HANDMADE IN ITALY
Each piece is handmade at my messy desk, in my hometown Senigallia.
TRACEABLE HISTORY
Who doesn't love origin stories? I'm proud to share the ones for each bead I use.
Wrist Wonders
Wrap your wrist with unique pieces of handmade costume jewellery.
- My chosen marketplace
As personal as style can get
One of One
Each bracelet is crafted with a unique combination of beads. All creations are truly one of a kind, like you.
Vintage
Most beads are vintage, either imported or part of my personal collection from my travels over the years.
Sustainable
Heavy use of vintage beads means giving new life to heritage materials, instead of producing new ones.
Heritage & Values
I’m an expat living on the Adriatic coast in Italy. An enquiring mind and a passion for history have pushed me to travel extensively in my life, soaking in culture and making friends along the way.
Pair all this with a uniquely mixed heritage plus love for costume jewellery and there you have it: Ziziwin Atelier.
I started with memory wire bracelets but have been adding necklaces and single strand bracelets.
For now I’m thankful you’ve come across my collection and hope wearing your bracelets brings you the same joy they brought me in crafting them.
-Vicky
My Lines
Ziziwin bracelets
Well, it all started with Ziziwin my great great-grandmother. She was a Yankton Sioux born in Dakota Territory around 1850. Family tradition holds that she drowned in the Missouri river while catching otters. These bracelets are crafted on memory wire and feature antique and vintage beads.
Jessie Pearl single strand bracelets
Jessie Pearl was my great aunt, Ziziwin’s granddaughter. A fiercely independent woman, she was one of the “Original Eight” stewardesses. These single strand bracelets are also made from antique and vintage beads.
Minnie Lynn necklaces
Minnie Lynn was my grandmother, Jessie’s sister and also Ziziwin’s granddaughter. Another independent soul, she marched to her own drum. I have combined antique and vintage beads to create these necklaces.
Nilas ‘n’ Nilos surf’s up bracelets
These bracelets are made from Nila beads, aka dig beads or Djenne beads, from archaeological sites in Mali. Some feature Karen Hill Tribe silver beads from Thailand, old stock Hubei turquoise or vintage Ethiopian silver handmade heishi beads. The origin and age of Nila beads is very controversial. However, many experts date them to the Islamic Period, i.e., CE 1000/1100.
Rose’s boudoir
Rose was my Sicilian grandmother. Born in San Francisco before the 1906 earthquake, Rose was an excellent seamstress, knitter and cook. She was also a model in her younger days. Her boudoir contains many vintage items, some signed by the likes of Miriam Haskell, Albert Weiss and Trifari. Other items are from the 60s/70s, pieces that once lived in my own jewelry box, purchased at San Francisco craft fairs and boutiques.