Karina Jean · The Pencil Collection

The Pencil Collection necklaces by Karina Jean Sharpe. Styling and photo - Karina Jean Sharpe.

The Pencil Collection necklaces by Karina Jean Sharpe. Styling and photo - Karina Jean Sharpe.

Its safe to say Instagram has taken over most of our lives by now, and for all its antisocial eyeballs-glued-to-iphone-at-the-breakfast-table drawbacks, I have to admit the most AMAZING thing about 'Insta' is the incredible connections it brings with likeminded people!  Queensland based object designer Karina Jean Sharpe is someone we first discovered via our legendary Instagram stalking habits (!), and whose own creative output over the past year has been greatly influenced by the supportive community she has connected with via Instagram. An Industrial Designer / Mechanical Engineer by training, Karina Jean spent time working as a 3D Design Engineer, bringing other people’s products to life, before channelling her skills into her own range of quirky jewellery.  'They were mostly plastic consumer products,  eskies, watering cans, baby car seats, and some other bizarre random projects thrown in - like marble casino gaming tables and highly-mechanical multi-barrel door locks!' says Karina of her time in the wacky world of industrial engineering!  After five years in this role, feeling stale and uninspired, Karina began designing for herself in her free time, starting with a collection of 3D designed rings. 'The Pencil Collection' is Karina's latest range of jewellery, inspired by in part by an Instagram challenge based around the theme ‘upcycle’! 'I took a broken pencil and upcycled them into a necklace' explains Karina, matter of factly.  The resulting image can be seen here!  'The pencil, I cut into pieces and removed the lead to create beads. The outcome was a happy accident, but I fell in love with the finished form. So I started work to design original components that would embody the same essence'. Karina's Pencil Necklace collection is made from a combination of engineered plastic beads, designed by Karina to resemble the faceted form of a pencil, and threaded with bronzed stainless steel beads on dyed leather cord.  Karina designs each component on the computer, in three-dimensions. She has the final components produced by a number of different methods, including new technologies like 3D printing.  Each necklace is then hand-assembled by Karina. The Pencil Collection necklaces are priced at $120.00 each, are available in various lengths and colours, and can be purchased online here!  Karina's other creative work can be seen on her folio website here.

The Pencil Collection necklaces by Karina Jean Sharpe. Styling and photo - Karina Jean Sharpe.