"I love making tiny things, they seem very personal and can hold many secrets. I still have my doll house furniture from when I was little and my shelves are filled with small precious things that I have collected and created over the years. The small sculptures that I make happen to be wearable and each tells a story

My ideas come from everywhere- nature, music, fairy tales, my cats, spirituality and much more. I make each piece myself by hand in my studio at my home. I combine traditional materials like gold, silver, diamonds and gemstones with non traditional materials including porcelain, wood, resin, bone, copper,bronze and flower petals. I challenge myself to work with no rules while designing but maintaining a level of craftsmanship that makes each piece archival. I use a variety of techniques including carving, casting, fabricating, raising, forging, enameling and granulation"

Details from Melinda Risk's desk

True Love Ring: Two rubellites are the broken heart with a diamond tear and two arrows. Rubellite tourmaline, diamonds, 22k gold, rose gold, sterling silver

Fish & Bird Ring: inspired by Tom Waits song about a bird and a whale that are in love, but can’t be together, so the bird sits on the tide. The whale tale is carved into the moon with a tear on the side. Moonstone, diamonds, tanzanite, blue diamonds, 22k gold, 18k gold, sterling silver.