PROPELLER CUFFLINKS

One of my colleagues, @_matthewgillard did an incredible M.Arch thesis on the restoration of his sailboat, which he towed to and kept underneath the canopy of the architecture building.

I actually didn’t get to know Matt until towards the end of our thesis, as our paths began crossing in the Assembly Room - me working on my models, and him refurbishing the mechanics of his boat. I inquired about a small bronze propeller which he had cut off the existing shaft - and asked if he would be interested in selling it to me. Weeks later, we came to an agreement that he would gift me the prop, and I, in turn, would fabricate an emblem (or something) to be mounted in the finished sailboat. There was no follow-up.

By sheer coincidence, his advisor, who knew of my jewelry background, approached me in April 2022 to see if I could make two pairs of cufflinks (one for himself, and another to gift to Matt, in the shape of the original propellers, using the bronze - an opportunity I gleefully seized.

Casting was a challenge. I couldn’t go to any typical jewelry casting house. It took a month, but @silversmitten stepped up and offered to work with an unpredictable/contaminated material. So a big shout out to them!

A simple 1 to 1 downsizing in scale wouldn’t work - certain parts would disappear or become razor sharp. To remain authentic, I began studying how propellers are designed - and through diagrams I re-interpreted the props so that they would function safely, and be as convincing as possible/true to the original design.