A PERSONAL WORD ABOUT WARREN:

My dear friend Warren Nieto doesn't do just traditional Pueblo Jewelry that solely gives you 'the look', but what separates him from other artists is for the fact that he will more times than not, have "Symbolic meanings/stories" as if a story is being told of Pueblo life through a mosaic painting done in stones & shells, whether of the past or the present. This humble man is rich in a cultural-traditional sense & is a man who lives & breathes his Pueblo blood..His inspirations either come from either the oral history that has been passed on from generation to generation & or the petroglyph walls of Chaco Canyon. There's not much he can't tell you that will leave your ears thirsty to hear more & it's his Pueblo roots that go into each & every piece of jewelry..

*****************

THE EARRINGS:

If mosaic could tell a story,it is told in these creatively designed earrings where in the perfectly square shape tops,where the raw circular cut of Spiny Oyster center emulates a "Star" & the blue Sleeping Beauty & earthy brown #8 turquoise cuts emulate a "Starburst".. (Which means "New Beginnings!) .Everything is mosaic inlaid atop of black Jet (Fossilized Coal) for a lighter feel on the ear (See weights below) While the mosaic inlaid tops tell a story, it's the dangles that are made with rectangular cube cuts of #8 turquoise that really put the "WOW" into the design!! These are hand cut by Warren & then are sculpted & beveled till they have a soft rounded feel around the corners.

Paying respect to his Ancestral Puebloan ancestry, the dangles are anchored to the tops by way of waxed string which gives these a very ancient Chaco feel & if you zoom in on the photos, you will see what I'm referring to. The string is then knotted on the backside & the wax string is burnt to secure the dangle. This style was used by the Anasazi in the Chaco Canyon/Mesa Verde region before modern day sterling jump rings were used & which come from the time period around 900-1300 AD!!

These are made EXCLUSIVELY for my store & can only be found at Plata de Santa Fe Jewelry!