Diwata Pt. 1

Diwata is inspired by the legend of Maria Makiling, forest nymph and protector of the environment. For this collection though I wanted to focus on her role as nature spirit and highlight the flowers that are most beloved to those of us who grew up in the Philippines, like the sampaguita, santan and kalachuchi.

This collection is all about celebrating the wonder of nature, but in choosing more common blooms I want to imbue each jewelry piece with fond memories of our home, the Philippines.

Diwata Pt. 1 primarily features the craft of French beading, a combination of wirework and beadwork. Traditional French beaded flowers are constructed with different techniques for the parts, each constructed on separate wires. That’s a different wire each for petals, calyx, leaves, etc., resulting in a bulky and heavy piece. To construct my jewelry pieces I adapted different French beading techniques to be able to combine them onto a single wire, keeping my designs light and wearable.

Selected pieces from this collection were featured in the Museum of Beadwork's Emerging Beader exhibit From February to April 2024.