Steeped
This Kentucky agate was cut and polished by me, Rachel Savané, making Steeped unusual even among my own work. While gemstones are central to my jewelry, I rarely cut the stones myself. For this piece, I shaped the agate into its elongated, almost paisley-like form and polished it to reveal the remarkable landscape held within.
The stone has the translucent color of lightly steeped tea, shifting from warm honey and amber into soft, smoky brown. Suspended across that quiet pool of color are creamy white bands that seem to float within the stone, becoming more or less pronounced as the light passes through it.
I set the agate in sterling silver and paired it with a broad, sculptural band that echoes the asymmetry of the stone. The result is a ring in which the gemstone and the silver were shaped in the same hands—each responding to the other as the piece came into being.
Steeped was handcrafted by me at my workbench inside the Savané Silver gallery in downtown Lexington, Kentucky, where my workspace is visible from the gallery floor.