Requiem Squirrel Earrings

These earrings are in honor of a squirrel I walked by one morning while living in MA. Her head was positioned just so on a leaf that made it look as though it was acting as a pillow for her body's permanent slumber, which I found to be so touching. Her mouth was open, and so I wanted to give her something mourning-esque in color but also lovely to "hold" there, hence the large, black freshwater pearls dangling from each. The sterling silver backs have crocus pierced out of them to reveal black as a reminder of death, but also to represent the first new life that peaks out from the snow during the cold and bleak end of winter. materials: enamel, watercolor enamel, copper, sterling silver, freshwater pearls, patina length: 1 7/8" width: 7/8" *I hand-paint each individual piece of my jewelry with enamel. The pearls I use are freshwater and thus each one is slightly unique in shape. With these things in mind, please understand each pair of earrings may have slight differences from the pair pictured.