Sterling silver artisan, Jeni Benos specializes in equestrian jewelry and nature themed designs. Cats also have a soft spot in her heart and have inspired her to craft several necklaces and earrings to celebrate their whimsical charm. Like many artists, Jeni has not restricted herself to only one medium. Fine arts photography is another passion and has even been a catalyst for one of her most intriguing jewelry collections. Jeni also dabbles in large scale sculpture from time to time and has experience with ceramics, wood, and several other two and three-dimensional mediums.
Jeni began her business in 2004 with her Zodiac Ponies Collection. Combining her interest in astrology with her love of horses led her to create this delightful line. Numerous sterling silver horses and ponies soon followed, and continue today. A few years later, in 2007 her Guinevere filigree horse necklace was awarded the AETA innovation award, recognized for its complexity in design and process.
Horses have always been a wonderful spirit animal and inspiration for Jeni. Before starting her business, she worked at various barns, worked with rescue horses, volunteered at a therapeutic riding facility, attended an international riding academy, and even considered horse training as a career at one time. Naturally, equestrian designs became a significant theme in Jeni’s work, a subject that has been present in her artwork of every variety long before the start of her business.
Target shooting, another interest of Jeni’s, inspired her Patented Pistol Petal collection. This fun floral series crafted from spent shell casings paved the way for additional lines of gun themed bullet jewelry as well. She crafts each piece in this series with genuine gemstones and even creates custom stone settings for some projects with accuracy up to a hundredth of a millimeter. All components other than the ammunition shell casings are sterling silver. Artillery shells also proved to be a wonderful medium for a large-scale sculptural version of her Patented Pistol Petals. These Patented Artillery Petals are one of a kind creations crafted to the same standards necessary for jewelry design, a quality not always found in larger works. Brass shells from WWI and WWII combined with either brass or copper components are transformed into stunning and unusual creations custom made to order.
One of Jeni’s most current bodies of jewelry work focuses on the subtlety of nature featuring creatures hiding in their environments. Her love of wildlife photography and time spent chasing birds with her Nikon motivated her to create Treasures of the Marsh with a crane hiding in tall grass. This concept soon blossomed into an extensive series comprised of whimsical bears, tranquil turtles, elusive foxes and much more!
Please enjoy browsing the pages of Jeni’s website. Close to two hundred of her handmade jewelry designs are currently posted. Fine handcrafted artisan jewelry is always much more meaningful to own and enjoy, with quality to last a lifetime. The warmth and emotion behind each piece in Jeni’s collection is immediately evident with a graceful lyrical quality that is sure to attract attention!
Over the years Jeni has been featured in several online and printed publications. Pages from the printed articles have been included on the website for your enjoyment.
