JUNIPERUS OCEANUS ‘CORAL KELP’ EARRINGS

Tools and materials: Juniperus chinensis ‘Kaizuka’ sprigs, acrylic paint, paintbrush, wooden beads, sandpaper, E6000 adhesive, stainless steel earring posts.

WEEK OF 03.31.25

I have an absolutely stunning Hollywood juniper — Juniperus chinensis ‘Kaizuka’ — in my backyard, with branches that swirl and swoop around like it’s eternally caught in the middle of a coastal vortex. After a botanical printing sesh in January, I realized that acrylic paint preserves the foliage super well, and the results look like some kind of technicolor sea life. I love accessories — everything is jewelry! — so I thought I’d experiment making some earrings. I harvested and painted a bunch of sprigs; sanded the back of some old wooden beads that I’d been hanging onto for years (decades??); stuck the foliage in the hole; and glued a back on. Voila!

I made up a new botanical name for the collection:

Juniperus oceanus ‘Coral Kelp’