Gathered: Handcrafted Ceramic Wall Art Inspired by Nature
I've been gathering things my whole life.
It started with rocks. Plain ordinary gravel, honestly. I was that kid with the rock tumbler... dropping in something that looked like nothing, waiting to see what beauty was hiding inside. There was always something worth revealing. You just had to be patient enough to look.
Some things don't change.
These days I'm still that kid. Still looking down. Still looking up. Still stopping mid-trail to crouch over something that caught my eye. My husband knows the look. He'll chuckle... give me a little space... and wait while I turn something over in my hands, deciding if it's coming home with me.
It usually is.
I Gather Everywhere
The Santa Cruz Mountains outside my studio door. Beach walks along the California coast. Hiking trails. Neighborhoods. Everywhere, really.
Driftwood washed up on the shore. A pinecone that fell at a particular angle. Redwood bark with a texture I've never seen before. A fossil. A fiddlehead fern still curled tight. Coral. Abalone. Shells of every shape. The monkey flower growing wild on the hillside behind my house. The stork's-bill tucked along the trail.
Something stops me every time. It's hard to define exactly... a shape, a color, an imperfection. Sometimes I catch myself looking at a whole hillside of leaves and thinking why aren't the rest of you worthy? And then I laugh at myself a little. Because who am I to decide?
But something calls. And I listen.
There's Something Meditative About Gathering
When I'm out looking... really looking... my whole nervous system settles.
I hum sometimes. Just quiet internal sounds. Calming energy moving through me. No worry. No to-do list. Just this rock. This shell. This piece of driftwood worn smooth by years of water and salt.
I've done this since I was a little girl and I'm convinced it's one of the most healing things a person can do. When life gets loud I go to the beach. I go to the trail. I go outside and I look for things. It clears everything out.
If you've ever done this... you know exactly what I mean.
If you haven't... I hope this collection makes you want to try
What Happens in the Studio
When I bring these gathered things back to my studio something really cool happens.
I press them into fresh ceramic clay.
Not permanently... the shell doesn't stay embedded in the clay. Instead I'm capturing its characteristics. Its texture. The story written into its surface by years of tide and pressure and time. Then I pull it away... and every single time I'm curious what it'll look like.
Sometimes the impression is obvious. Sometimes you'd never guess what made it. Sometimes it's something in between.
What I love most is thinking about the transfer. A shell grows in the ocean surrounded by water, sand, and minerals. Clay is formed from the earth... from rocks, minerals, and decomposed matter. They come from the same basic elements. It feels right to bring them together. Like they already knew each other.
The texture of something that took years to form... pressed into something that will last forever. That's the whole idea.
Introducing the Gathered Collection
This collection is all wall hangings. And one lonely sconce.
Every piece carries the texture of something I found... somewhere on a walk, a beach, a trail, or right outside my studio door in the Santa Cruz Mountains of California. Sometimes even gifted by someone who knows me well enough to know I'd stop for it too.
Pinecone. Redwood bark. Coral. Abalone. Shell. Sea kelp. Fossil. Fiddlehead. Driftwood. Two wildflowers I love... the monkey flower and stork's-bill.
Speckled river rock clay bodies. Earthy glazes. Quiet, grounding beauty for your walls.
These are not mass produced. Not manufactured. Not designed by committee.
In a world of mass production... these are the alternative.
Each one made slowly. By hand. In the mountains. With things I gathered because something about them stopped me in my tracks.
For the Gatherers. And for Those Who Wish They Slowed Down Enough to Gather.
If you're someone who picks up rocks on a walk... who has shells on your windowsill... who notices the particular way light hits a piece of driftwood... this collection was made for you.
And if you're someone who needs a reminder to slow down... to look... to find the beauty that's literally everywhere if you pay attention... this collection was made for you too.
Because we all gather. Whether we know it or not. We collect the things that stop us. The moments we don't want to forget. The textures and shapes and colors that make us feel connected to something larger than our to-do lists.
This is just what that looks like when it goes on your wall.
Be the First to See the Gathered Collection
Collectors Circle insiders see it before anyone else. That's always how it works around here... 24-48 hours of early access before it goes public.
You'll see it first. That's the beauty of being here.
Not on the list yet? Come on in...
Or browse available handcrafted natural wall hangings and the archive while you wait.
Rae Rodriguez is the artist and maker behind Jester Swink, a handcrafted jewelry and home decor brand based in the Santa Cruz Mountains of California. Every piece is made by hand with natural materials, intention, and a whole lotta love.