Why these symbols
The stealie started as a practical mark - a skull split by a lightning bolt, painted on the band's road cases so the crew could spot their gear backstage among everyone else's. It ended up the most recognizable symbol in live music. The dancing bears marched off the back cover of a 1973 live record and never stopped. And the bolt itself - thirteen points, one for each original colony or each lunar cycle, depending on who you ask on Shakedown - carries the whole story in a single shape.
I grew up on this iconography the way other people grew up on team logos. These pieces are how I put that history into metal: original sculpts inspired by the symbols the community made its own, not reproductions of anyone's artwork.
How I make them
Every piece starts as a carve in my Denver shop and gets cast in solid 925 sterling silver - no plating, no hollow backs. The inlay is real crushed stone: crushed opal over a bed of tourmaline, lapis or turquoise, packed into channels cut for it, cured, ground flush, and polished until the surface reads as one. When a piece is a 1-of-1, the badge on its card comes straight from live inventory - once it sells, it's gone for good. If you want to talk about a custom stone mix, the full stone catalog is the place to start - every bag on the bench, photographed close up.
Ordering
In-stock pieces ship in 3-5 business days; made-to-order work runs 2-3 weeks, because each inlay is done by hand. Shipping is a flat $10 anywhere in the US via USPS Priority. All sales are final, but if something is off with the craftsmanship, tell me within 7 days and I'll make it right - details on the shipping & returns page. More of a Phish head? That collection lives over here. The Pretty Lights logo pendants, the Dogs In A Pile paw and stealie pieces, the Magic Beans inlay ring and marching bears, and the Daily Bread toast pendants have pages of their own - or head back to the full shop and browse everything. Building a custom inlay for a bear or a bolt? Start with the stone catalog and the stone meanings guide, then keep it bright with the silver care guide.