Treasure hunts of childhood begin with acorns and seashells and progress to world famous museums and hidden antique stores. Follow your dreams and affirm your personal compass by choosing to journey with me around the world collecting amulets and talismanic stones from all corners of the Earth. Native Americans have always kept in touch with their cultural history through their artful weaving and precious jewelry, so they are my first stop on the Stoneprints Map of my website. Enjoy the unique archival artifacts that have inspired me and then view the Stoneprints Collection to choose a necklace or bracelet for your own personal journey. My first journal entry on my new site is presented here as an example of the serendipity that follows STONEPRINTS.I created this necklace as a gift for Ruth Anne Kocour who has travelled the world as a photo journalist and author and mountaineer. I met her at a Nature Conservancy event years ago and she brought me back these ancient turquoise stones from a trek to Tibet. Her first book" Facing the Extreme"and the recent 2011 book "WALKING THE WAR ZONES OF PAKISTAN" present views into an unknown world and I admire her courage to document our global humanity. She was thrilled with this necklace and photographed it on an ancient drum she found in her travels. We have a lot in common in our desire to preserve and document culture to promote understanding. This necklace has an ancient dorje sacred box I found in my travels in Paris. She had seen similar ones years ago but she and I know they are disappearing in war torn areas. I added lapis from Afghanistan and the silver chased tubes from there as well.

The old coral was found in China both red and orange and the rare yellow amber in an ancient market in Phuket. The black tourmaline came from Idaho in an old rock shop. The large turquoise pieces are all old and from Tibet where Ruth Anne found them and sent to me strung with ancient broken thread. I like to think we can all gain understanding and bring people together from many differing backgrounds. Much like this necklace together we can create a trade route within our minds and hearts to understand diverse cultures and keep their story alive. This week in Reno Nevada on October 6, I am doing a trunk show to benefit Nevada"s chapter of Nature Conservancy and the dream comes full circle.