Betony Vernon "Mantra Necklace" Sterling Silver 925 Necklace

About the Item

The "Mantra Necklace" is an original design by Betony Vernon made in 2018 and handcrafted in lost wax elements and a rolo chain. The "Mantra Necklace" ends in a pendant which can contain your most valuable wishes. The jewel is accompanied with a miniature booklet composed of 50 tear-off sheets for your personal mantras. The "Mantra Necklace" is designed to help make your dreams come to fruition. The act of writing down your desires is proven to reinforce the likelihood of their manifestation. Imagine what happens if you keep them close to your heart! Available as a kit, the "Mantra Necklace" can be combined with the "Mantra Bracelet", see the "Mantra Kit" for more details. Material: Sterling Silver 925 Hall marks: numbered and signed BV-925 + production hallmark Special limited Edition: 2/21/2021 Size: Standard size 43cm (total length), Pendant 5cm Long, 37cm circumference when closed with the pendant in vertical Made to measure on command (4-6 weeks production time) Handcrafted in Italy / All BV materials are cruelty free

Creator:
Betony Vernon
Metal:
Sterling Silver
Weight:
35 g
Style:
Contemporary
Place of Origin:
Italy
Period:
2010-
Date of Manufacture:
2021
Condition:
Seller Location:
Rome, IT
Reference Number:
Seller: C105SEM1stDibs: LU2020211109582

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Betony Vernon

The paradigm shift took place over lunch in Florence, Italy, circa 1992. Betony Vernon, a striking flame-haired jewelry designer, was showing off her most recent creation: the 18-karat-gold O-ring, designed with a nod to a bondage collar, with a smaller ring affixed to its front.

Playfully, Vernon's partner put his pinky through the smaller ring as she donned the larger one. Then, the unexpected happened. “There was an electric impulse running through this piece,” she recalls. “We both felt it.” The feeling changed her life. “That was the moment I knew that jewelry can provide sensation and reinforce an intimate bond.”

Enabling others to experience electric moments like that — to “bring luxury, fantasy and sensual possibilities to the fine-jewelry world” — has been Vernon's aim ever since. “Sex and luxury were never associated,” she noticed, and the jewelry designer set out to change that. The result was her 1992 Sado-Chic collection, which became the Paradise Found collection.

Vernon grew up in Virginia and studied art history, religion and goldsmithing at Virginia Commonwealth University. Following her graduation in 1990, she moved to Florence, later earning a master’s in industrial design from the Domus Academy in Milan. Europe has been home ever since.

Vernon's designs are provocative, sexy. But if you look no further than that, you’re missing a much bigger (and more interesting) point. Vernon’s rings, necklaces, bracelets and other accessories represent a vital part of what she sees as her life’s mission.

“Pleasure,” she explains, “has been associated with sin, wrongness and naughtiness, not with joy, happiness and bonding.” Vernon has set out to demolish that “pleasure taboo.”

So, how is pleasure reflected in the design of Vernon's jewelry (and remember, we are talking sensuality not sexuality)? Early in the design process, she asks, “How many senses can I turn on?” Every detail relates to a sensual experience.

That crisp snap a clasp makes when opening or closing? A pleasure to the ear.

The softness and spring of noble metals, silver and gold? A pleasure to the touch.

And always, Vernon believes, jewelry embodies memory, legacy. A pleasure for the soul.

Find a collection of Betony Vernon jewelry on 1stDibs.