It stands to reason that any pirate worth his or her salt will probably wear at least a little bit of jewelry from time to time. Generally this would mean either wearing some gold and silver pretties that were stolen from a Spaniard, or perhaps some skull&crossbone ornamentation for those who like to flaunt their proclivity for plundering. But what about the third option? That which is born of sailors spending their time on beaches in the Caribbean? Jewelry derived from the local beads of wood and glass combined with a swab’s natural talent for knot work? This is the question, and PiRATE PRiMiTiVE would appear the answer.

Being a side-project of long time pirate music veterans Mallory and McCall of the Skeleton Crew Pirate Band, PiRATE PRiMiTiVE focuses heavily on the sort of jewelry that pirates either could have made for themselves, or might have bought/lifted from the local populace. The Monkey’s Fist, being a definitively nautical knot, features heavily into the bulk of their work. Combined with wood and glass beads all strung upon tarred cord, the end effect is perfectly suitable to a Caribbean pirate of most any rank and also quite distinctive from most anything else out there.

For the purpose of this review, I selected the 24 Karat Fists piece, being “the first of  the PiRATE PRiMiTiVE crown jewels” (and who better than to take possession of the crown jewels than the Bilgemunky, I ask?) While PiRATE PRiMiTiVE’s work is available in a variety of colors, I chose this piece largely for its earth tones, which I felt would work well with many of my favorite pirate clothes. I also liked the apparent length and the way it layed, as the available pieces range widely in these respects as well.

The jewelry I received was indeed identical to the one pictured, and I was pleased to note that it was soon marked as “sold” on their website. I was never quite certain if the piece I was ordering was indeed one of a kind, so I was delighted to see that it was (I mean, really, I can’t rightly share the crown jewels, now can I?) 24 Karat features 7 knots – I like to think of it as one for each of the seas I’ve sailed (although in truth I’ve only sailed 4 of the 7 seas of the ancient world. 5 depending on how you count.) It boasts many, many wooden beads and a select few pieces of clear sea glass. The overall effect is rustic yet fancy. It’s not as heavy or as bulky as I feared it might be, and so long as you don’t hope to tuck this necklace beneath your shirt it’s a perfectly comfortable wear.

The topmost bead is intended to slide, thus allowing some adjustment to the necklace length. However, the adjustment only really allows for 2 inches of variance in the circumference, and slides too freely to hold anyways. As such the necklace is always defaulted at its maximum length – hardly a problem in my case as that makes for the perfect length. And if I did need to shorten it, a little craftiness could do much to alter the piece to my liking.

PiRATE PRiMiTiVE might not be suited to compliment any and all pirate outfits. But with their wide selection of sizes, colors, and styles it’s easy to believe they could find homes around the necks of many, many fashionable scalliwags. And with so many unique pieces, it would seem a fine opportunity to own a piece of of one-of-a-king pirate splendour.

To the starboard side, open gunports reveal the large mouth of a cannon preparing to fire. Just beneath is a second gunport, but this one is shut, the left door splintered from its hinge and hanging askew. The port side mirrors the starboard with its own eager cannon above, and closed gunport below, only this time a skeletal hand emerges from the door as if death itself were about to spring forth. The bow, as should surprise none, features a large grinning skull, his teeth gritted in fury and amusement at once – or perhaps it’s just a bloodlust. He sports an eyepatch and wears a captain’s hat, ostrich plumes cascading down to his cheekbone. This maniacal skull is naturally flanked by twin crossed cutlasses, their grips rough and aged, but their blades gleaming. Behind it all is a backdrop of oaken planks, their dark grain in stark contrast to the silvery jolly roger that glares up at you. And last, to the stern, are an assortment of letters, reading simply “YeOldeTattooShoppe.com”.

That the above paragraph describes a ring is astounding, but true. Studio City Tattoo – California’s #1 piratey tattoo shop – has long sported their own distinctive Jolly Roger by way of a logo. And Skinny Dog Designs – the very artisans that created many of the Pirates of the Caribbean rings and pendants available at the PotC Rides in the Disney Theme Parks – have brilliantly crafted this logo into a ring that is practically a pirate novel in itself.

The Studio City ring is big – it has to be to sport such incredible detail. The face of it is a full 1 and 1/8 inches across, making it ideally suited to full figured pirates with larger hands. My own hands tend to be of the smaller variety, meaning this ring is significantly larger than anything I’ve worn before – it does take some getting used to. The size for one, but also the weight. They did NOT skimp on the silver in making this ring – it’s solid, and it’s heavy. However, both of these factors become less noticeable with time (although the awsomeness of the ring clearly remains!)

The Studio City Tattoo Ring is a definite thing of beauty. This isn’t something to toss on thinking it will blend in and subtly compliment your pirate or civilian attire – this is a centerpiece in itself, certain to command attention and admiration from your jealous shipmates time and again.

Pirate jewelry is quite the tricky thing – nothing completes a look better, but also nothing is harder to find than that perfect little item for the right pirate.

If you’re wanting jewelry that’s overtly piratey – meaning skulls, crossbones, and whatnot – this can get trickier still. It’s a fine line between pirate, goth, and biker, and finding that proper death head that says “yarrr” is no small feat. This is where Mad Jack’s comes into play rather nicely – his sterling pendants have those nice little touches that make for a proper swashbuckling look.

Most of Mad Jack’s pendants are based on historical pirate flags – the common Rackham and England are nicely rendered, but so too is the less usual Avery, along with several piratey originals. It was one of these originals I chose for the purpose of this review.

Mad Jack’s Sword and Skull pendant is not based on a historical flag, but it clearly looks the part. The cutlass piercing a skull in profile makes for a look not commonly seen, but that effortlessly conveys that proper sense of piracy. It’s a robust piece of work – even the sword’s projecting tips of the hilt would be difficult to break away. And what’s more – it’s a very three dimensional item. Oftentimes, jewelry is flattened so that it looks 3-D when looked at straight on, but then it pancakes as you move to the side. Not so with this pendant – when viewed from the side it may appear to be only half a skull, but a properly proportioned half skull it remains.

Mad Jack’s offers several other unique designs, as well as some various ways of presenting them (bone shaped toggles to affix to bone shaped necklaces and the like), but even at the most basic, this pendant looks smashing on the simple leather strap it was shipped with.

All told, it’s beautiful work, and ruggedly built. Perfect for any pirate looking to hoist the jolly roger around their neck (which beats a noose any day.)

All too often, pirate-themed rings share one of three failings – they’re either too delicate looking, too biker, or too cliche (how many skull & crossbones rings can one pirate wear?)

Ghost Pirate Ship.net has deftly foiled all these pitfalls with its sterling pirate ring. Featuring a large, robust skull, this ring is anything but dainty. And its eyepatch/bandana clearly mark this as a pirate accessory, while still dodging the “yet another jolly roger” trap. But more importantly, this is a ring with personality. The skull – with its partially open jaw, and equally open eye, nostrils, and temples – appears at once spectral yet material. Its highly 3-D structure is striking, yet clings closely to the finger enough to remain entirely comfortable.

This is an excellent pirate accessory. It’s sturdy, unique, and should fit right at home with any pirate outfit – be it period, fantasy, or modern.

For any pirate looking to enhance their look with a piece of definitively nautical jewelry, Ghost Pirate Ship offers two tallship pendants that would be equally at home around the neck of buccaneer or law abiding merchant alike.

“Privateer” and “Ghost Pirate Ship” are both large sterling pendants, each over an inch and a half in height. Both are rugged, and feature a fixed loop on the back for affixing to a strap or chain. But aside from their definiteve similarities, each ship also boasts one striking difference.

“Privateer” is a squaremasted ship under full sail, complete with cannons along the bulkheads. It’s cast in sharp 3D relief, making it appear to be sailing directly out of your chest (but not in an “Alien” way.) “Ghost Pirate Ship” is nearly identical in concept and form, with the exception of its ragged sails, making it appear to hail straight from Davy Jones’ Locker itself. Ghost Ship also differs, less strikingly so, in that it features a small snippet of surf and waterline around the bottom of the hull (Privateer features no water.)

Both are fine pieces of jewelry. Despite its skeletal appearance, even the Ghost Pirate Ship is sturdy and rugged. Either piece could be matched with a wide range of outfits – the only thing to set one apart one from the other as a better buy would be the pirate’s own preferences.

Note: “Ghost Pirate Ship” is currently available for purchase through the manufacturer’s website. The first 500 “Privateer” pendants, however, must be purchased through Pirates Magazine, where proceeds will help benefit Jean-Michael Cousteau’s “Ocean Futures.”

Yo yo ho – pirate bling is in the house!

Marcus Cove Creations has made a piece of pirate jewelry that’s fun, functional, and HUGE. This highly detailed medallion features a wild-haired skull clutching a dagger in its teeth while being impaled on an anchor. Across the face is a scroll reading “Surrender Thyne Ale.” Far from a simple 2-D image, this medallion is engraved with exceptional three dimensional details and textures. The top is designed to work as a bottle opener, so your throat should never be dry. The obverse side is a less detailed, but perfectly attractive, engraving of the western half of Hispaniola – in short, Haiti and Tortuga.

The crux of this piece is its size. It’s a full 2.5 inches across, and 3.5 high. That may not sound like much, but grab a ruler and you’ll quickly realize this is a monster. Cast from bronze, this is one huge – and heavy – piece of jewelry. That’s not a bad thing though – far from it in fact. Having this beast hanging from your neck is sure to get you noticed by the ladies, as well as any lads needing help opening their beers. Hardly historical (it is a bottle-opener, after all), it nonetheless commands an old fashioned bearing that could easily be incorporated into most costumes without looking glaringly out of place. However, it would be most at home on the chest of pirates that have a little pimp or gangsa in their attitude. Pirate bling indeed!

For any pirates wanting to accessorize with jewelry that differs from the typical jolly roger motif – while still remaining perfectly grim and swashbuckling – Celtic Jackalope has developed its Three Skull Pendant.

This sterling pendant features three grinning skulls atop the backdrop of a filagree-laden sword. Three fleur-de-lis surround the borders, accompanied by an iron-cross(ish) engraving just near the bezel. Nearly three inches tall, this is a commanding piece of swag that’s sure to garner many admiring comments. Consistent with Celtic Jackalope’s usual attention to detail, the back of this piece is nearly as detailed as the front, clearly showing the backs of the skulls, sword, and all other features. Despite the many tiny “appendages,” this casting is very solid. Each component is plenty robust to maintain its structural integrity, even if it gets roughed up a bit while you’re out skewering Spaniards.

A very gorgeous pendant. I think it will look particularly brilliant after it ages and tarnishes a bit for that proper piratey “weathered” effect.

Continuing on the fine tradition of its “Dean Men Tell No Tales” line of pirate jewelry, in which they offer various sterling accoutrements featuring a distinctive skull and crossed sabers, Celtic Jackalope has now created its new, jumbo sized coat of arms ring.

Celtic Jackalope’s previous ring that featured this design was fairly small and understated, perfect for those wishing to bear a subtle nod to their piratical inclinations while remaining fairly incognito. This new ring, however, is meant to command attention. The design is roughly twice the size of the earlier ring, boasts much more detail, and is complimented on each side by a fleur-de-lis design. Definitely a ring suitable for pirate royalty!

The image below is included to give an idea of size comparison. It also demonstrates that for the right pirate couple, these rings could make a fine pair of wedding/promise rings! Yarrr!!!

Buy all the clothing you want – buy the $500 jacket, the $200 hat, the $300 boots. Honestly, do it

BUT – major clothing items only get you so far. In the pirate world, as in our own, accessories make the outfit. Earrings, finger rings, necklaces – the devil is in the details, and it’s these very details that turn a “person in a pirate costume” into a “PIRATE.”

Enter Silhouttes’ hair beads. Jack Sparrow certainly wasn’t the first pirate to dangle beads from his dreads, but he’s easily the most memorable. And with one or two Silhouttes’ bead strands hanging from your head, you too can add some significant zest to your pirate ensamble.

I inspected and test-drove two of these offerings, and found them surprisingly comfortable, once I got the hang of it (the trick is to clip them to a significant chunk of hair, so as to better distribute the weight.) As I’ve come to expect from Silhouttes, the materials are all of the best quality – not a single plastic bead was to be seen. Instead, each strand was a mixture of glass, metal, rock, wood, and even one that appeared to be bone. The string itself is metal wire, and while the clip is hardly period, it’s sturdy, effective, and shouldn’t be seen anyways. At the end of each strand is a coin – one from Denmark, and the other appears to be pakistani. The truly picky reenactor will note they’re a bit too well formed to be period (indeed, the Denmark coin clearly states it was minted in 1967.) But both appear quite old at a glance, and if you meet anyone critical enough to notice that they’re not “period,” you’d best throw the loper to the sharks before they cause any real trouble.

A wonderfully effective, and wonderfully affordable, way to add that extra “punch” to your outfit.

I’m pleased to once again have the opportunity to review some fine swag from Pirate Jewelry. Last time I got a peak at some neckware, and this time I can get up close with some of their finger adornments.

As stated in my pendant review, Pirate Jewelry offers one of the largest selections of sterling pirate accessories around. Their styles range to suit a wide variety of interests (as long as it’s piratey.) As such I’ve selected three very different pieces in hopes of capturing a sense of the options available (but believe me, there are many more!)

The first ring is an understated sort featuring a ship deeply etched above an embossed image of the jolly roger. The etched lines of the ship are darkened so as to make the image extremely visible, although the skull and crossbones is a little faint. The band leans towards the thin side, but as with all the Pirate Jewelry pieces I’ve reviewed it remains very sturdy. Personally I think this ring is lacking a little something. Perhaps it’s the way the Jolly Roger seems only partly there, or maybe it’s how the background of the ring seems a bit bulbously shapen – it’s almost as if they’d intended to make the background into the shape of a skull, but then ran out of time. It’s a decent piece, but I think it could have been better.

The next piece is a solid, heavy band featuring recurring skulls all around, interspersed with slight scrollwork and blackened enamel “diamonds.” This ring is very sharp and very sinister. While it would perfectly compliment many a pirate costume, this ring shouldn’t be ignored by anyone who loves skulls (goths, metalheads, paleontologists, etc.)

The last ring I reviewed featured a highly stylized pirate flag draped over a wickedly bent cutlass. The flag itself features blackened etchings of swords, crossbones, and a skull. This is a terribly interesting piece – the sculpted cutlass is curved to such an extent as to indicate that the artist was inspired by real-world items, but not restricted by reality. The end result is very fun, very piratey, and definitely striking.

As stated before, Pirate Jewelry offers a wide selection. I’ve now had the opportunity to review several of them, and all have been extremely well made. My only complaint about the rings was the sizing – I’d ordered two rings intended for my ring finger, and one larger for my middle. But upon arrival only one of the rings actually fit as expected – one of the ring finger rings and (surprisingly) the middle finger ring were both too small to comfortably fit my ring finger. I wouldn’t worry, though. Ring sizing always struck me as being a little bit finicky, and if you encounter a similar problem I’m certain Pirate Jewelry would gladly accomodate an exchange.