These earrings were inspired by the part of the story where the ghostythings prompt Alfred to dig a hole to China. The black beads in the center represent holes, and the silvery ribbons represent spirits.

Sarah Evans

Ever since I first read Anna’s story the image of a person coming into a shoe shop to demand just one shoe stuck with me. It got me thinking about how so many things we adorn ourselves with come in pairs because humans seem to find symmetry very attractive. Any time the left doesn’t match the right, we take notice.

A few weeks ago I saw some gorgeous jewelry by artist Traci Lilly (whose stuff is very interstitial). I was drawn to the pieces because most of them were asymmetrical, even the necklaces. Earrings came in pairs that matched, but were not identical. I thought it was a fabulous idea.

These two ideas collided in my brain and this earring is the result. Yes, it is only one earring, and it’s meant to be worn in the left ear, if my intention matters (though it does not have to). The person in Anna’s story who wants a single shoe is actually a male, but when inspiration struck it was a woman’s high heel shoe I saw, so I stuck with that.

When you wear this earring you’ll get many second looks, I’m sure. And it might feel strange at first. But symmetry is so normal, and who needs that?

K. Tempest Bradford

The forest where my main character, Brenna, first encounters the ravens is an actual place in Manhattan. Inwood Hill is the last natural forest left on the island, located at the very top, right on the water between Manhattan and the Bronx. It’s one of my favorite places on the planet because it still retains its foresty feeling even though it’s surrounded by apartment buildings and traffic. You don’t have to walk far up the path before a pleasant coolness settles over you and the sounds of the city disappear. If you do it right, you can hide in there all day and forget yourself.

I wanted these earrings to convey the small chaos and beauty that is a forest like Inwood Hill. In order to achieve the depth I wanted, I used very light beads so that neither earring is too heavy (though they do have weight). One is fuller than the other — if you look closely, you can see the black feather hiding within.

K. Tempest Bradford

I made this set hoping to tie in a visual image of Timothy himself…the cat, that is. Black velvet ribbon with spots of white–the pearls–are meant to be his coloring, and the curled wire his whiskers. The red beads sewn in there were originally red petals, which seemed appropriate at the time because so much of the story is looking out over the garden. But I like them because, when looked at the right way, they also resemble cats’ tongues. The red charm in the middle of the choker with black lace stretched over it represents all the cloaked passion in this enchanting story. Also, regarding the earrings: I used many colors there instead of just red to reference Timothy’s seeing color for the first time. (The earrings are also whiskers.)

Saran Evans

The image of the rainbird appears to the narrator in the coffeehouse: “Crystal droplets scattered from his feathers like shining beads from a broken necklace.” My interpretation is fairly literal, as you see.

Kris McDermott: