Where the rest of us see tech debri to discard, Toledo native and artist Jaci (pronounced “Jackie”) Riley sees intricate design. “I had been working on one line of jewelry,” she says. “Then I looked at all the old computer parts lying around my house and thought maybe I could do something with them. Have you ever looked at a circuit board or a motherboard? They’re really cool.”
Sparkover, Jaci’s current jewelry line available on Etsy (www.etsy.com/people/sparkover), turns computer innards into unique pendants, rings, and earrings. A 2009 graduate of the Art Institute of Pittsburgh, Jaci comes from a creative family. “My father was always making things out of nothing,” she says. Jaci worked as an interior designer and made jewelry on the side, starting by making pieces for family and friends. People would see the work, and ask about it, often enough that she decided to open her own Etsy store in 2010.
While she doesn’t have one particular process, Jaci’s designs start by simply looking at the circuit boards. “There are a lot of loops, big circles and small ones, and I think, those would be cool earrings or studs,” she says. She also cuts metal, sometimes etching it with acid, for pendants and pins into different shapes, including birds, stars, and the state of Ohio. “Every once in while, a European blog will find me, and then I’ll get a bunch of orders. They really love Americana over there.”
Sparkover’s expanding at a manageable rate, as Jaci grows the business. She’s begun to work with craft fairs like the recent Maker’s Mart, the indie craft fair that was held during Artomatic 419! And she continues to see amazing things every time she pries open an old hard drive. “Circuit boards are all so different. The other day, I found one with ‘J4c1’ on it, and the way it was written looked just like my name.” As for the ecological aspect of her work, "I've always been an avid recycler, so to me, Sparkover is jewelry with an added bonus. It's awesome and you're keeping things out of landfills. Technology changes SO quickly, which leads to a lot of stuff lying around. I like to think that I'm saving the planet one circuit board at a time. It's the small things!"
Keep track of Jaci and her collection on the Facebook page: www.facebook.com/sparkover
