Have you ever sat at your desk, daydreaming about leaving your 9 to 5 and becoming an artist? (I never have, but then my job happens to be awesome). Jessica Winzelberg took that leap and left investment banking to become a San Francisco jewelry designer and metalsmith.
I stumbled across Jessica’s work surfing the internet one day (it’s called RESEARCH, I swear!) and knew immediately that her vibrant stone choices and elegant, streamlined metalwork would be a perfect fit for the museum store. Fortunately, Jessica thought that was a great idea, too, and we are now the only store in Texas to carry her gorgeous designs.
Jessica handpicks unique stones just for us — like fiery boulder opals, unusual agates and jaspers, and sliced aquamarines — and custom creates each piece. Sometimes, because she knows we can never have too much of a good thing in Houston, she doubles up on the glamour by setting a polished, organically shaped opal with say, a brilliant pink tourmaline.
While all of the stones are beautiful (I don’t want any of them to get their feelings hurt), the boulder opals are my personal favorite. Found in Australia, veins of opal occur in an ironstone rock matrix — it’s like catching a glimpse of a gemstone rainbow through a secret window.
Check out Jessica’s work in-person at the Museum Store, or take a look online. Orders made by Dec. 17 are guaranteed delivery by Christmas, and 100 percent of the proceeds from our pretty things benefit the Museum and its programming.