EW’S
gift
GUIDE
ACCESSORIES FOR THE
MYCOLOGICALLY MINDED
Mushroom earrings are the perfect quirky Oregon accessory
by Matthew Denis
by Jordan Rich
o find Sandra Patton, creator and
curator of handmade mushroom
earrings, I weave through the toe-
to-toe crowd packing the Mount
Pisgah Arboretum at the 2017
Mushroom Festival. I squeeze
through the fungal enthusiasts
teeming in the White Oak Pavilion to find Patton
behind the Cascade Mycological Society’s table,
wrapping up mushroom pendant earrings for a
patron.
Patton hand-sculpts, paints and clay-fires each
model to represent a type of wild mushroom. Every
unique pair includes a description of the wild mush-
room that’s portrayed.
Judging from the customers who push in and
out to peruse and purchase the earrings, they are a
sought-after accessory, especially for the myco-
logical hounds who are out on this wet day to take
in all things ’shroom.
“If you had told me 10 years ago that this is what
I’d be doing in retirement, I’d have told you that you
were crazy,” Patton says.
Patton first got involved in the Mycological Society
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while mushroom picking with Marcia Peters, one of
the nonprofit’s founders. After a few years of working
on various projects, Sky Weintraub, former president
of the mushroom group, suggested making mush-
room-themed centerpieces to raise money for the
organization.
When the group sold more than 100 center-
pieces, they decided to diversify into mushroom
wine charms and earrings for the society’s silent
auction. After the ornaments sold out at auction,
Patton was encouraged to continue construction.
Now, along with books, clothing and membership,
the earrings are available on the Cascade
Mycological Society’s website.
Patton purchases project supplies and uses all
proceeds from sale of jewelry to “benefit the
Freeman Rowe Scholarship Fund to help those that
contribute to the advancement of mycology.”
Production of the handmade sets is limited, so if
you want to surprise your partner with a pair of
wearable chanterelles this Christmas, don’t wait —
when the ’shrooms are all picked, they’ll be gone
for the season.
Earrings are $12 a pair and can be found at CascadeMyco.org.
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Eugene Weekly’s GIFT GUIDE 2017 11