirois, New Hampshire, Warner, Zing into Spring

Here’s a profile of one of our wonderful Zing into Spring vendors: Kathleen Sirois Jewelry.

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What to do with a sheet of copper left over from another project? Well, if you’re Kathleen Sirois, you use that sheet to make earrings and necklaces.

Sirois always has “her fingers into something,” she says. It started with birdhouses (copper was used for the roof), and switched to jewelry four years ago. “I had the sheet of copper in the basement,” she says. “I cut out circles, hammered them into domes, and added pearls.”

Later she transferred an embossing process to metal and pushed the limits with it. She’s secretive about her methods, but somehow Sirois uses an acrylic paint — resembling nail polish — in thin layers, sanding in between each layer. The copper dome, heart or square is antiqued with patina and sealed to protect from oxidation.

Her jewelry themes are mostly nature: flowers, waves, snowflakes, trees, birds, butterflies and ferns, to name a few. There are also a few organic swirls and heart designs. She adds Czech glass, ceramic beads, tiny amethysts or fuchsia pearls. Sometimes one pendant stands alone; sometimes she links them together.

The results are stunning: lightweight pendants embellished with a bit of colorful, original art. A necklace featuring a fuchsia pink daisy with a bright orange center makes a statement when paired with an outfit as simple as a T-shirt and jeans. Earrings — one-inch diameter copper discs embossed with hearts in shades of pinks and antiqued with patina — add something special to any outfit.

Many of her pendants hang from a neck wire in two lengths: 16 and 18 inches. But her newer necklaces use an adjustable rawhide or leather cord. “You can decide if you want it closer to your neck or longer,” she says. “I like the options the cord provides.”

Sirois creates every day from a studio in her Warner, N.H., home. You can find her work on Etsy (KatesKottages), Artisan’s in New London, and at the Warner Farmers’ Market. “I’m lucky to be able to work here at home, making affordable items for people,” she says. “I love to make someone’s day.”

Contact her at (603) 746-5534 or kateskottages@tds.net. You can also meet Kathleen (and purchase her work) at the Zing into Spring event on Saturday, March 21 in New London. Learn more at http://www.kearsargemagazine.com/zingintospring

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