Monterey Designer`s Baubles Part of CALM Auxiliary Wine, Jewelry

10/19/2015
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Eye Candy
Monterey designer's baubles part of CALM
Auxiliary's Wine, Jewelry, Chocolate BRETT LEIGH DICKS, NEWS-­PRESS CORRESPONDENT
October 19, 2015 12:02 AM
Artists draw their inspiration from all over.
For Monterey-­based jewelry maker Beth
Fergon, her muse encompasses everything
from California's rugged coastline to the
laced finery of 16th century England.
Mrs. Fergon's eclectic range of one-­of-­a-­
kind jewelry includes earrings, bracelets
and necklaces that have been crafted using
everything from shells, coral and glass she
finds while walking the pebbly beaches of
Monterey Bay to plated metals she forges
in her home studio. Her designs are as
varied as the materials she employs and
the inspiration for many arises from life
itself.
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Etched Lace cuff, $150, sterling silver-­plated
brass, freshwater pearl.
COURTESY PHOTOS
The diversity of Mrs. Fergon's work will be
on display at CALM Auxiliary's fifth annual
Wine, Jewelry, Chocolate event, which will
be held 2 to 6 p.m. Thursday at the
Montecito Country Club, 920 Summit Road,
Montecito. Along with a sampling of local
wine and chocolates, there will also be 25
jewelry makers displaying a variety of
handmade work.
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First staged in 2010 at the home of one of
the auxiliary members, the event has
become a lavish gathering featuring work
from a variety of invited artists.
"The event has grown mostly through word
of mouth," said event co-­chair Martha
Rogers. "It started out as a small social
gathering with about 10 artists as a way for
auxiliary members to raise some additional
money for CALM, but it was so popular we
moved it to the Montecito Country Club. We
have it in October because we thought it
would be a nice way for the ladies to enjoy
a little wine and chocolate while they're
shopping for Christmas."
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coral, mother of pearl, crystal, seashells,
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Santa Barbara News-Press : Daily newspaper since 1855
Confections and Robitaille's Fine Candies
will be offering the chocolates while the
wine tasting will feature selections from
Andrew Murray Vineyards, Kalyra Winery,
Cielito Cellars, Sea Ranch and Royal Oaks
Winery.
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The organizing committee had no shortage
of jewelers wanting to participate.
"We get inquiries from jewelry makers all
throughout the year," Mrs. Rogers said.
"What we look for is diversity. We want
different styles and different price ranges."
Mrs. Fergon and her sister, Vicki Taylor, a
Montecito jeweler, were invited to be part
of the event after one of the organizing
committee members saw their work at a
jewelry show a couple of years ago. The
sisters have a long history of jewelry
making.
"We started making jewelry while we were
in high school back in the 1960s," Mrs.
Fergon, 64, told the News-­Press by
telephone from her home in Monterey. "We
made different shapes out of cardboard and
painted them psychedelic colors, turning
them into earrings and pendants that we
sold at art fairs."
Raised in Palos Verdes, Mrs. Fergon forged
a career in banking while her sister went
into human resources. In 1977, Mrs.
Fergon moved to Monterey. It was while
working for a local bank in 2002 that her
creative impulses were once again
rekindled.
"One of my customers was wearing a
necklace that I really liked," Mrs. Fergon
recalled. "She told me where she got it and
how ridiculously expensive it was and I
thought, 'Oh heck, I could do that.' So I
went to a jewelry show and bought some
pearls and silver and some tassel and
started making my own necklaces with my
own tassel idea on the end of them."
Mrs. Fergon sold her pieces to the local
Ansel Adams Gallery after which she
expanded her range and started selling
them at jewelry shows she held in her
home.
At Top, frolicking Dolphins, $155, opalite,
baroque pearl, freshwater pearls, 24-­karat
gold-­plated brass dolphins, Swarovski
crystal. Above, Fall Leaves, $130, Czech
glass, bronze artist wire.
"I started out working on a little table that
my husband built for me and have now
grown into a studio that I am quickly
running out of room in," she said.
All of her pieces are one-­of-­a-­kind and
range in price from $30 to about $350.
With an eye for design, balance and color,
she often incorporates pearls, shells and
coral into her work as well as semi-­precious
stones.
Mrs. Fergon's earrings include pearls,
stones and fashioned metals while her
necklaces range from elegant pieces like a
Pacific opal and Swarovski crystal mounted
on a string of freshwater pearls to much
more elaborate creations such as a cluster
of labradorite, pearl and coral.
While many of her bracelets are fashioned
from either a combination of bohemian
glass and gold vermeil or Pacific opal,
Swarovski crystal and pearls, she recently
crafted a bronze-­plated bracelet that
featured etched lacework.
http://www.newspress.com/Top/Article/article.jsp?Section=LIFE&ID=567358579242303521
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Santa Barbara News-Press : Daily newspaper since 1855
featured etched lacework.
"I went to England and saw a fabulous
painting exhibition," she recalled. "There
were paintings from the 15th and 16th
century and there was so much beautifully
painted lace ... I got all hung up on lace. As
soon as I got back into my studio, I started
working on the bracelet."
The piece exemplifies the eclectic nature of
not only Mrs. Fergon's craft, but the way
she approaches her art.
"Everything I see I look at with the eye of
a jewelry maker," she said. "I have the
most eclectic jewelry. People seem to settle
on one style or one design, but I always
want to make something new and can't
stand to repeat designs.
"Pretty much all of my jewelry is one-­of-­a-­
kind because I'm always seeing different
things."
IF YOU GO
CALM Auxiliary's fifth annual Wine, Jewelry,
Chocolate event will be held 2 to 6 p.m.
Thursday at the Montecito Country Club,
920 Summit Road, Montecito. Entry is $15
and includes chocolate samples and a wine
tasting. For more information, visit
www.calm4kids.org.
email: life@newspress.com
At top, dragonfly, $150, sterling silver, cubic
zirconia, freshwater pearls Above, Monterey
jeweler Beth Fergon will one of 25 featured
jewelry makers at CALM Auxiliary's Wine,
Jewelry, Chocolate event.
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