Cynthia Eid deconstructs her playful Choices necklace

By Irina Hawkins

Novelist and playwright John Galsworthy said, “Life calls the tune, we dance.” Since we are rarely able to predict which melody we’re about to hear, it’s wise to be prepared for a number of possibilities. Cynthia Eid’s necklace, Choices, lets us do just that. The neckpiece consists of six parts—three sections of chain and three sections of metal and gems. The wearer can easily interchange each unit, which has a hook at one end and a loop at the other.

Eid, of Lexington, Massachusetts, says that the idea for the necklace presented itself when she stumbled onto some pieces of chain she’d made in different lengths, “A mental light bulb went off!” She realized that she could use them to play with the expected way to wear a necklace. The asymmetrical piece she’d create would allow her to redefine the traditional concept of balance. The beads are quite different, but clearly go together. Long and skinny ones sit next to short and wide ones; the necklace still looks balanced because all the components have the same visual weight. It reflects Eid’s belief that “serendipity is a partner for the designer.”

The chains are 1/4 inch in diameter. (For a step-by-step guide to create the chain, see “In and Out”). She prefers to work with Argentium silver because of its high resistance to tarnish and lack of firescale. However, she does have to consider certain peculiarities of the alloy, such as the way it transfers heat. To avoid overheating the metal when she annealed it prior to drawing the chains, she colored it with a black Sharpie, the marks of which burned off at annealing temperature.

Just like the chains, most of the beads she used were not created especially for this piece. Since Eid teaches workshops on the hydraulic press, she likes to save the beads that she fashions during demonstrations. That way, when she’s ready to create a necklace, she can enjoy arranging them, figuring out which shapes look best together. In fact, Eid says that this was the main challenge—ensuring that all the sections not only impress on their own, but also complement one another well.

In this piece, 10 of the 11 beads were formed using the hydraulic press and feature keum-boo, a Korean technique for applying 24k gold to silver. When Eid was arranging the beads to settle on a final composition, she decided to include one bead she had created during a workshop demonstration on granulation. The granulated bead illustrates Eid’s propensity for having fun with design by including a seemingly different element from the rest. “It stands out and yet it doesn’t,” she says.

To separate the custom-made beads, Eid placed 3 mm commercial round 14k yellow gold beads in between each of the larger beads. All of the beads are threaded onto a curb chain that’s also made out of Argentium for strength. It doesn’t run through the weaved chain but is connected to it via jump rings and unique hooks that Eid fashioned out of wire—18k yellow gold twisted with Argentium for cost savings and a black-gold color. To enhance the visual effect, Eid added some citrine beads and black freshwater pearls.

When Eid is designing, she likes letting go and not thinking about what her hands are doing. Instead, she focuses on the creative process, allowing the design to happen. She calls it “being open to the serendipity.” Interestingly, the outcome of her design reflects her working style by offering multiple options. Going to a wedding? Make a statement by doubling the necklace up and wearing it as a grand neckpiece. Keeping it semi-casual? Unhook a unit and wear the necklace short. So many roads to take—will the one you choose make all the difference? If it doesn’t, don’t worry—you can always travel another—just wait for the tune to change.