Simply Wood Rings Blog

Ode to the Mothers

2012-05-11T15:36:00.003-05:00

Ode to my Mama
by Anna Frient

The warrior chef cooked dinner for a full table.

Drove to ballet classes and football games,

Sat in the theatre to watch us act our dramas,

Took us to church to sing our prayers.

Wrote yearly Christmas poems,

updating others poetically, her pride in her family.

Allowed us to follow our dreams,

and let us make our own mistakes.

Made us fresh cookies for our lunches,

and dropped them off at school when we forgot them.

Gave us natural remedies,

and didn't let us eat anything with MSG.

Mother, mama, madre,

you are beautiful to me.

Thank you for it all,

but especially the cookie recipes.

Happy Mother's Day from Simply Wood Rings! This is a selection of our mother of pearl inlay rings, which represents the purity and love reflected in the warm wooden rings. This nurturing spirit is found in mothers like yours and mine. www.simplywoodrings.com

Sacred Symbolism in Natural Materials

2012-05-02T14:46:00.000-05:00

While we offer designs on the website that we find people respond well to, we are often commissioned to create rings that are very specific to the people we make them for. Creating custom rings has yielded some beautiful results that we are proud to send as wedding rings, engagement rings, anniversary rings, and promise rings. These are obviously very significant occasions that people mark with the exchange of rings. We are happy to be a part of this creation process, as we work with customers to finalize the specifics of designs, while the customer sometimes gathers the wood or other materials like sand and stone, to incorporate into the ring.

The materials that we put around our finger should resonate with us. As wood holds within it its past life, the energy it took to grow is still present within its every fiber. And the wood ring wrapped around your finger is representing that energy and that growth.

They can symbolize the importance of place:

Wood from Uganda and Paraguay

Stones and Seashells from Guernsey Island near France

The design can hold spiritual significance:

Sand inlaid in the sign of the cross.

The design can symbolize the past, present, and future:

Copper penny inlaid in supplied wood.

If interested in commissioning your own set of rings, please email us at craftsman@simplywoodrings.com. Please keep in mind that it takes a little more time to put together the design, gather the materials, and create the rings with the utmost care and attention. www.simplywoodrings.com

Something Borrowed...

2012-04-20T13:31:00.003-05:00

Something Salvaged

Something Blue

Something Designed

Just for you.

www.simplywoodrings.com

Go Green

2012-04-18T15:21:00.000-05:00

With both Earth Day and Arbor Day coming up at the end of April, it seems like a good time to evaluate how we treat the Earth. Let's make sure that it is with love! Here are a couple ways you can share your love for the Earth with others.

A billion acts of green.
Earth Day is April 22. The Earth Day Network is getting people to "pledge an act of green." http://act.earthday.org/

Wedding Favor Trees.
Arbor Day is April 27. The Arbor Day Foundation offers gift trees as wedding favors. Do the Earth a favor, and give your wedding guests a gift to last a lifetime. Plant a tree! http://www.arborday.org/shopping/gifttrees/weddings.cfm

How will you help protect the planet, and help create a healthy, sustainable environment?
www.simplywoodrings.com

The Covenant of Family

2012-03-28T15:28:00.000-05:00

Outside of Portland, Oregon there lives a loving family of four.

This Easter, one of our customers will be presenting her husband, son, and daughter with a ring, to represent the covenant they all entered at the parent's marriage. The wood comes from a 90 foot tall cherry tree that was in their backyard. The tree had to come down because it was dropping an unhealthy sludge. Sad to see it go, the family which hosts more then one woodworker, will be salvaging the wood in different ways, including creating a cherry table. The rings we created came from a mossy green branch she had sent us. Also included in the ring design, is an inlay of acacia wood, which holds religious significance. It is thought that the Arc of the Covenant was made out of acacia wood, and also that Jesus was crucified on a cross from an acacia tree. On the inside of the rings are each family member's initials, as well as a favorite bible verse.

When our time on this Earth is limited and even the trees decay, the most meaningful thing we can do is share our time, our space, and our stories with the ones we love every day.

www.simplywoodrings.com

The Brilliance of Moissanite

2012-03-23T15:17:00.000-05:00

What is moissanite, you may ask? Moissanite is a cost-effective, Eco-friendly alternative to diamonds. As an Eco-conscious company, Simply Wood Rings is proud to offer a conflict-free alternative in our engagement ring designs.

The warmth of wood with the brilliance of moissanite is a striking combination.

Moissanite has a higher brilliance than diamonds. When showing off your engagement ring, why not be more sparkly?

Check out some of our designs at www.simplywoodrings.com. If interested in a custom designed engagement ring, please email us at craftsman@simplywoodrings.com.

wed with wood; celebrate love now

2012-02-14T16:12:00.000-06:00

e.e. cummings is one of my favorite writers. His obscure punctuation choices, his lack of capitalization, his spontaneous line breaks, all contribute to his unorthodox writing style. But mostly what I love about his writing is the natural rhythm of his verse, despite the absence of traditional structure. e.e. cummings is to poetry what Simply Wood Rings is to the wedding ring industry: inventive, non-traditional, and organically beautiful. We listen to the natural rhythm of the world around us, and use it in our craft. And so on Valentine's Day, in celebration of all types of love, I leave you with an e.e. cummings poem, anyone lived in a pretty how town. In the context of our wooden rings, this poem seems to embody the preciousness of the life cycle, and the idea that we hold dear: love is to be celebrated now.







anyone lived in a pretty how town
(with up so floating many bells down)
spring summer autumn winter
he sang his didn't he danced his did


Women and men(both little and small)
cared for anyone not at all
they sowed their isn't they reaped their same
sun moon stars rain


children guessed(but only a few
and down they forgot as up they grew
autumn winter spring summer)
that noone loved him more by more

when by now and tree by leaf
she laughed his joy she cried his grief
bird by snow and stir by still
anyone's any was all to her

someones married their everyones
laughed their cryings and did their dance
(sleep wake hope and then)they
said their nevers they slept their dream
stars rain sun moon
(and only the snow can begin to explain
how children are apt to forget to remember
with up so floating many bells down)

one day anyone died i guess
(and noone stooped to kiss his face)
busy folk buried them side by side
little by little and was by was

all by all and deep by deep
and more by more they dream their sleep
noone and anyone earth by april
wish by spirit and if by yes.

Women and men(both dong and ding)
summer autumn winter spring
reaped their sowing and went their came
sun moon stars rain

If we had a nickel...

2012-02-09T13:08:00.001-06:00

If SWR had a nickel for every email we've sent... we'd be RICH!

We are in the process of re-vamping our website including migrating our email service and today we realized we've had 44,000 correspondences! Say 'I'm awesome!' if you've exchanged an email with SWR!

Keep them coming! We love our customers!

Heat things up this Valentines Day with SWR!

2012-02-08T12:33:00.001-06:00

Add fuel to the fire this Valentine's Day with a wooden ring from Simply Wood Rings!

Lots of new In stock rings posted to the new site! Check out what's available in the size you need. These rings are ready to ship!

http://www.simplywoodrings.com/ringshop/wood-ring/instock.html

New Wood Ring Shops

2012-02-01T15:50:00.000-06:00

Chicago is the home of Simply Wood Rings' artisan studio in Pilsen, where we handcraft each ring to your specifications. The new year has brought us some changes, and our new studio space is one of them. If you are in the Chicago area please give us a call or email us to check out our new studio and try on some wood rings. We think buying local is great, and Chicago seems to have that going on.

craftsman@simplywoodrings.com

312.253.7190

We love Chicago, and we love the world! That's why, in addition to being an Earth-friendly company, we've updated our online shop for better service to our global customers.
Check it out: Simply Wood Rings Shop

Salvaged Rose Wood Ring

2012-01-30T14:21:00.000-06:00

The rosewood that we incorporate into our wood rings was salvaged from a local Chicago man who had barrels of it in his garage. He had worked for a company that made xylophones out of rosewood. The thing about making xylophones is that you have to cut the wood to the right dimensions, then test it to see if it will make the proper note it was intended to make. If it didn't make the right note, the wood was scrapped. This particular gentleman couldn't stand to see such a beautiful wood tossed into the trash. So he took it home, and it sat very well preserved in his garage until Gustav bought it from him. Rosewood is now an endangered species. Other folks can't buy this rosewood anywhere. This rarity is what makes people want it even more, let alone the fact that it is a gorgeous, rich-hued wood. We still have these materials that have already been harvested from the earth, and are now disregarded as scraps, ready to be tossed in landfills. Instead of looking for new shiny materials, or trees to cut down fresh, we want to face forward. We can draw out the beauty of this wood that was saved from the landfills. Rosewood has been harvested to near extinction. All we have is what we've salvaged from other people's harvests, and we are able to take this unwanted material, and give it the status of precious, rare, sought after. This rosewood will one day find its way back to the earth; we hope to give it a noble life until then. Simply Wood Rings

We are pleased to present: Simply Wood Rings Behind the Scenes

2011-12-28T13:18:00.001-06:00

We recently had a video made for us by one of our own Simply Wood Ring customers and filmmaker, Maren Wickwire. It means a lot to us to be able to show you who makes your rings, and let you know how much we love it! Hope you enjoy getting an inside look into the wood shop!

Return to Nature

2011-11-11T16:09:00.000-06:00

While hiking, one of our customers from Austria lost his wooden ring in a waterfall. Rather than being upset about it, he thought it was a good place for it. The ring was returned to nature in a beautiful way. We are making a new ring for him, because his ring wasn't lost, it just chose a new life.

This idea of being in a relationship with nature is one we like to focus on at Simply Wood Rings. We don't want to take from the Earth, we instead want to work with the natural beauty that has been offered to us. While we create a wearable piece of jewelry that represents a bond between people, it is also allowing the Earth to be a part of that bond. It is about an exchange. An exchange between couples, customer and creator, person and Earth.

While we invite our customers to become a part of the process, the rings we create become a part of their lives. We respect the trees for cleaning our air, providing us with shelter, warmth, and food. Let us give thanks to the trees!

Our Eco-friendly rings can symbolize new beginnings and new life. Be grounded with the Earth, and put down your roots. Become a part of the process with us: www.simplywoodrings.com

Simply Wood Rings on NBC!

2010-12-09T13:19:00.000-06:00

On Tuesday, December 7th, Tracy DiNunzio from recycledbride.com did a segment on NBC nightly news in Los Angeles that featured alternative, second hand, and eco-friendly engagement rings. Included in the segment was our own "Love is Now" walnut & maple moissanite engagement ring! Thanks to Tracy and Recycled Bride!

View more news videos at: http://www.nbclosangeles.com/video.

Hug - Let the tree hug you!

2010-09-15T14:57:00.000-05:00

Hug from John Driscoll on Vimeo.

This video was filmed and edited by Megan McDonough. The hugging ladies include our good friend Natalie and our very own Erin.

We're all about spreading the love over here at Simply Wood Rings! If you want to share the love too, check out our new tee shirt design!!!

Among the Trees

2010-08-18T11:41:00.000-05:00

Exchanging vows among the trees and flowers adds a special kind of significance to wooden wedding bands. Matt Doty shared these beautiful images of his forest wedding with us. His bride is wearing an Ancient Kauri ring with a Mother of Pearl inlay. Thanks and congratulations to you two!

A Garden Party Wedding

2010-07-20T16:05:00.000-05:00

Megan & Will Ryan had a beautiful old-fashioned garden party wedding, complete with paper lanterns and a barn dance. They used a beautiful set of wooden rings to exchange vows, and were nice enough to send us this card in the mail. The rest of the pictures from their wedding are so bright & beautiful! They can be seen here.
Vist: Simply Wood RIngs

Congratulations Martina and Clayton!

2010-02-11T10:22:00.000-06:00

Thank you to Martina and Clayton for sending us a lovely photograph of the wooden rings we made for their wedding. Best wishes to you both! Featured on the right is our "Breaking Traditions" ring made from Koa and Birch Wood, inlaid with a mixture of crushed stones that mimic the traditional three-stone diamond ring. On the left is "Seashore's Muse," comprised of a Rosewood band and a Mother of Pearl Inlay.

Barefoot & Beautiful - Chad & Christine Eco-Friendly Wedding

2009-12-09T11:24:00.000-06:00

The entire wedding party went barefoot for the majority of the day and the pair went DIY-tastic by designing and making their own invitations, logo and napkins. Click to see Chad & Christine eco-friendly wedding.

Grow Old with You - A Thank you from Simply Wood Rings

2009-11-30T18:44:00.000-06:00

Just little introduction of our wooden engagement rings

This video was put together by Sarah on vocals (Very nice job with covering this song) and Zandra doing the video editing. It was done as Thank you to all the wonderful Simply Wood Ring customers.

We thank you for your commitment to living an eco-friendly life and your decision to placing your love of each other in alignment with the earth.

Thank you.

Simply Wood Rings

Grow Old with You - A Thank you from Simply Wood Rings

2009-11-21T18:44:00.000-06:00

Ring of Life

2009-11-03T13:01:00.000-06:00

My name is Zandra Rivera, and I've recently begun to work with Simply Wood Rings as a creative support. I am inspired everyday I come into the studio and am surrounded by so much beauty and love. I wrote the following based on hearing Gustav speak on a daily basis about his feelings towards his art and nature, as well as my personal reflections amidst this Earth.

As winter slowly approaches, the leaves turn various robust colors of yellows, reds, oranges, purples and browns, die and fall to the ground. I’m reminded of the delicate but intrinsic circle of life, where birth does not exist without death. The absolute abundance of life is viable only through the continuous process of decay. Gustav tells me this is the time upon which he reflects and is always inspired to create something new from the old, continuing and adding to this never ending cycle.

To work in the artistic and family oriented environment that Gustav provides, I am able to reflect upon the way we as a society are giving way to old systems of thought regarding the Earth and respecting her fury. This process seems too slow sometimes for me; I’d like more people to get with the flow of sustainability, to plant more trees, to recycle at every opportunity available, to teach the younger generation about ecology and the importance of the green movement as early as possible. "I am reminded by my loving family that I can only do as much as I can and hope that it causes a ripple effect for generations to come," Gustav reflects.

Though, at this time I should feel the shivers of a Winter almost upon me, I am warmed by the thought of a better future for all of us. Amidst death there exists life’s delicate thread awaiting our gentle pull.

Zandra River
Creative Support

A Ring for a Cause: Simply Wood Rings donates to CASA

2009-10-19T16:53:00.000-05:00

As part of my personal commitment to community, "Simply Wood Rings" donated a custom piece of art jewelry for an amazing, Chicago-based cause.

This month, the CASA (court appointed special advocates) program of Cook County held a cocktail reception and silent auction in hopes of raising funds for their non-profit organization that advocates for children’s rights in the Cook County court system. All proceeds from the reception help to ensure that CASA of Cook County can continue providing trained volunteers to abused and neglected children in our communities. These volunteers ensure that children have a voice in court and a chance to grow up in a safe, permanent home.

After the silent auction concluded, I was pleased to hear that the winning bid for my donation exceeded its actual value, so CASA received more compensation than I had intended! I feel it is my responsibility to continue to support causes like CASA and believe we should all be more proactive in our respective communities.

Please visit www.casacookcounty.org for more information on how you can help.

Simply Wood Rings in Garth Johnson new book

2009-09-26T05:35:00.000-05:00

Simply Wood Rings is in Garth Johnsons new book due out this November. If you are interested in having your very own copy you can reserve yours here. Garth also maintains a blog called Extreme Craft which is a must see. Oh wait this guy also does this amazing pottery check it out at wondabread.com. Where he gets the time I don't know, but I would like to thank him for highlighting my work.

1000 Ideas for Creative Reuse
Remake, Restyle, Recycle, Renew
Garth Johnson

"Artists and crafters have always been recyclers, but for many, it has not only become a thrifty choice, it has become a moral imperative. 1000 Ideas for Creative Reuse contains a cutting edge collection of the most inventive work being made with re-used, upcycled, and already existing materials. The work in this book ranges from clever and humble personal accessories to unique and important large-scale works of art, including paper art, fashion, jewelry, housewares, interiors, and installations."

What Knot to Wear - Wood Bracelet

2009-07-24T08:52:00.000-05:00

I learned at a very young age what wood could do, and my new work is not it. I am excited to introduce a new limited-edition piece that has kept me busy for the last couple of weeks. This piece is very simple in design, but for me it holds wondrous promise, promise in the way a young boy learns what can be done by working with wood, promise in the way it is

constructed. Each of my new bracelets are hand-crafted in an eco-friendly way with 80% less waste than the traditional method of wooden bracelet construction. Each piece will be signed and numbered.

gustav