Masters of the meticulous, Ronald Anderson and David Rees of TENTHOUSANDTHINGS are all about the details. They have been hand-crafting fine jewelry for over 25 years, and their iconic, sculptural forms inspired by abstract shapes found in nature have left us completely captivated. We recently caught up with them from their downtown New York atelier.

We have loved your elegant, meticulously crafted fine jewelry for many years, and your work, each piece a modern heirloom, continues to captivate us.  Can you tell us a little about what drew you both to jewelry design?

We are drawn to making jewelry for so many reasons:

It’s sculpture in small scale,

It’s an important object that has meaning for the wearer, often for generations,

It’s a sentimental creation with emotional meaning,

It’s a great opportunity to be as creative as you can be; the materials we use can take so many different forms.

We have a great appreciation for special beauty of natural materials that is becoming more rare all the time. It’s a real honor to find and create with the most beautiful stones and pearls we can find.

How would you describe your personal style? Your day-to-day jewelry style?

David: I always wear a few necklaces I made and at least one ring.

Ron: I wear a series of one-of-a-kind rings that we made and always some kind of necklaces, currently featuring a very large American natural pearl charm neck.

Most adventurous thing that you’ve done?

David: Ron has travelled extensively and I’m not very adventurous!

Favorite movie?

Favorite recent movie, The Favourite; favorite classic movie, Now, Voyager, the ultimate transformation movie!

Favorite artist?

We are big fans of outsider artists: Bill Traylor, Yayoi Kusama, William Edmundsen, Martin Ramierez, Louise Bourgeois, and many others.

Coffee or tea?

Lots of coffee.

Last photograph you took?

We take images of the jewelry every day for social needs and documentation. Last pic? A new hand cut rock crystal pendant.

Favorite piece of jewelry?

David: Persian turquoise pendant I wear everyday.

Ron: Vintage anchor charm from my father.

Favorite accessory you cannot leave your home without?

David: Rings, both vintage and TenThousandThings. I wear a group of vintage rings Ron collected from flea markets around the world.

Ron: I wear my favorite TTT one-of-a-kind rings.

Best thing that happened to you in 2018?

Without question our first trip to Jaipur. It was mind-blowing and will have a resonance in our work for years to come.

What are you looking forward to?

Another trip or two to Jaipur in 2019!

Explore more from TENTHOUSANDTHINGS’ captivating collection, here.

Photos by Laura Barton and TENTHOUSANDTHINGS