Every year my family and I spend the last week of July in Oak Island, NC, a skinny barrier island just south of Wilmington. For many summers we have also frequented a quaint but eccentric gallery called the Art Shak. Owners Thom Seaman and Linda Platt started with a simple building and transformed it into a combination gallery-residence where they display many local artists and jewelers.
One of the many talented jewelers is Samantha Barnett Evans. I have followed Evans work for at least five years and have enjoyed watching her progress. A local talent, Barnett Evans studied at East Carolina University where she learned metalworking and jewelry design in one of the state’s most revered art programs.
Today her pieces combine silver, copper and enamel and usually have some sort of sentimental value or deeper meaning. My personal favorite, her enameled state necklaces (North Carolina, of course). Her copper poetry and scripture cuffs are also gorgeous and allow for complete customization with inspiring quotes or words of wisdom. Samantha’s rustically elegant designs can be purchased online on her website or at various boutiques listed on her page.
RUNS WITH MARKERS 