Jewelry making is an art, but there’s more art than jewelry in Valda Belyeu’s pendants that capture the spirit of the state’s oldest town.

Geared toward visitors looking to take home a little piece of Bath, some of the pendants reflect the town’s rich maritime history; others, the natural beauty that once drew the early 18^th-century explorer John Lawson to the region. Boats, compasses, pine boughs, outlines of ancient fossils, birds, dragonflies and more — each one unique in its design.

“They’re all different. There’s no two that are alike,” Belyeu said. “Once someone gets one, there might never be another one made like it.”

Belyeu got her start with clay jewelry several years ago with precious metal clay (PCM), which is moldable clay that, when fired, the clay burns away leaving only the precious metal design. But these days Belyeu uses clay pieces she designs for parts of earrings and necklaces, adding a fun, and unusual, element to her pieces.

“I just wanted to do something different,” Belyeu said. “Using clay in jewelry has become more popular in the past few years.”

Belyeu is currently making a batch of her Bath pendants for the spring. They range in size from a 1 1/2 inch circle to more oblong shapes. The pendants each feature the name of the town, but its often embedded in the design and not necessarily discernable at first glance. Letters and designs come from stamps, some of which Belyeu has made herself; some of which are pieces of clay stamps that can be found commercially, but the end product is all Belyeu.

“They’re like my guilty pleasure that I just enjoy making,” Belyeu said.

She originally started making the pendants to sell at the town’s annual celebration, Bath Fest, but was more recently approached by staff at Historic Bath State Historic Site’s Visitors Center. Now her pendants can be found there.

“They’re trying to get local stuff so if people want to buy something, it’s from right here,” Belyeu said.

Belyeu said she has yet to come up with a design for Washington, but it’s in the works.