Thanks! Well, the newest pin is always my “favorite” & gets worn a lot, until the next purchase. Really, though, I wear the smaller pins much more often. The pins in the top row are large & heavy. I only wear those with a jean jacket/jean shirt. Oh, yeah, pins look terrific on hats.
2 Likes
Thanks! I hope I’m describing the pin you’re asking about. I always thought it resembled a paw print. It’s a beaded pin backed with leather. It’s signed “By Margo” (Margo Rosas). I bought the pin decades ago @ the N.O. Jazz & Heritage Festival where she sold her beautiful beadwork. I also have a pair of her wonderful beaded earrings.
2 Likes
Great collection and great variety. I don’t think I would be able to pick a favorite. I like almost all of them!
2 Likes
Thanks for the kind words. Variety is one of my joys of being a jewelry collector for over 30 years (and not just turquoise collecting). I don’t collect any specific jewelry artist(s) though I totally understand & respect people who do that.
4 Likes
Here are my pins. my favs are circled. The single one I just got in the mail today! 5 on the top are Mexican.
(upload://5xFGoebSzktrLIvg8Joek8GvqGc.jpeg)
7 Likes
Very nice collection! I really like the turquoise pin on the left that’s circled. And, I’m partial to that bear paw pin in the 1st row.
Nice collection! Are those tiny dragons pulling a Cinderella coach?? And I see your roadrunner from the bird thread 
Love him.
Oooo, a pronghorn! I love Pronghorns; saw them all over WY. I almost bought a Hopi pronghorn pendant instead of my thunderbird one.
1 Like
That turquoise pin is one I adore. I don’t own any big spiderweb turquoise so smaller ones will do for me…and I am drawn towards green colored turquoise. @ziacat…I think those animals are mice, but I can see how you thought they were dragons. It is a Taxco piece stealing a Margo de Taxco design…not signed by her. The pronghorn…new word for me…is another of my favs…made by Mitchell Sockyma. Thank you guys!
2 Likes
Here’s a little more about pronghorn…an amazing animal from the American west.Pronghorn: Racers on the Great Plains (U.S. National Park Service)
1 Like
Good article. “They most closely related to the giraffe!” Interesting.
Very beautiful animals. I have never been to the badlands so I will put that on my list. Didn’t realize we had an American cheetah 12k years ago. I like my pronghorn pin/pendant even more now. Thanks for the info.
1 Like
You’re welcome. I wish the cheetah was still here! We’ve seen pronghorn in AZ, NM, SD, and UT. But they’re all over WY, especially eastern and southern WY. Funny thing was, we didn’t even see many in the Badlands, just a couple.
The Badlands is an amazing place.
1 Like
So here are my pins (I have a number of true pendants, but these are the actual pins). First pic are pins that also have little bails on them, and are all by Mary Tafoya. The bails aren’t very big, but enough so that I can put my thinnest strands of heishi through them. The bird and caterpillar are big, palm size.
Next three are only made as pins, but I run a leather cord (or even my heishi) through the pin portion. These were all my mom’s. The two silver ones are by Duane Maktima; the quail is one I wear a lot. She got the turquoise one at the Hopi House at GC (I think) in either '69 or '82. I posted that one on here quite awhile ago, and we think it was maybe meant to be worn horizontally in the Navajo traditional way at the neck of a blouse. That one is special to me, because my mom wore it a lot (she passed in '15).
I have a pendant converter, but it doesn’t work on most of my pins cause they slide around. The little eagle is Zuni, and was a gift from my nephew.
Good thing I reread; auto correct insists that “bail” is supposed to be “nail.”
8 Likes
Such a wonderful collection. I especially like the beautiful turquoise pin that was your Mother’s. I’m not at all familiar with Mary Tafoya - her jewelry is very unique looking. I could see me wearing the little Gambel’s quail pin often, too.
1 Like
Thanks! I first met Mary at the Eiteljorg Indian Art Market (a western art museum in Indianapolis that has an annual art market) years ago. Now I see her work everywhere out west. Here’s a link to a thread on here about her. Tafoya Studio Tour
I think mom’s turquoise pendant was pawn, not sure (Hopi House had a small pawn section).
2 Likes
I really enjoyed that vid of the Tafoyas! Thx for sharing it. So interesting to watch creative people at work doing what they love. You know, when I saw her pins in your original post, I wondered if Ms. Tafoya also painted. Her pins have a painterly quality to them (at least to me). And, she doesn’t do a sketch first of any piece! Wow. I’m drawn to the beauty of color in her jewelry.
1 Like
I love pins and I’m so glad to see all these beauties. They are great on a jacket or hat, too. Thanks for sharing!
1 Like
To keep your pins centered in a pin converter, use some of those little silicone or rubber earring backs. They are also good to use with pins to keep them from coming off and being lost.
7 Likes
That’s a great idea!!
Love all your pins especially the MT bird and the hummingbird. The turquoise is very nice with high quality bezel work!! I never thought of a pin converter and putting those silicon earring posts would keep it in place! So many good ideas here.
1 Like
