One
of a
Kind
Pieces
Mini Waterfall Necklace
Hand forged sterling silver, basalt beach pebbles, white and blue topaz, peridot, citrine, rubber cord. Adjustable from 16" to 18"
Earrings, necklace and ring by Larry Sanders Photography
ABOUT US
We are a wife and husband team located in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan in a very small community in the Keweenaw Peninsula, very remote and beautiful, and inspirational for the work you see on these pages.
Julie has been a metalsmith and jewelry designer for her entire career. Many years were spent in Colorado, where the metalsmithing skills were honed and fine tuned, and where Julie also earned her M.F.A.in metalsmithing and jewelry design at Colorado State University. This allowed her to teach her love of the medium on a college level which she did for many years, while slowly building her own business: Flying Anvil Designs.
I was always the back of the house assistant, and in 2007 joined as a full time business partner, which was an easy transition as we've been life partners for approximately 35 years now.
Julie is and will always be the main design force for all of the pieces in the collection, which we call the Gentle Current Series, because it utilizes basalt beach stones that we collect on our almost daily walks along the shores of Lake Superior. All the meticulous metalwork, stone setting and finishing work are done by her.
My focus on the business is drilling and coring the stones, and mostly doing what I refer to as "the necessary evil", all back of the house business tasks that are part of running any business. Thank goodness for that often under utilized accounting degree.
We relocated back to the Upper Peninsula eight years ago and feel very fortunate to live in the area where we were both born and raised. Each day and season brings its own unique inspiration and outdoor recreation that we love: Paddleboarding and sculling in the summer, hiking in the incredible fall colors, cross country skiing in our famously long winters, and looking forward to spring and the cycle starting over, all the while creating new pieces for the line.
Julie and Jeffrey
Shows and Galleries
Normally, this is where you would see an extensive list of outdoor shows that we would be exhibiting and selling at, but not since March of 2020. Hopefully, 2021 will see some sort of return to normalcy. We have several shows that have rolled over our acceptance to 2021and will be posted as time goes on and we learn the new rules for large gatherings in each location. In addition to our website and at shows, we always have work in the galleries listed below.
Finally, it looks like we will be back on the road in August for some of our favorite shows out West. Check back for details and for other shows happening throughout the remainder of 2021.
California:
Artisana
146 North Mail Street
Sebastopol, CA 95472
707-829-3036
Colorado
Balefire Goods
7513 Grandview Avenue
Arvada, CO 80002
720-479-8434
Florida:
Brenda McMahon Gallery
2901 Beach Blvd South #104
Gulfport, FL 33707
518-692-7742
Massachusetts:
London Ventures Company
2 Dock Square
Rockport, MA 01966
978-546-7161
Michigan:
Gallery on 5th
109 5th Street
Calumet, MI 49913
906-369-0095
Joe Graci Gallery
555 East Michigan Street
Marquette, MI 49855
Wisconsin:
Bell Street Gallery
807 Bell Street/Box 164
LaPointe, WI 54850
715-747-2092
located on Madeline Island in the Apostle Islands
Galleries
CONTACT
You can contact us through the form on the left, or the phone numbers below. We do our best to respond within 1-2 days. Thank you.
970-310-4904 cell
906-934-2372 yes, we still have a land line