Vermont’s Christine Damm (StoriesTheyTell) makes earthy, rough-hewn pieces with surfaces that look weathered and worn.

Here she played with distress oxides that make the polymer brooch look like it was unearthed and brushed off to reveal a story from another time. Christine builds layers of color, of texture, of materials, of design, of meaning that require a curious and daring wearer.

This piece lingered in her studio until she ringed it with polymer snakes that she accented with metallics and proclaimed its story sufficiently told.