Born from memories of ‘70s figurines made of coal, and encouraged by her colleague at the Little Brick House boutique in Beckley, Carol Dameron creates just-as-spectacular-as-diamonds jewelry from one of Earth’s sometimes maligned treasure: Coal.
Winner of the 2013 West Virginia Coal Heritage Award for Excellence in the Arts. Dameron creates unique miniature monuments as rings, necklaces, cufflinks and West Virginia coal memorabilia. Many of the items are stunning for not only their appeal, but for what they commemorate, such as a miniature pick and shovel necklace. Dameron remembers her father bringing home pieces of coal, sometimes with flecks of gold in them. “I still have them,” she says. “I consider my coal jewelry a small tribute to my father.”
Little Brick House is located at 1818 Harper Road in Beckley, and there are many pieces of Dameron’s artwork with coal featured on her West Virginia Coal Jewelry Facebook page.
View of the raw material and the finished product, a ring lined with polished and finished coal. Ring by Carol Dameron.