Wild Bryde & the Tropical Rainforest Jewelry Line
An independent, collector-built census of Wild Bryde’s vintage tropical rainforest wildlife jewelry line — Amazon-inspired parrots, jaguars, toucans, sloths, and the rest of the tropics, all rendered in Mike Warner’s unmistakable photo-etched brass from the 1990s.
Artist’s Statement
“Wild Bryde Jewelry is a species-specific wearable art collection. The essence of the wildlife that inspires our designs is evident in every piece, as is the quality of the materials.
Our light and comfortable creations are enjoyed by people of all ages who want to show their love of nature, and look good while they do it.
Nature is not just our business, it is our passion. As such, we support several organizations working to conserve wild habitats and teach environmental awareness.
We think you’ll be happy wearing Wild Bryde. Thank you for choosing us.”
The makers: Mike Warner & Tracy Holzman
Sometime around 1980, artists Mike Warner and Tracy Holzman began making jewelry in a home garage in Richmond, California. The studio sat near the intersection of McBryde Avenue and Wildcat Canyon, and the name they chose was a mash-up of that address — Wild from the canyon, Bryde from the street.
Warner had studied art and botany at the California College of Arts and Crafts in Oakland, and that dual training shows in every single piece: an extraordinary eye for anatomical detail wedded to a naturalist’s love of accuracy that borders on obsessive. Look closely at any Wild Bryde design and you’ll see individual feather barbs, muscle contours, even the right number of toes — all photo-etched into thin sheets of recycled brass with a precision that still astonishes. The operation eventually outgrew the garage and moved to a larger workshop in El Sobrante. Over roughly four decades the catalog expanded to thousands of designs — birds, mammals, reptiles, marine life, wildflowers — produced as earrings, pins, necklaces and bracelets. Warner ultimately became the sole owner and lead designer, and the artistry only deepened over time.
Most pieces were finished in 14k gold plate, with non-tarnishing rhodium plating used for the silver-tone variants. On rare occasions, pieces were also produced in sterling silver. Gold-fill or sterling earwires were standard on earrings.
Wild Bryde wound down and closed around 2023 — phone lines were disconnected and the online shop went dark. It’s a real loss. Nothing new is being produced, so the pieces now circulate on the secondary market, each one a small piece of a remarkable four-decade body of work. The occasional new-old-stock item still turns up from retailers who held unsold inventory — always a thrill to find.
Most Wild Bryde pieces carry a small copyright stamp on the reverse, usually marked “© Wild Bryde” or “© WB”. This is the easiest way to authenticate a piece. Earlier production may show slightly different markings.
How the pieces are made
Etched recycled brass
Each design is photo-etched from sheets of recycled brass with extraordinary precision — producing the fine open cut-work and interior detail that makes Wild Bryde instantly recognisable.
Hand-hammered
Every piece is individually hammered with a planishing tool, strengthening the metal and creating those subtle facets that catch the light so beautifully. No two are exactly alike.
Gold, rhodium or sterling
14k gold plate accounts for the warm gold tone. Non-tarnishing rhodium plating produces the silver-tone variants. Very occasionally, pieces were also made in sterling silver — always a find.
Made in the USA
All pieces were manufactured in the United States, from a small workshop in El Sobrante, California. Earrings used gold-fill or sterling silver earwires as standard.
How this census is organised
This reference documents the underlying artworks rather than individual shop listings. When one design appears in several finishes or jewelry forms, it is recorded once with its variants noted. The line divides into two top-level groups:
Single Species
Multi Species
Tags, not categories
Descriptive tags like landscape, framed, face only, full body or family group let one piece carry many traits without forcing it into a rigid bucket.
Forms & finishes
Each design is recorded across its jewelry forms — necklace, pendant, bracelet, brooch, earrings, posts and pins — and its finishes. Wild Bryde pieces are made from 100% recycled brass, then either gold plated or rhodium plated, or crafted in sterling silver.
Confirmed identifications
Every artwork here has been matched against public resale listings. Pieces tagged Theme Overlap share visual DNA with another Wild Bryde line but still earn a place in this census. Pieces tagged Species Ambiguous have uncertain species identifications marked with an asterisk (*) in the title — see collector’s notes for alternative IDs.
What pieces typically cost
On the resale market, brooches and earrings usually sell for about $15 to $40, and necklaces and bracelets for roughly $30 to $80. Complete matching sets typically go higher, but overall Wild Bryde Rainforest is an affordable, approachable brand to collect.
Beyond the Rainforest: the wider Wild Bryde world
The Rainforest collection documented here was only one corner of a much larger catalogue. Over roughly five decades, Wild Bryde grew to thousands of nature-inspired designs across many themes — all in the same etched, recycled-brass style. This census focuses on the Rainforest wildlife pieces, but it helps to know the family they belong to.
Africa Wildlife
The Africa wildlife jewelry line — elephants, giraffes, zebras, big cats and more — documented at the sister site.
Visit the guide →
Hummingbirds
Delicate hummingbirds in mid-flight — one of the motifs the studio is best known for.
North American Mammals
Moose, bears, wolves, foxes and deer from the forests and mountains of North America.
Marine Mammals
Whales, dolphins, manatees and seals — the studio's take on marine-mammal life.
Fish & Turtles
Sea turtles, fish and other aquatic life rendered in finely etched brass.
Celestial
Celestial and cosmic-themed pieces — sun, moon, stars and zodiac motifs in finely etched brass.
Birdwatchers
Pieces for the bird-watching enthusiast, with binoculars and field-guide motifs.
Butterflies
Monarchs and other butterflies with finely etched wings — like the Monarch Butterfly necklace.
Farm Animals
Barnyard favourites — horses, cows, pigs, goats and other farm friends.
Dogs
Breed-specific dog designs for the devoted dog lover.
Cats
Playful and elegant cats, a long-running favourite of the studio.
Horses
An extraordinary array of horse designs including full necklaces of linked horse silhouettes — among the studio's most ambitious work.
Owls
A striking array of owl species linked into full necklaces and earrings — among the studio's most detailed avian work.
Bespoke & Commissioned
Custom and limited-edition pieces made for churches, California landmarks, and other one-off commissions — each one unique.
Note: the images above are photos of real Wild Bryde pieces from these other lines, drawn from public resale and maker listings — shown only to give a sense of the brand’s broader range.
These other collections are at real risk of disappearing from memory as the brand fades. If you’re interested in cataloguing any of them, I’d be eager to help — please get in touch.
A note on identification and borderline pieces
Because the Wild Bryde studio was so prolific, it is easy to mistake pieces from their other collections for the Rainforest line. The inclusion criteria for this census revolve around a specific tropical design DNA — here are a few common edge cases and why they may fall outside the scope of this guide:
Geographic Filter
A species accuracy filter applies — if the animal depicted is not native to the Amazon jungle or broader South and Central America, it is not included in this census, even if the technique is identical.
The Parrot & Tropical Bird Paradox
Wild Bryde produced a vast bird collection. Only confirmed South American rainforest birds (macaws, toucans, parrots, hummingbirds specific to SA) are included.
Theme Overlap & the Herpetology Connection
The main rainforest necklace shares significant design overlap with the Herpetology set, earning both necklace and bracelet a place in this collection. Some pieces within that set — such as sea turtles — would otherwise sit with tropical fish. These edge cases are tagged Theme Overlap.
Species Ambiguous
Some artwork identifications are uncertain — monkey and jungle cat species in particular are difficult to pin down from the etched brass alone. Pieces where the exact species is debatable are tagged Species Ambiguous, have an asterisk (*) added to uncertain species in their title, and the alternative identifications are usually laid out in the collector’s notes.
A sample of the line
Catalog coming soon — check back once Rainforest pieces are added.
Rights & Credits
This is an independent, non-commercial reference created by and for collectors. It has no official association with Wild Bryde, its founders, or any successor, and is not endorsed by them.
All images shown here are drawn from public e-commerce listings on eBay, Poshmark, Mercari, Etsy, WorthPoint, archived catalog pages, and other resale and auction sites. They are used purely to document, identify and preserve a record of this vintage, now-discontinued line — not for sale. If you are a rights holder and would like an image removed or credited, that can be accommodated.
If you are a reseller using this guide to identify your inventory, please consider contributing your clear, high-resolution photos of unlisted designs to help the census grow.