Thank you @Phoenix7 and @here4turquoise!
I don’t really know what I was after when I came up with this design. I should’ve made sketches first, as I normally do.
And it was a bit difficult, mostly because the ring is a small size.
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Without the free exchange of ideas, processes, techniques there would be no Native American jewelry to begin with.
Have mentioned this before, and once again, I’m reminded of an exhibition at the Albuquerque Museum where Spanish art from modern times all the way back to the Roman era was on display. Among the exhibits was Roman era stampwork on metal (bronze), using exactly the same techniques, and processes, and designs we see used in Native American and Southwestern jewelry today.
I know many really fine silversmiths in Taos, Santa Fe, and Albuquerque who use traditional techniques and themes to create their own unique works and styles. Every one of them started out exactly the way you have.
My own view is that no matter what your ethnic makeup, no one has the right to dictate to an artist what style they are or are not allowed to work in, or what tools or processes they may use to create their work. Every new project is an exploration, so explore!
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Very well composed, Mike. You provide a uique outlook and I agree completely. While I can understand and respect @Stracci’s concern, I am with you all the way. 
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Thanks for your insight, Mike. You are completely correct. Everything old is new again. I love art history and this topic is fascinating to me.
The evolution of the naja is a classic example of a design element traveling through time and artists hands.
This is slightly off topic, but I’m reminded of the influence that Japanese art has had on European and American artists. Victorian, Art Nouveau and Art Deco styles were heavily influenced by Japanese art and prints. The Impressionists are a great example of this.
And since we like silver here, I’m showing an American made butter spreader from about 1900, that belonged to my husband’s great grandmother. We have the whole set of silver plate.
Just look at this Japanese influence…
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Beautiful design work, and great example! Your point is well made, @Stracci. I can see a variety of influences present in this work.
If you want to go down a creative resonance rabbit hole, do some digging into the sacred geometry and ‘entoptic patterns’ biologically embedded in every human nervous system, readily apparent in virtually every type of ethnic art on the planet, and also present in the the knife handle design you just posted 
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@mmrogers Mike, you’re freakin me out here!
Spirals and circle are my own personal favorites, evident in all my jewelry and other art that make……I guess I know why now!
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Spirals and circles are definitely entoptic patterns. Also wave forms, zig zags, linear patterns, the variety is endless. Not to belabor the point, but one sees these prominently expressed in cultures around the word from aboriginal Australians, to Samoans, North Africans, Persians, Sumerians, Etruscans, and in native arts from the Americas to the Middle East, Europe, Asia, and Sub-Saharan Africa.
My personal theory is that this is a big factor in how each expression of these entoptic patterns or collection of designs and themes resonates with and communicates to its intended audience.
Some examples:
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This discussion reminds me of the Fibonacci sequence which I find fascinating. This sequence is found in nature, art, humans, and more. The Fibonacci sequence is found in one of my all-time favorite flowers: Camellia japonica.
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Here is today’s project.
I made a ring from a sterling baby fork. The fork was made by Webster Co., sometime before 1950. I’m not sure about year of manufacture, since I can’t yet identify the pattern.
It was not exactly easy, since I don’t own a ring bender. I really want one, but they are pricey.
Pounding it around the ring mandrel was tricky. I pulled it off, but not without some crying and gnashing of teeth.
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Yes, there it is! Oh, it’s numbered! That’s why I couldn’t find it!
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Item#: 377944 Pattern Code: WSCWSC63
Description: Sterling, Plume, Bar, Dots, Scroll Tip
Pattern: WSC63 (Sterling) by Webster Co
Status: Discontinued.
source: https://www.replacements.com/silver-webster-co-wsc63-sterling/c/377944
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Thank you Steve!
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Chop chop form form. We make do with what we have. Retro is back. We made those years ago. Keep an eye out for sterling at antique and consignment shops, thrift stores, and even Marketplace. Many antique stores have not updated their prices. Find a thick tray or master butter knife and there you go…
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You did a nice job on bending the ring. A ring bending jig is available now. Before we had to use a tapered mandrel and keep flipping the ring to keep it even.
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Sweeeet ~ it looks better as a ring than a fork! I’ve always liked the retro, bohemian look of spoon rings. Is this the first one that you’ve ever made?
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Oh yes, I’ve been doing that for years. It is so exciting to find sterling for pennies that way. I never had any intention of scrapping any of it.
I just recently found a beautiful Gorham Buttercup teaspoon mixed in with plate at a local thrift.
I really love sterling spoons, and I have a modest collection that I found out in the wild. I use the most beautiful ones to stir my tea every morning.
I thought long and hard before I cut that one up, because I hate to destroy a decorative object and sterling silverware is a little like jewelry for me. Some pieces are breathtaking in their beauty.
But a baby fork is essentially useless in the kitchen anyway, so I figured I’d give it a go.
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Yes, this is the first sterling one I have tried. I foolishly attempted a practice ring with a stainless steel spoon. It was a disaster, with cut fingers to boot. If I had a ring bender, it would have worked.
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I have a spoon ring that I bought years ago that I just love. I wear it all the time, Wallace Rose Point, 1934. The historical aspect interests me so much.
So I did not make this one:
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That’s actually pretty ingenious, @Stracci
Very nice work!
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