Loading...
A bangle that took me three sketches and a trip to Taxco to get right. On geometry, on Mexican silversmithing, and on why a $495 sterling-silver piece deserves the same care as a 5-figure ring.
Katura 1999
Katura is the founder and designer of Katura1999 β a fine jewelry studio celebrating 25+ years of one-of-one design.
I am writing this from a desk that has, at this particular moment, a sterling-silver bangle resting on top of a stack of CAD prints. The bangle is the "Softened Geometry" piece from our Taxco trunk show, and it has the kind of quiet authority that I have to keep reaching for it just to remember it's there. So let me make a small case for it, because I think this bracelet is one of the most underestimated things in our case.
Most bangles are perfect circles. Beautiful β but a perfect circle is also the easiest shape on earth. A perfect circle, frankly, is what happens when you don't make a decision.
I wanted something that was geometrically "almost" something β almost a square, almost a rounded rectangle, almost an oval β but not committed enough to land on any one of those words. The softened-geometry idea is closer to how a hand actually rests: not a perfect circle around the wrist, but a soft, slightly squared shape that sits more like a watch case than a hoop. It's a shape I've sketched three different times, the first one back in 2019, and only on the third try did the proportions click.
The result, in the metal: a bangle that lays beautifully along the back of the hand instead of swinging around to the inside of the wrist every two minutes. Anyone who has worn a bangle through a workday knows what I mean.
This piece comes from our Taxco trunk show. Taxco is a small Mexican town high in the mountains of Guerrero state, and it has been the global capital of art-jewelry silversmithing for nearly a hundred years β ever since an American architect named William Spratling moved down in 1929 and accidentally founded an entire industry. The silversmithing tradition in Taxco is deeply trained, deeply patient, and totally unimpressed by trend cycles. The bangle was hand-formed there.
Sterling silver is 92.5% silver, 7.5% mostly copper. It's harder than fine silver (.999), takes a beautiful polish, and when it tarnishes β and it will β that tarnish is a feature, not a bug. The shadow that settles into the corners of the softened-geometry shape is, after about six months of wear, the thing that gives the piece its character. Polish the high spots; let the recesses keep their patina. That's the look.
$495 is, in our case, almost the entry-point price. And I want to push back gently against the idea that sterling silver is "starter" jewelry. Some of the most architecturally beautiful pieces I've ever owned have been silver. A great silver piece costs less than gold but is no easier to design. Geometry is geometry. The artist's eye doesn't care what alloy you handed her.
Three thoughts.
One: stack carefully. The whole point of the softened shape is that it sits flat and clean on the wrist. Stacking a bunch of round bangles next to it will just visually fight. If you want to layer, layer with chain bracelets β flat anchor or paperclip chains in silver or gold are gorgeous next to this. The textures play; the shapes don't compete.
Two: don't be precious about it. This is sterling silver. It's not a FabergΓ© egg. It can survive a hand-wash, a steering wheel, and a typing-heavy afternoon. Take it off for swimming and showering (chlorine, salt, and even some shampoos accelerate tarnish), but otherwise β wear it.
Three: learn the polishing cloth. A $6 sunshine cloth from the hardware store will keep your bangle looking spectacular forever. Three minutes a month. Done.
If you have never been to Taxco β go. It is one of the most ravishingly photogenic small towns in Mexico, the streets are vertical, the markets are full of silver from Sunday to Sunday, and you will leave with a bracelet you didn't know you needed. I went for the first time about fifteen years ago, intending to look. I came back with seven bracelets and a relationship with a silversmith that has lasted ever since.
Wear yours well, friends. And take it off before the pool.
β Katura
Shop the look
"Softened Geometry" Sterling Silver Bangle Bracelet
$495 Β· From the Katura studio
Explore why heirloom resetting is an artful way to honor family tradition while creating personalized, modern jewelry pieces.
Explore the art of heirloom resetting, a thoughtful way to breathe new life into cherished pieces while maintaining their sentimental value.
Of all the pieces I've designed, very few make me grin the way the Starfish Earrings do. A small story about how three of the ocean's loudest characters ended up sharing 18K gold real estate.
Tags:
As featured above
"Softened Geometry" Sterling Silver Bangle Bracelet
From the Katura studio Β· $495
Shop this piece β