House Relic: The Rat Charm

14K Gold Rat Charm with Articulated Vintage Diamond Tail

Details

Metal
14K yellow gold
Diamonds: Vintage diamonds retained in their original bracelet setting 

Dimensions
The charm measures 45mm tall, or just under 2 inches including the bail. The tail is 2mm wide and the rat itself measures 9mm at its widest.
The bail opening is 4 x 4mm wide, allowing for a large range of chains including large links.

Origins/Provenance
Original rat body hand-sculpted by Karen Yost and cast in 14K gold. Tail is cut from a vintage diamond eternity bracelet.

Sold As
Charm only

Availability
5 rats available for purchase in this drop. Buy one or all five! Next release date unknown.

Shipping
in stock and ready to ship. 
Arrives in a velvet heart shaped jewelry box ready for gifting or keeping on your vanity.

This One Is Personal

I kept pet rats for several years, and once you have actually lived with them, their usual reputation stops making much sense.

Rats  are intelligent, social, curious, affectionate, deeply weird little creatures with absolutely no concern for whether the rest of the world understands them. They are also the ultimate underdogs: dismissed, underestimated, and remarkably good at surviving. Very Anomaly.

My own rats died far too soon, as rats tend to do. This House Relic came out of knowing them, loving them, and wanting to make the animal with the respect it deserves.

Not cleaned up. Not made more acceptable. Made precious.

The Rat

I sculpted the body by hand, giving it the soft rounded haunches, alert little face, and forward posture of a creature that looks like it is already halfway into something it should not be doing.

Anomaly has always been interested in the things people are too quick to dismiss. The creature considered dirty, unlucky, or beneath notice becomes a tiny gold object built with obsessive care and fine materials. The rat did not need improving. Your opinion of it did.

The Diamond Tail

The tail began as part of a vintage diamond eternity bracelet. Rather than casting a rigid gold tail, Karen cut the bracelet into segments and rebuilt it onto the rat so the tail remains articulated. It bends, shifts, and trails behind the body as the charm moves. The diamonds catch light all along that movement, which makes the whole creature feel strangely alive.
The old bracelet also brings a second life into the piece. Newly sculpted rat, vintage diamonds and one small creature carrying both.

The Drop

There are three rat charms available in this release. Since this is a House Relic, i can remake it in the future as there is a mold of the body I sculpted. I"m not sure when or if I will be releasing this piece again.

Each rat is hand-finished by me in NYC, and each articulated tail comes from the same vintage diamond bracelet. The source is shared, but the individual sections, articulation, and final hand-finishing give each piece its own small differences. When these five leave, this version leaves with them.

How to Wear It

The Rat Charm is sold without a chain so you can decide where he goes next.

Wear him alone on a favorite chain and let the diamond tail move against the body. Add him to a collector’s necklace already carrying other relics. Put him on a bracelet, a charm holder, or somewhere unexpected enough to make people lean closer.

He is small enough to become part of your daily life and strange enough to make sure nobody mistakes him for ordinary jewelry. THE charm for the person who knows the underdog is usually the smartest one in the room.

Relic Care

Store the charm separately in a soft-lined box or pouch so the articulated diamond tail does not catch against other pieces.

Clean gently with warm water, mild soap, and a soft cloth when needed. Be careful of harsh chemicals, lotions and perfumes while wearing fine jewelry.

QUESTIONS? Please ask me anything you want right HERE.
I will reply as soon as possible.