sundance

Jeweler

BIO

Metal is in her blood. Kirsten Muenster’s ancestors were coppersmiths, sheet metal workers and artists. She is a jeweler, inspired by nature and its signals of growth, rebirth and change. Incorporating ethically sourced, recycled and vintage objects into her work is a natural part of Kirstens construction process.

The stones that she works with must have a clear and trackable mine to market custody chain. In order to achieve this, Kirsten works with stones from small, family owned mines, as well as individual rockhounds that hand collect, cut and polish the materials themselves. She also does her own stone cutting from rock found in the 1940’s, 50’s and 60’s. Kirsten will not use a stone in her jewelry unless she knows its provenance (history). She uses 100% recycled precious metals from Hoover & Strong. All of their precious metals are recycled from the Earth’s existing metal supply; they do not buy metals from mining companies.

In the studio, Kirsten recycles all of her scrap metal and has a very active "recycling program” which encourages clients to send her their broken, unworn or unloved jewelry so she can refine it. She offer a fair trade-in value and clients receive credit towards the purchase of new jewelry.