I want to share a story about a hobby of mine. I fly fish with my husband. We fish all kinds of trout streams and rivers any where we get the time to go. Since we live in North Carolina near the Virginia border, we fish these two states most often. There are enough trout streams in these two states to keep me quite busy! But before I get too far into this blog, and for the benefit of those readers who have no familiarity with trout fishing, I want to share a little basic information.

First of all, trout live in cold, good quality water, so mountain streams and rivers, or waters that flow from very deep dams are where trout can be found. Fall through spring are not only beautiful times of the year to fish, but crucial for the water temperature and the trout activity to be optimal (I need optimal conditions to catch a trout!). The waters we fish the most are freestone mountain streams, usually fairly small and shallow streams with loose rock bottoms (don’t think there’s not big trout in there somewhere, though).

My husband’s a great fly fishing partner. He not only taught me all the ins and outs of fly fishing: patience, casting finesse, slow wading, don’t let the trout see your shadow on the water, don’t wear that bright red hat, don’t get so excited when I miss the first trout hit on my fly and slap the water with my second enthusiastic cast (remember casting finesse); he also shares my love for nature and the outdoors. Because of him, I now refer to myself as a fly fisherwoman because I have officially, legitimately caught, although somewhat small, a wild trout (and then released him, of course).

When I fish with my husband there are two things I can promise you. One, he will catch more trout than I will; and two; he’ll fish about one hour longer than I will. Because his stamina (or maybe it’s focus) outlasts mine, I usually start taking photographs of nature or bugs or something. I never get bored that last hour because I have yet to fish in a place that wasn’t beautiful.

A few fishing trips ago, while I piddled along the stream edge, I noticed something that sparkled in the sun light. Because the streams are so crystal clear, I assumed it was a piece of glass or broken mirror I was seeing. When I picked it up, it was this stone full of sparkling flecks that looked like silver embedded in the gray rock. All I could think at that moment was, “I want to wear this.” Now that’s the difference between just anyone fly fishing and a jeweler fly fishing.

As my husband strolled up the stream casting every so often and letting his fly drift downstream, I waded behind him on the water’s edge and collected a hand full of beautiful stones.  Those stones sat in a drawer for some time until I fished again in a different stream. When I flagged out before my husband, I waded the water’s edge again and saw another stone glistening in the water (I believe these stones are “calling me”). This one was golden brown with streaks of rust and almost pink throughout it. It had a pretty pattern on the stone and as I tilted it, different colors shined brighter depending on the angle. I looked down and there was another stone, this one bright orange, and another, with rust colored spots on it. As I gathered a handful, I could see the bracelet I was going to make. It would have several of these small creek stones, or “freestones” as I now reference them, in a sterling silver linked bracelet. And maybe I’ll add in just one gemstone into the design, too!

I don’t always bring stones home from fishing trips. I didn’t seek out to collect stones nor do I pick stones up that don’t shine up to me on their own. But over time I have collected enough to begin incorporating “freestones” into my jewelry after several fly fishing trips to different streams.   I love making jewelry with the stones I collect. Although it takes far more time to handcraft every sterling silver setting to the contours of the unique shape of the stones, it’s well worth it.

I only have a few pieces of “freestone” jewelry for sale at any given time because their creation depends on a couple of factors: how many stones “call me”, and how often I go fly fishing!   Sincerely, Bibba