We had the good fortune of connecting with Christina Bjenning and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Christina, is there a quote or affirmation that’s meaningful to you?
My favorite quote is from Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland:

‘If you don’t know where you are going, any road can take you there”

Lewis Carroll, Alice in Wonderland

It describes my creative process to the T, I start with a nebulous design in mind, work out the how’s as I go along and work until I can hold it in my hand.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
I am fascinated by beauty and nature I studied painting, sculpting and science and use my knowledge and techniques to create beautiful, tangible art that connects to nature. Because of my commitment to nature, I decided to create my designs in eco-conscious fair trade materials, hence my metals are from refineries and from electronics, and my gemstones are fair-trade and sustainably sourced and my diamonds are only purchased from reputable dealers and from countries conforming to the Kimberley convention and system of warranties, an UN mandated decree, that aims to ensure that no unfair labor was used to harvest the diamonds and that the proceeds from sales are not used to purchase weapons.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
I would take them for a hike through Pioneertown mountains preserve, looking into beautiful nature and wild life and historical pictographs. Them we would head down to Pioneertown for some artisan shopping and drinks and perhaps watching a band at Pappy and Harriet’s. We’d spend a few days exploring Joshua Tree National Park, and local artisan shops and restaurants.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
A huge Shoutout to my father, Arne, for always believing in me and for giving me the gifts of hard work and entrepreneurship.

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/esmeraldadesigns/

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/christina-bjenning-phd-535528a/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100063496785681

Image Credits
Christina Bjenning, Shop Lucky Lace, Nancy Zehetner

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