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Weave A WIRE SETTING AND NECKPIECE

New Trillion

SINCE

1947

Baiyang Qui's
Breeze Brooch
PAGE 18

MARCH 2016

Dare to

RETHINK

the limits of wire


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March 2016 Volume 69, Number 9

38

24

CONTENTS
4 My Turn
From the Editor: Dont Go Wireless

6 Your Turn
Design Challenges & Letters

8 Their Turn
A Gallery of This Issues Contributors

10

30

Net Prots: Strategize Your Social Media


by Cathleen McCarthy
more at jewelrymakingdaily.com/netprots

3D WIRE
14

Cool Tools & Hip Tips: Pliers, Jigs, Formers,


and Shapers
by Helen I. Driggs

14

18

Stylized Nature
design by Cathleen McCarthy

24

Ruffled Wire Woven Pendant


jewelry project by Sarah Thompson

30 Climbing What Earrings?


jewelry project by Betsy Lehndorff

46

TOURMALINE
38

Smokin Stones: The Other Tourmalines


by Sharon Elaine Thompson

40

Star Trek Trillion


facet design by Jim Perkins

SMART TECH JEWELRY


l a pida ry jo u r n a l ) ( J e w e l ry a rt i s t

42 Trends: Get Smart

by Deborah Yonick

46 Cybernetic Barrette
jewelry project by Roger Halas

50 What Do You Know!

18

education by Lindsay Jarvis

60 Facets
News & Product Innovations

64 Ask the Experts

ABOUT OUR COVER:


Baiyang Quis Breeze Wire
Brooch, page 18.
PHOTOS: JIM LAWSON

ADVERTISING SECTIONS
55 Focus on Education
70 Classieds
70 Gem & Jewelry Shops
71 Advertisers Index

by Tom & Kay Benham

66 Index to Volume 69
72 The Lapidary Journal Jewelry Artist
Doers Prole: Cynthia Eid

MY
TURN
from the editor

l a pida ry jo u r n a l ) ( J e w e l ry a rt i s t

Dont Go Wireless

WIRESOME? WIRE-MORE? WIREFUL? Im


not sure what the jewelry opposite of wireless would be,
but whatever the right word, thats the kind of jewelry
making studio you want to have if metal is involved.
Wire is a very handy form of metal, whether you add it to
soften the edge of a cuff, make findings for earrings, or
use it to develop designs or realize them in metal.
In this issue, we take a look at several artists who
work principally or a lot with wire. Most create threedimensional pieces that are inspired by and suggest the natural world.
Wire is essential to this work but not what rst captures your attention:
Oh, my, that almost floral piece looks like its dancing on air, and look, they did
it all in wire was my initial reaction to our cover piece, even though I knew
it would be wirework before I saw it. Find out why these jewelers choose
this most linear form of metal stock to produce such sculptural designs in
Stylized Nature, page 18.
For a very dierent approach to dimensional wire, also in that feature,
dont miss great tips on wire weaving from Sarah Thompson, author of
the best-selling Fine Art Wire Weaving. Her Rued Wire Woven Pendant
project, page 24, shows you how to produce an elegant and secure setting
for a cabochon suspended from a lovely woven wire neckpiece, but its
also an excellent tutorial in wire weaving technique. You should also check
out what Brenda Schweder has to say about working with wire; she is so
focused on it shes developed her own Now Thats a Jig! system for
making wirework easier, which she puts into action in her two upcoming
videos.
In her popular Cool Tools & Hip Tips column, Senior Editor Helen
Driggs sets out a virtual feast of wireworking tools. I love watching Helen
sketch a design to work out the mechanics of a piece or other details,
and it makes perfect sense that, as a
metalsmith and a trained illustrator,
she loves to play with design ideas in
wire as well as on paper. Learn whats
impressed her about this selection of
tools on page 14, and see whats on
oer in our special wire collection this
month on page 15.
And for an untraditional design,
traditional metalsmithing use of wire,
and good soldering practice, take a
look at Betsy Lehndor s Climbing What Earrings? project on page 30. I
wont spoil the surprise, but I will tell you that wire gures prominently in
both the posts and the body of the earring design.

EDITORIAL
CONTENT STRATEGIST, JEWELRY GROUP
Jean Cox
JEWELRY EDITORIAL DIRECTOR Merle White
JEWELRY FEATURES MANAGER Helen I. Driggs
JEWELRY DESIGNER MANAGER Denise Peck
GROUP MANAGING EDITOR Mallory Leonard
JEWELRY EDITOR Karla A. Rosenbusch
GROUP PROMOTION EDITOR Lindsay Jarvis
CONTRIBUTING EDITORS Tom & Kay Benham,
Lexi Erickson, Sharon Elaine Thompson

ART
ART DIRECTOR Amy Petriello
VIDEO MANAGER Garrett Evans

MARKETING
VP, ECOMMERCE MARKETING Evelyn Bridge
MARKETING MANAGER Hollie Kuhlmann

ADVERTISING
ADVERTISING MANAGERS
Marilyn Koponen, ph. 877-613-4613
Stephanie Griess, ph. 877-613-4630
CLASSIFIED ADVERTISING REPRESENTATIVE
Tina Hickman, ph. 970-613-4697
AD TRAFFICKER Lisa Buelow

F+W, A Content + eCommerce Company


CFO/C00, INTERIM CEO James Ogle
PRESIDENT Sara Domville
SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT, OPERATIONS
Phil Graham
VICE PRESIDENT, COMMUNICATIONS
Stacie Berger
Lapidary Journal Jewelry Artist (ISSN 1936-5942) is
published 9 times a year by F+W Media, Inc., 4868
Innovation Drive, Fort Collins, CO 80525. USPS #0023-8457.
Periodicals postage paid at Fort Collins, CO 80525, and
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Lapidary Journal Jewelry Artist are copyrighted by F+W
Media, 2016. All rights reserved. Projects and information
are for inspiration and personal use only. Reproduction
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www.jewelrymakingdaily.com

Your most important tools


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Bangle, Courtesy of BELLARI, Earrings Courtesy YVEL

Between a jewelry designers imagination and


the final piece of work lies an entire production
process filled with creativity, technique and skill.

YOUR
TURN
reader comments & sketches
NEXT TIME:

DESIGN CHALLENGES
YOUR COVER RIFFS:
Designs based on John F. Heusler, G.G.s
Pectolite & Pearl Pendant, November, 2015.

Baiyang Quis Breeze Brooch,


COVER.
Rif on a design feature of
this piece such as color,
texture, form, value, line,
space, repetition, balance,
contrast, unity, or variety for
your sketch.

S
Shevvy
B
Baker
L
Louisville,
K
Kentucky

Bill Roggenkamp
Georgetown,
Kentucky

Maggie
Morawietz
San Antonio,
Texas

YOUR SETTINGS:
Designs based on a pectolite/Larimar
cabochon, November, 2015.

Teresa Estes
Nashville,
Tennessee

Shevvy Baker
Louisville, Kentucky

Sketch a setting for this Star


Trek Trillion tourmaline cut
by Jim Perkins, page 40.

DEADLINES:
MARCH 31, 2016

l a pida ry jo u r n a l ) ( J e w e l ry a rt i s t

Email digital scans at 300


DPI or send photocopies of
no more than three sketches
per challenge, indicating the
design factor that is your
starting point. Sketches will
not be returned.

WRITE TO US ANYTIME:
What do you think about
what youve seen and read in
Lapidary Journal Jewelry
Artist?
SEND SKETCHES & LETTERS
for possible print or online
publication to: Karla.
Rosenbusch@fwcommunity.
com.
Include your name, city, and
state, and indicate Your Turn
on the subject line.

Thomas Wickline
Tacoma, Washington

Bill Roggenkamp
Georgetown, Kentucky

LETTERS
Re: Cool Tools & Hip Tips, December, 2015
I just received my December issue of
Lapidary Journal Jewelry Artist and am
eagerly devouring it (as usual).
There was a small error in Helen Driggs
Cool Tools & Hip Tips column , 25 Days of
Hand Tools. The numbers associated with
the illustrations for the ImpressArt bracelet
bending pliers and hole punch pliers (on
page 21) are reversed. Thought I should
mention it in case there is some confusion.
Thanks for a great magazine!
Marilyn West
Huntsville, Texas
The editors respond: Thanks for your letter, Marilyn. You are
quite correct! The bracelet bending pliers should be Number 25
and the hole punch pliers should be Number 24. Good eye! [For
more of Helen Driggss Cool Tools & Hip Tips, check out the
digital download, Jewelry Making Tools, Tips, and More, Vol. 4:
Cool Tools & Hip Tips, 2013-2014, available soon at www.shop.
jewelrymakingdaily.com. And dont forget to get the first three
volumes, too.]

We get it.
We know what it means to leave a piece
of your heart in every item you make with your hands.
Wee have
W
have aallll tthe
he ttools
ools & ssupplies
upplies yyou
ou nneed
eed ttoo ddoo iit.t.

WHOLESALE JEWELRY SUPPLIES SINCE 1973.

wholesale $100 min. | shop online now | halsteadbead.com

March 2016

THEIR
TURN
PHOTO: ROGER HALAS

a gallery of this issues contributors

ROGER HALASS
Elephant Pendant
Sterling silver, diamonds, chasing, repouss

Cybernautic Barrette
Page 46

l a pida ry jo u r n a l ) ( J e w e l ry a rt i s t

PHOTO: HARPER POINT PHOTOGRAPHY

PHOTO: COURTESY NIKI GRANDICS

What Do You Know!


Page 50

LINDSAY JARVISS
Greta Stole
From Interweave Crochet, Fall 2014

What Do You Know!


Page 50

NIKI GRANDICSS
Ghost VI Brooch
Electroformed film positive,
sterling silver, copper, enamel,
glass

Stylized Nature
Page 18

BAIYANG QUIS
Pearl Earrings II
18K yellow gold, Tahitian pearls

PHOTO: SARAH THOMPSON

Stylized Nature
Page 18

PHOTO: COURTESY BAIYANG JEWELRY

SARAH THOMPSONS
Hera Necklace
Fine silver wire, faceted peridot

Ruffled Wire Woven Pendant


Page 24
What Do You Know!
Page 50
JERA LODGES
Necklace
Steel wire, pearls

PHOTO: BETSY LEHNDORFF

PHOTO: COURTESY JERA LODGE

Stylized Nature
Page 18

BETSY LEHNDORFFS
Spider Pendant
Sterling silver wire, pearl

Climbing What Earrings?


Page 30
What Do You Know!
Page 50

March 2016

NET PROFITS

ILLUSTRATION: STEPHAN PARK

By Cathleen McCarthy

Strategize Your
Social Media

l a pida ry jo u r n a l ) ( J e w e l ry a rt i s t

find the best ways to use your 15 minutes of social

10

Sometimes the best way to approach


social media is to dive in and start
swimming. You can read all you want
to about how to use Instagram and
Pinterest for eective marketing, but
if you go into them with this mindset,
you may inhibit yourself from doing
the very thing thats going to make
your posts and boards attractive to
others: have fun and be yourself.
In the world of independent
creatives as in design in general
nding your own voice and vision
is your best hope for success. When
I talk to people in the jewelry world
known for their huge following on
social media, nine times out of ten
thats what they did. They dove in and
played around until they found their
voice. Others responded, they responded back, and a little community
formed and grew.

This probably sums up how they


built a following for their jewelry in
the rst place. Until you nd traction,
though, you have to put in the eort to
nd something that resonates. Once
you do nd traction and get busy, the
less time you have to play around on
social media hence, the need for a
marketing strategy.
COMMIT TO MARKETING

Online marketing is expensive. Social


media is free, fun, and eective. But its
not enough to open a Twitter account
and put up a Facebook page and then
check in once a month. In fact, I think
having your brand connected to dormant accounts makes you look akey.
Open those accounts, yes, but before
you do, be prepared to commit to feeding them daily or at least every couple
of days. Have a plan in place.

Dont worry; this doesnt have to


take much time. I spend no more than
15 minutes a day on business-related
social media, on average, and rarely
post on weekends except to my personal
account. (By business-related, I mean
social media connected to my blog and,
directly or indirectly, to my income.)
Occasionally, I break that rule,
when Im reporting on something
live, for example, or plugging something I just posted. But I usually get
multiple use out of those exercises,
so my social media posts double as an
archive I can refer to later. If my followers can make use of them the same
way, all the better.
START WITH VISUALS

As a jewelry artist, your social media


platforms to focus on are the visual
ones. News hooks and ten tips

may work for business types, but your


crowd wants juicy images.
When dealing with jewelry, especially original handmade jewelry, the most
eective way to grab attention among
jewelry fans is with your camera. For
jewelry product listings, I recommend
trading up to a DSLR like a Canon
Rebel and adding a macrolens, or at
least a good point-and-shoot with a
macro setting. Invest in a little tabletop studio that provides lighting and a
clean white background. Some jewelry
artists I know do well with Foldio, a
small portable, collapsible tent available for as little as $49.
But the camera on your phone is
ne for quick and casual sharing. In
fact, shooting on a mobile device will
make posting to social media faster
and easier. You can select an image and
post directly to Facebook from your
phone at a craft show, for example. You
can actually take an image using Instagrams app, but I nd it easier to shoot
(and store) on my phones camera,
then access images via Instagram.
FIGURE OUT THE PLATFORM

Pinterest is a social bookmarking site


for the visually oriented, for example.
Part of your social strategy should be
to post images not on Pinterest but
your own site or shop that others
want to pin. Make sure you tag and
title those pictures with your name or
that of your business so it defaults as a
caption on Pinterest one that leads
potential customers to your jewelry.
Making your jewelry pin-able is more
important than having thousands of
followers on your Pinboards.
Instagram, on the other hand, is
more about original photography. If
you have an eye for shooting your jewelry and like to play around with lters,
you can have lots of fun on this site.
Hashtagging with your specic type of
jewelry can help you nd a strong fan
base. The Instagram app will ask if you
want to share your post on Facebook or
Twitter or both. The more you share,
the higher youll register in Instagrams
algorithms, and the more followers
youll reach on those other platforms.

PLAY TO YOUR STRENGTH

SHAKE IT UP!

Approach each of these platforms as


your own visual micro-blog. Maybe
you have a good eye for a great stack:
your rings or bracelets piled up with
vintage or funky costume pieces. Or
you find a way to photograph your
jewelry with household objects, then
use filters to make it look like a landscape. Maybe you have a photogenic
pet who becomes part of your online
persona.
If you happen to know a lot about
some particular aspect of jewelry
making, your following might come
from tips you share, maybe with minivideo tutorials or photo collages. As a
creative and visually oriented person,
you will likely start playing around
and find some way to use the tools of
these platforms in your own way
and that is your best hope.

Part of your plan should be to experiment. Spend a few minutes each day
exploring what others in your eld are
posting on Facebook or Instagram.
Find a few that you relate to and follow
them if you nd their content compelling, but also analyze what theyre
doing and try some of that.
Once you start posting really compelling images, tag people who may be
interested. Credit someone who helped
or inuenced you along the way, for
example. Some will follow you back.
Those with massive followings probably wont be too responsive, at least at
rst. Try engaging more with those just
a bit ahead of you.
Dont just post generic product
listings. We get enough spam, right?
No one wants to log on to social media
to nd more. Sharing and responding
to others is a quick and eective way
to make them happy and attract a few
high-prole followers, but dont spend
all your time reposting.
Were following you because we like
what you bring to the table and that
includes the one thing you have that
no one else does: your own work and
your own eye. The trick to amassing a
huge following is to use the platform
whether Instagram, Pinterest, or something else in a unique way, your way.

Making your
jewelry pin-able
is more important
than having
thousands of
followers on your
Pinboards.
As part of her custom wedding
ring business, Danielle Miller invites
couples to spend the day in her studio
helping her make their rings. This
can be very hands-on, with bride and
groom hammering away, or simply
witnessing the nal touches to their
rings. Either way, Danielle takes photos and short videos of them working
on their jewelry, some of which she
posts on her Facebook page or website
with their permission. Its a great
way to oer the couple a meaningful
keepsake of their rings, as well as a fun
promo of her workshops and custom
design business.

CATHLEEN MCCARTHYIS a freelance writer


whose stories on jewelry, travel, and
commerce have appear in Town & Country,
Art & Antiques, and her own site,
www.TheJewelryLoupe.com.

ind more online


15-minute a day
social marketing plan

JewelryMakingDaily.com/netprofits
March 2016

11

The Gemmys
l a pida ry jo u r n a l ) ( J e w e l ry a rt i s t

2015

12

Winning Jewelry, Gems


and Sculptural Pieces
from Lapidary Journal
Jewelry Artist's Design
Competition

Ready for some serious eye candy? Be


prepared for inspiration as you flip through
this gorgeous coffee-table book, each page
dripping with new approaches to jewelry
and gem design. Each of the winners,
chosen by accomplished and awardwinning judges, is showcased in an
elegant book for you.
Take a look at the
best of the best from
contemporary studio
jewelry today!

WWW.INTERWEAVESTORE.COM/THE-GEMMYS-2015

March 2016

13

COOL TOOLS
& HIP TIPS
l a pida ry jo u r n a l ) ( J e w e l ry a rt i s t

BY HELEN I. DRIGGS | PRODUCT PHOTOS: JIM LAWSON

14

Way cool tools for the wire-minded

Pliers, Jigs, Formers,


and Shapers
I CAN AMUSE MYSELF forever with wire. In its simplest form, wire
is my own personal discovery game and often reminds me of a noisy
toy my son had long ago that called out physical actions you needed to
do to in a specific order and then pass it to the next player. For some
reason, when I get out my experiment wire to play with, I cant help
but hear those toy directives running in my head: Twist it . . .
Pull it . . . Toss it . . . Flip it . . . Bop it . . . Pass it . . .
Funny, right? But lately, Ive been using wire in more
complex ways that require total silence and extraordinary
focus, like weaving, knitting, coiling, and twining. If Im
interrupted, I lose my way, which unlike that toy is not funny.
I really like it when a seemingly simple material like wire
surprises you with how engrossing it can be.
Those clever folks at Artistic Wire
and Beadalon sent me a nice thick
catalog recently, and I was blown
away by the huge selection of tools
and materials for the wire-inclined.
These new Wire Banding Pliers by
Wyatt White solve the main and most
vexing problem for wire wrappers
using square wire: keeping bundles of
wires flat, parallel, and adjacent. I just
cant tell you how many times I have
tossed a mangled mess of twisted
wreckage that was once a square wire
project into my scrap box, but with
these pliers, never again.
Heres why: they help you create
perfectly sized 90 double bends in
2024ga. square wire and they also
work with half round. Simply load
wire onto the T-bar jaw, insert into
the slot, and squeeze. Voila! And, if
you dont wire wrap, dont go yet
cold connection makers will totally
appreciate these for making nice,
neat, clean staples or brad legs. The
pliers come in four gauge sizes and
models for double banding, and they
are marked with the corresponding
gauges on the heads of the pliers.

s se e n in
A
COOL TOOLS

I n t h e k it
Then, theres the Spiral Maker.
Once, long ago in this column, I
demoed a homemade version of
this tool using a dowel and poker
chips. That old tool I made still
works, but this new, specifically
designed tool trumps it because
the transparent acrylic lets you
see what you are doing. To make
a spiral, create three shims for
the bolts (out of the same gauge
wire for your project), insert the
spiraling wire into the slot of the
T-bar, and start coiling between
the plastic plates. Flat, even, and
perfecto every time.

WAY COOL
WIRE TOOLS
COLLECTION

Finish your jewelry


designs in style!
Artistic Wire Spiral
Maker
Artistic Wire Crinkler
Tool
Multistrand Pearl
& Crystal Wire
Necklace with Tamara
Honaman (video
download)
Wire Jewelry
Workshop (ebook)
Fine Art Wire
Weaving (ebook)
Available at www.store.
jewelrymakingdaily.com.

March 2016

15

COOL TOOLS & HIP TIPS

I n t h e k it
LEARN MORE
FROM HELEN
DRIGGS
Metalsmith
Essentials: Basic
Fabrication (DVD)
Metalsmith
Essentials:
Riveting and Cold
Connections (DVD)
The Jewelry Makers
Field Guide (Book)

l a pida ry jo u r n a l ) ( J e w e l ry a rt i s t

www.store.
jewelrymakingdaily.
com

16

The 2-Shape Wire Crinkler is a


portable corrugator for creating zig
zag or U-shaped lengths of wire. I
use mine for starting perfect, evenly
spaced lengths of loops that I coil and/
or bind to other wires. Those crinkled
wires make me smile every time.
Oh, nally! A Wire Crochet Tool
thats actually made for crocheting
wire. I have broken so many ber
crochet hooks using wire that I
nearly gave up. But this hook has an
even thickness shaft and no bumpy
curvy things on it to distort the
work. It is also a matte aluminum
color, so you dont get any visual
interference when you are working.
And the thumb tab is about two
inches from the hook, so you can get
a big old bunch of wire loops on it
without running out of space. That
means three or four rows down on
wire knitting, kids! This hook also
comes packed with a thick needle for
weaving in loose wire ends, too.
But wait! Theres more! The 3-D
Bracelet Jig is a why didnt I think of
that? kind of tool. You can work in
the round when you use this jig just
by inserting pegs in the pattern of
your choosing and wrapping away.
Its terric for starting core wires for
coiled bangle or cuf designs and will
help you with spacing and form. Oh,
you had better get yourself a pack of
Extra Pegs for the 3D Bracelet Jig,
too, because you will need them. This
is a very cool tool.
The Wig Jig Electra is essential
for those who like to create designs

with radial symmetry. And even if


you dont wire wrap or use wire
much, having a circular jig in your
shop with evenly spaced holes is
incredibly useful for evenly marking
or measuring on any round jewelry
object pendants, bracelets, rings,
you name it. But back to the wire
part. I love this jig because I love
circles. Now, I can make wire circles,
ower and petal forms, stars, loops,
and sea anemones to my hearts
delight. There are 20 small pegs in
the starter kit, and I suggest getting
the Super Premium Peg Set as an
add-on. Again, even if you dont
work in wire, having a set of round,
nylon mandrels in the shop that you
can use for measuring and dividing
bezels, pendants, ring bands and the
like will never, ever hurt you.
MORE AT WWW.ARTISTICWIRE.COM

I discovered Xuron Corporations


tools last winter at the Tucson Shows,
and they keep designing new and
awesome pliers, cutters and snips. I
am smitten with these Non-Serrated
Kevlar Scissors (9180NS) for thin
gauge sheet and bezel wire. Please

note: not for half-round, round or


square wire, please. Just bezel wire
or thin sheet, ok? And, if you are so
inclined, cut plastic cable ties, Kevlar
thread and ber, monolament, and
Fireline with them. The heat-treated
cutting edges are super for precision
cutting, and the strong spring action
gives you great control. I also love
their brand-new 4 in 1 Crimper with
Chain Nose Plier because those
petite jaws are perfect for precise
work, with the bonus of crimping
bays if you need them for bead
stringing, too.
MORE AT WWW.XURON.COM

The Cobra Coiler from Parawire


is a tool I wish I had several months
ago when I took a workshop with
Mary Lee Hu. Its a travel-friendly
Jacobs Chuck in a zippered case,
ready made for twisting or coiling
wire, and it comes with two mandrels,
too. Add a small C-clamp, and you
can do away with carrying a hand
drill and bench vise to your next wire
workshop. The included mandrel
diameters are .125 and 08, but there
is nothing stopping you from using
other steel rod for diferent size coils
those chuck jaws open to almost
.25, so I easily t a length of 6mm
tool rod into it.

I know Ive mentioned this in


the past, but its so apt here: Now
Thats a Jig! is truly is one of the
best new tools I have come across in
recent years. I can never say enough
how the best tools are the ones
made by makers, and this one is no
exception. Its well designed, solidly
made, adaptable, continually added
to, and incredibly useful. There is a
huge array of pegs available for it,
including eighth rounds, small rounds
and RingSizr pucks: in the most
popular range of womens whole
sizes (5 to 9). BangleSizr Pucks
including XXS and XXL options are
also recent additions. Once you start
playing with this system, I guarantee
youll need to go buy more wire
because its so fun to use.
MORE AT WWW.NOWTHATSAJIG.COM

HAVE A TOOL,
MODIFICATION, OR
BENCH TRICK TO
SHARE?
Email us at Helen.

? Driggs@fwcommunity.
com, subject line Cool
Tools. Please include your
complete contact
information with all
submissions.

MORE COOL
WIRE TOOLS
FROM
BRENDA
SCHWEDER
Now Thats a Jig!
Video and tool
collection
Coming soon
at www.store.
jewelrymakingdaily.
com

The Viking Knit Kit includes a


really sturdy resin drawplate with
beveled entry side drawing holes
for smooth pulling. There are 20
diferent hole sizes, and the kit
includes one wooden dowel and
step-by-step instructions for creating
your own designs.
MORE AT WWW.PARAWIRE.COM

COMING
NEXT TIME...

Finding
Making Tools

HELEN DRIGGS is Jewelry Features Manager for Lapidary Journal Jewelry Artist and an experienced metalsmith and
teacher. Follow her blog: materialsmithing.wordpress.com; Instagram feed: hdriggs_fabricationista; and Twitter feed @
fabricationista for more jewelry-related fun.

March 2016

17

Stylized
Nature
Suggesting the organic with wire

l a pida ry jo u r n a l ) ( J e w e l ry a rt i s t

BY CATHLEEN MCCARTHY

18

design

hile fashion doesnt usually


dictate to the art jewelry community, sometimes you nd a
general theme begin to emerge,
and many fascinating variations on it.
Judging from winners of the major studio
jewelry competitions this year, the design zeitgeist seems to be moving from literal interpretations of ora into abstractions of organic forms.
And many talented emerging artists seem to be
playing with this theme, in one way or another,
with three-dimensional wire.

OPPOSITE PAGE

Jera Lodge
Trigon Collar
Mild steel wire
PHOTO: COURTESY JERA
LODGE

LEFT

Niki Grandics
Ghost IX Ring
Sterling silver, glass,
copper, enamel,
electroformed film
positive
PHOTO: COURTESY NIKI
GRANDICS

Niki Grandics
Niki Grandics uses wire forms to complement
her glass castings, the material closest to her
heart. She was recently included in Corning
Museum of Glasss exclusive New Glass Review,
having graduated from San Diego State University less than two years ago and winning a Wingate Fellowship the same year. While she makes
a concerted eort to make her jewelry wearerfriendly, much of it has an edgy and industrial
look and many necklaces are quite large.
As a child of immigrants from Hungary,
Grandics grew up dividing her time between
Hungary and California. There was such a contrast between those two places, especially in the
1990s. Communism had just ended in Hungary,
and it was really a dierent world, she says. I
grew up feeling like a sh out of water. Both of

The approach you use to


work with glass or metal is
180 degrees different. So the
challenge was bringing together
these two materials, and these
two halves of how I work, into
one whole.
these places were supposed to be home, but a lot
of times, I felt neither was. Growing up like that
makes you a lot more aware of yourself in relation to your surroundings.
Contrast is a big theme in her jewelry. Ive
done stu with glass and leather and metal
all very dierent, contrasting materials, she
says. The approach you use to work with glass
or metal is 180 degrees dierent. So for me,
the challenge was bringing together these two
materials, and these two halves of how I work,
into one whole.
Grandics was introduced to wire in the
metals program at San Diego State University,
where students were taught to solder a simple
band. A big part of my process was experimenting with the material and approaching it like a
blank slate. She broke a lot of pieces trying to
see if she could rivet on glass, for example. Her
jewelry is evidence of her creative experiments.

LEFT

Niki Grandics
Ghost XVIII Ring
Steel, glass, film positive
PHOTO: COURTESY NIKI
GRANDICS

March 2016

19

Stylized Nature
l a pida ry jo u r n a l ) ( J e w e l ry a rt i s t

20

RIGHT

Baiyang Qiu

Baiyang Qui
Cocoon Brooch
18K yellow gold,
18K pink gold, 18K
red gold, sterling
silver

If Baiyang Qius jewelry looks familiar, it may be


because shes placed twice in the Niche Awards
in 2014 and 2015 and placed rst in the
MJSA Vision Award. This is remarkable considering she didnt begin making jewelry full-time
until 2013.
Her work is often complex but always clean
and nished. She relies heavily on CAD/CAM,
something she was trained to do in China and in
industrial design, a eld she worked in successfully for a few years.
When she enrolled in the MFA program at the
Savannah College of Art and Design, she had no
metalsmithing skills and had never made a piece
of jewelry in her life. In China, you get $5 a day
to work at hand craft there in a shop, she says.
Its not something you go to college to learn!
But from her rst courses in hollow construction, wire work, and basic stone setting, she
found she loved working with her hands. After
she mastered the basics, she began to develop
her own approach.
Qiu had the bad luck to graduate in 2009, at
the peak of the recession. When she returned
to her jewelry three years later, she had a very
clear vision for the kind of designs she wanted
to do. For one thing, she had saved up for a laser
welder which she uses instead of soldering.
When you solder two pieces of metal, the
ux is like a glue binding two metals together,
but the solder itself, the joint, does not have the
same strength as the rest of the metal. Its a completely dierent material, she explains. In my
work, for the joints in ne gold wire, I use a laser

PHOTOS: COURTESY
BAIYANG JEWELRY

BELOW

Baiyang Qui
Childhood
Daydream II
Brooch
18K yellow gold

Most of her jewelry begins in the hot shop,


with the glass. Thats where a lot of my ideas
and inspiration come from, Grandics says.
Glass is such an interesting and inspiring material to work with, really diverse. And the cast
glass seems very dierent once I bring it back to
my bench.
In her Ghosts line, developed in 2012, she
found wire an ideal means of connecting a lot
of dierent pieces and a perfect frame for the
rough, crystallized-looking glass. With that, I
just wanted a very simple, linear metal piece to
complement the glass, because its so complex
and textural in itself.
What she loves about wire is its versatility. If
shes learned anything from working with wire,
its not to limit herself to conventional approaches. For a something so simple and commonly
available, you can do just about anything with
wire, she says.

WIRE SCULPTING TIPS


Baiyang Qui
Bubble Brooch
Platinum
PHOTO: COURTESY
BAIYANG JEWELRY

welder. There is basically no solder involved for


the wire part. So its two pieces fused together,
no other metal, so the joint is much stronger.
This allows her to work with much thinner
wire often 28 or 29 gauge to achieve a very
delicate look thats deceptively sturdy. These
pieces have a very delicate, fragile look but the
actual pieces are wearable and pretty strong.
That suits her design inspiration, which is
about capturing the fragile, temporary beauty of
nature. A pair of earrings was inspired by dewcovered petals found in the garden. Each one
had a small drop of dew, such a beautiful thing
to see, so temporary the ower petal could
be broken, the dew could be gone any minute. I
wanted to capture the delicate feeling of it.
Another collection was based on dandelions.
I loved to play with dandelions as a child, she
says. I tried to pick them and keep them in my
bedroom, but they were always gone in a day. I
dreamed of having one I could hold in my hand
and keep forever.
So I started piecing the thin-gauge wire to
create that feeling of delicacy. Then I fabricated
it carefully, so it would be strong enough to be
worn, she says. Forging wire has proven a perfect way to capture natures transitory beauty,
but its not necessarily her lifes work.
The reason I choose to do wire now is
because it ts the design, she says. If a design
requires dierent fabrications, dierent elements, Ill use those. For me, the design always
comes rst.

Sarah Thompson is known for her fluid, intricate, multi-layered


wire jewelry. In her book, Fine Art Wire Weaving, she demonstrates
how to make sculptural jewelry by forming heavy-gauge wire
around dowels.
Use your hands. Over-use of tools, especially pliers, leaves kinks
and bends. I come across this in wire jewelry all the time, she says.
Best way to avoid that? Use your hands instead of pliers
whenever possible. Its awkward at first, she warns. It requires
a deliberate, fluid motion and it takes practice to develop the
motor skills necessary to move and twist our fingers to achieve the
results were looking for.
Keep it simple. Thompson always starts with round wire. If she
needs to flatten part of a piece, she uses a hammer. If she needs
half-round wire, she uses a file. If you start with square wire,
youre stuck with it. Theres no way to make it round.
Slow down. The most common mistake people make working
with wire is not paying attention to detail. People tend to go too
fast, she says. You need to slow down and make sure youre
doing the work properly and well.
I often hear people complain about how sloppy their work
turns out, but if they just step back and not try to speed through
it, theyd be surprised what they can do. It actually takes me more
time to do the shaping and fine-tuning than anything else. I can
spend two hours tweaking little areas until I finally get the whole
pieces symmetrical.
Find Fine Art Wire Weaving by Sarah Thompson at www.shop.
jewelrymakingdaily.com.

Jera Lodge
Abacus Necklace
Steel wire
PHOTO: COURTESY
JERA LODGE

March 2016

21

Stylized Nature
Jera Lodge
Trigon Collar
Mild steel wire
PHOTO: COURTESY
JERA LODGE

l a pida ry jo u r n a l ) ( J e w e l ry a rt i s t

Jera Lodge

22

Despite the fact that Jera Lodges jewelry looks


like line drawings made wearable, her pieces
never begin as a sketch. She designs while
building. I start with the physical material. I
have a general idea of the space I want to occupy
or movement I want to achieve, she explains.
Then I start working on the shapes. I gure out
what I want the modular unit to be if there is
one and then the pattern, how to link together
those pieces and create movement.
Its a little backwards, she admits. Most
of what I create is so line-based, and line is one
of my main inspirations. And yet I do very little
drawing.
Three years after getting her BFA in jewelry
and metalsmithing from Edinboro University
in Pennsylvania and one year after launching
her own jewelry business, Jera won the Hip Pop
Emerging Artist award from the American Craft
Council and was a nalist in the alternative materials category of the Niche awards last year.

FIND THEM
Niki Grandics
www.nikigrandics.com
Baiyang Qiu
www.baiyangjewelry.com
Jera Lodge
www.jeralodge.com
Samantha Skelton www.samanthaskelton.com

At her workbench are large spools of steel


wire in dierent thicknesses, a little ruler
jig she rigged up to easily cut even pieces,
her saw, and some pliers and snips. She
begins by notching, cutting, bending,
and forming the pieces and laying
them out. Then she solders the
units together and cold-connects
them into links.
One of the most interesting aspects of Lodges jewelry
is something you cant fathom
until you pick it up, manipulate
it and realize it was designed
to transform. Her Hexagon
necklace, for example, looks one
way when you drape it around
your neck, another when you pile it
up, still another if you hang it from
the wall.
If you look at the bottom of the gallery on Lodges website, you see several
images which appear to be dierent pieces.
Then you realize youre looking at several
formations of the same necklace. Thats kind
of the amazing thing, she explains. That each
one transforms so much. Thats what fascinates
me to keep exploring.
While they look fairly simple, her designs
involve a lot of math. One collection was based
on the eightfold symmetry of snowakes. Her
chains are an exercise in carefully engineered
pattern-making, beginning with shape and line,
then adding layers in incremental lengths. Her
workbench is littered with scribbled gures. If
she starts with a length of seven, and the bottom
is three, she adds layers in half centimeters,
working toward the middle.
Occasionally she embraces randomness, as
with her Abacus necklace, with beads strung on
hair-like copper-coated wire. That was, for me,
an exercise in letting go, she laughs. I have
this tendency to want order and precision.

Samantha Skelton
Samantha Skeltons jewelry evolved from
copper wire sculptures, two to ve feet tall,
and maintains that industrial edge. But she
pared them way down when she started making
jewelry, and traded the 2-4 gauge wire she used
for her sculptures for 18-10 gauge wire, usually
patinated silver.
I wanted something sculptural that had
my aesthetic but was also wearable and lightweight, she says. Sculptural wire lends itself
well to something wearable.
Samantha earned her MFA in metalsmithing

from Miami University in 2013 and, in 2014,


won the Halstead Grant for design excellence.
Her jewelry begins with a rough sketch. She
hand-forges the at shapes, solders on elements, then forges those pieces to give them a
balloon eect and provide structural strength.
Her studio is lled with charts where she has
recorded various wire measurements. When
shes making a familiar piece, or incorporating
an older element into a new design, she turns to
her charts to gure out what length or gauge of
wire she needs. I can see that a certain pair of
earrings takes two to three inches of 18-gauge
sterling wire, for example, and that its forged
with a certain hammer.
When she wants to add color to her forms,
she uses either traditional glass enamel or the
powder coat they use on car parts. She sprays it
on and then heats it in a kiln where it fuses to the
metal. Its a much more durable coating than
regular enamel, she says.
Despite the fact that she developed her
aesthetic in full-size sculpture, her jewelry is far
from avant-garde. That was deliberate. I want
my jewelry to be easy to wear, not just by people
in the art world and not just by people my own
age, in their 20s, she said. I designed it to be
durable, lightweight, and minimalist, something
you can wear with dierent pieces, with the
fashion of our time.
CATHLEEN MCCARTHYis a freelance writer whose
stories on jewelry, travel, and commerce have appeared in Town & Country, Art & Antiques, and her
own site, www.TheJewelryLoupe.com.

ABOVE

Samantha Skelton
Brooch
Sterling silver
PHOTOS: COURTESY SAMANTHA SKELTON

TOP

Samantha Skelton
Cage Earrings
Patinated silver wire

I wanted something sculptural that


had my aesthetic but was also wearable
and lightweight. Sculptural wire lends
itself well to something wearable.

USING A JIG FOR YOUR


WIRE DESIGNS
In her recent web seminar, Designing Wire Jewelry on a Jig,
Brenda Schweder, the creator of Now Thats A Jig!, explained
the benefits of using a jig:
There are many types of jigs, and each one is custom-tailored
to do a specific job. Types include tabletop, handheld, and
stationary jigs.
Some are made to increase productivity through consistency,
to do repetitive activities, or to do a job more precisely.
Jigs may be well-made for frequent use or may be
improved from scrap for a single project, depending on
the task.
You can use a jig to get smooth, consistent, and
repeatable forms or to create more freeform organic
designs.
Jigs are ideal for creating perfectly matching pairs or
multiples of the same form and for mirror imagery
ensuring that both sides of a jewelry design are
symmetrical.
With a jig, there is far less measuring, marking, and
guessing in your wire jewelry creations.
Find Brenda Schweders webinar-on-demand now
and her upcoming videos using Now Thats a Jig! soon
at www.shop.jewelrymakingdaily.com.

March 2016

23

JEWELRY PROJECT
SKILLS
Modified soumak weave
proficiency

TIME IT TOOK

24

Rued
Wire Woven
Pendant
Master the modified Soumak weave and create a stunning piece
BY SARAH THOMPSON

OPENING PHOTO: JIM LAWSON; PROCESS PHOTOS: COURTESY OF THE ARTIST

l a pida ry jo u r n a l ) ( J e w e l ry a rt i s t

3-6 hours

WIRE WEAVING IS A GREAT technique for

Design Start

creating intricate, textural, and dimensional jewelry with wire, all without
soldering. This pendant is a great introduction to layering, which when
coupled with weaving, can open up the possibilities with your own designs.
I nd that stones, pearls, and gems are the perfect complement to the ne
textures of the weave, giving the jewelry a rened, elegant touch.

A ruled design for


teaching base wire
manipulation as you
weave, beginning layering,
and simple symmetry.

4
M AT E R I A L S

16g ne silver or dead soft


copper wire, 6"
18g ne silver or dead soft
copper wire, 35"
22g ne silver or dead soft
copper wire, 6"
28g ne silver or dead soft
copper wire, 20'

Create Wire 1

Create Wires 2 and 3

40x20mm marquise stone; with


hole drilled through the center,
lengthwise

Photo 1 Cut 6 inches of 16g wire; mark

Photo 3 Cut 7 inches of 18g wire. Mark

4mm metal bead, 1

the center. Line the center mark onto


your bracelet mandrel. Form over the
mandrel just enough to form a curve
that matches the curve of your stone.
Find the center of your stone and mark
with a thin strip of painters tape; place
the stone above the 16g wire so that
the center of the stone lines up with the
center mark on your wire. Mark the wire
on either side of your stone.
Photo 2 With your at nose pliers, bend
the wire up at the marks you just made
so they are parallel. Trim the arms 1
inches from the bend. File at. Grip the
end with the back of your round nose
pliers and loop out. Repeat on the other
side. Bend the arms further in so that
the arms are above the stone. Hammer
the wire to hold in the shape. This will
be referred to as Wire 1.

the center. Line the center mark onto


your bracelet mandrel. Form over the
mandrel just enough to form a curve
that matches the curve of Wire 1 and
sits below it. Line up the center marks.
This wire will be referred to as Wire 2.
Photo 4 Cut a 7 inch length of 18g wire.
Mark the center. With the tip of your
at nose pliers, make a 90 degree
bend at the center mark. Continue to
make 90 degree bends in a zigzag
pattern. You need enough rules to
go one rule beyond the bend of Wire
1 when you line up the center marks.
Repeat on the other side. When you
are nished, the arms should be going
up. This is Wire 3.
NOTE: Where you hold your wire on
your pliers will determine your rules
size, so you may end up with more or

3mm metal bead, 1


TOOLS

LAYOUT: Ruler, permanent


marker, painters tape
HAND: Flat nose pliers, round
nose pliers, wire cutters, chasing
hammer, bench block, bracelet
mandrel (I nd the round works
better), needle les
PATINATION AND FINISHING:
Liver of sulfur, 0000 super ne
steel wool, soft brass bristle
brush or toothbrush
SOURCES

Most of the tools and materials


for this project are available from
well-stocked jewelry supply
vendors, many of whom can be
found in our Advertisers Index,
page 71.

March 2016

25

#1 Design
Features

Shape Originally
I designed this as a
circle but changed
it to accommodate
the marquise stone,
transforming the design
and making it even better
Symmetry

9
fewer rules than what I show here. I
used the tip of my Lindstrom RX pliers.

l a pida ry jo u r n a l ) ( J e w e l ry a rt i s t

Begin the Weaving

26

See More
3D Wire

PAGE

18
STYLIZED NATURE

Photo 5 Tape the three wires together at


the center. Cut an 8 foot section of 28g
wire. Starting 4 feet in and in the center
of your shaped wires, thread the 28g
wire between Wires 1 and 2 from the
back. Wrap around Wire 1, bringing the
28g wire to the back. Thread the 28g
wire between Wires 2 and 3 and wrap
around Wire 2 so that you are in the
back again. Come to the bottom of Wire
3 and wrap around Wire 3. Your 28g
wire should be in the back.
Photo 6 Bring the 28g wire around to the
front, cross over Wires 3 and 2. Thread
between Wires 1 and 2, wrap around
Wire 2 so that your 28g wire is once
more in the front. Cross over Wires 2
and 1 and wrap around Wire 1. Your
28g wire should be in the front. Bring it
around to the back, wrapping Wire 1 in
the process.
One row consists of a row of short
wraps and a row of long wraps.
Photo 7 Repeat the directions described
in Photos 5 and 6 one more time, giving
you two complete rows. Decrease your
weave, weaving only Wires 1 and 2
together in the same manner. Add Wire
3 to your weave at the points where

they touch up against Wire 2.


For best results, begin weaving Wire
3 in just before the bend. Alternatively,
you can weave just one row instead of
two before decreasing your wires back
down.
Photo 8 Stop when you have reached
the bend in Wire 1. Bend Wire 2 up,
keeping it parallel to and behind the
loop of Wire 1. Adjust the angles of
the last rule so it follows the bend.
Position Wire 3 so it is also parallel to
Wire 2 above the rule.
Photo 9 Continue to weave Wires 1 and
2 together around the bend. Weave
all three wires together where Wire 3
becomes parallel to Wire 2. Weave 3
rows. Decrease your weave, weaving
just Wires 1 and 2. Stop the weave when
Wire 1 begins to curve out. Coil around
Wire 2 four times and trim of the
excess 28g wire. Mark Wire 3 a half inch
above the weave. Trim at the mark and
loop the wire outward and below the

larger loop in Wire 1


Remove the tape, ip over your
woven form, and repeat the instructions
from Photos 7-9 on the other side,
using the remaining 4 feet of 28g wire.

10 11

Position the Stone


Photo 10 Cut 6 inches of 22g wire. Slip
your stone onto the wire and center it.
Position the stone inside your woven
design and wrap the ends of the 22g wire
around the woven arms twice to secure
the stone. Trim of the extra 22g wire.
Photo 11 Cut 8 inches of 18g wire. Mark
the center. Starting at the center, make
90 degree bends in a zigzag pattern
with your at nose pliers. Create
enough rules to go one rule beyond
your rst inner rule. Position the center bend downwards and in the center
of your form. The points of your inner
rules should line up with the points
of your outer rules. Adjust the angle
where needed. This will be Wire 4
For a more pronounced outer rule,
make these rules larger than the inner
rules.
Photo 12 Cut 6 feet of 28g wire. Starting
at 3 feet in, lash the center rules of
Wire 3 and 4 together where they meet.
Then coil around Wire 4. Continue to
coil around Wire 4 stopping to lash
Wires 3 and 4 together where they
meet as you work your way down the
outer rule. Stop coiling at the last 90
degree bend.
Photo 13 With your at nose pliers,
decrease the angle of your bend so
that Wire 4 crosses over the woven
form and is directly above the stone.
Continue to coil around Wire 4, stopping when you have passed the woven
arm on the right. Trim of the excess
28g wire.
Photo 14 Wrap Wire 4 around the woven
arm on the right, bringing it to the front
below the loop in Wire 3. Create a large
organic loop on top of, and slightly
inside, the loop of Wire 1. Trim Wire 4
inside the loop of Wire 1.
Repeat on the other side with the
remaining 3 feet of 28g wire.
Cut 5 inches of 18g wire. Mark the
center. Bend into a 45-degree angle at
the mark. Mark both arms 1 inch from
the bend. This will be Wire 5.
Photo 15 Cut 8 inches of 18g wire. Mark
the center. Bend at the mark, forming
a 20-degree angle. Mark both arms

12

MASTER THE
FORM WITH
Fine Art Wire
Weaving
by Sarah
Thompson

13

www.shop.
jewelrymakingdaily.
com

14 15

inches from the bend. Hammer the


tip at; do not hammer beyond the
inch marks. Bend the arms out at the
inch marks so that the V sits below and
parallel to Wire 5. This will be Wire 6.
Photo 16 Cut 3 feet of 28g wire. Starting
at the inch mark and leaving a 1 foot
tail, weave the left arms of Wires 5 and
6 together. Stop the weave when you
reach the 1 on Wire 5. Repeat on the
other side with another 3 foot section
of 28g wire. With your ngers, curve
the woven sections out.

16

March 2016

27

Photo 17 Place the V form over the center


of your rules to see how far you will
need to coil. Using the 12 inch tails on
both sides of the V, coil down Wire 6
until you are directly above the two center lashings where the two rules meet.
Lash the V form onto the rules with
the new lashings going perpendicular to
the existing lashes.

#1 Design
Challenges
Deciding how to attach
to a chain I decided to
go minimal.
How to transition the
wire after the rules to
be balanced and not
overpowering.

Add the Beads

Getting the rules


consistent.

Photo 18 Add a 4mm round metal bead


to one 28g tail and bring the wire over
to the opposite side. Thread the second
28g wire through the bead so that they
crisscross through the center of the
bead. Continue to coil down Wire 6
until you have enough space to add a
3mm round metal bead. Add the bead
crisscrossing the 28g wire through the
bead. Wrap the two 28g wires around
Wire 6 on both sides once to anchor the
bead, then wrap each 28g wire around
the wire passing through the 3mm bead.
Trim the excess 28g wire of.
For the best results, perform the
remaining steps on both sides before
continuing to the next step.
Photo 19 Take the arm of Wire 6 on the
right and bend it to the back, keeping
it snug against the stone. Thread it
through the second rule from the
center, and organically loop the wire out

see
more
work
Their Turn
PAGE 8

28

17

18

19

20

and over the top of the stone but below


the woven section of the V form. Trim
of the extra wire, leaving behind an
open loop.
Photo 20 Take the 28g wire on the right.
Lash the organic loop to Wire 6 where
the weave stops twice. Coil around Wire
6 until you reach the organic loop of
Wire 4. Lash the loop to Wire 6 twice.
Coil around Wire 6 ve more times,
then trim of the excess 28g wire.
You will be coiling around an
enclosed space; if you need to, use
a beading awl to help lift Wire 6 up
to make room to thread the 28g wire
through.
Photo 21 Wrap Wire 5 around Wire 2
directly above the loop of Wire 1. Trim
Wire 5 ush in the back. Bend Wire 2 up
and trim inches. File the end and loop
the wire to the back. This is where you
will attach the pendant to the chain.
Repeat on the other side. Oxidize
your pendant with liver of sulfur and
polish with 0000 steel wool. Use the
brass brush to remove any steel bers
caught in your pendant.
SARAH THOMPSON has been working with wire for
the past six years and is the author of Fine Art Wire
Weaving.

21

spring

Indulge

GREATER PHILLY EXPO CENTER /


Oaks, PA
WORKSHOPS / April 7-10, 2016
EXPO / April 8-10, 2016

your love of jewelry making


in a three-day getaway to
Philadelphia this spring!

The most renowned jewelry-artists working today are bringing their skills and
enthusiasm to Bead Fest Springcelebrating its 10th Anniversary in 2016.
Choose from hundreds of hands-on workshops and build your skills while
having an unforgettable time! Flexible education sessions mean you build the
experience you want, when you want.
Longtime jewelry-makers and first-timers welcome.

The perfect workshop is waiting for you

register now!

BeadFest.com

Be the first to hear about new workshops


and instructorsfollow us on:

Enjoy FREE Expo entry with


any Workshop purchase!

JEWELRY PROJECT
SKILLS
Detailed soldering
Using solder stop
Working with sanding disks

TIME IT TOOK

l a pida ry jo u r n a l ) ( J e w e l ry a rt i s t

Climbing

30

What

Earrings?
Make these climbing ant earrings and
perfect your precise soldering skills!
BY BETSEY LEHNDORFF

OPENING PHOTO: JIM LAWSON; PROCESS PHOTOS: COURTESY OF THE ARTIST

3 hours

BODY PARTS. As I sort through an ounce of sterling silver


casting shot, I am looking for body parts, picking away at the glittering pile
with a pair of tweezers. Does this half-round drop look like an ants head? Is
that tear-shaped drop perfect for an ants butt?
Yes. I know. You are asking yourself, Why? My answer: an online customer
wants a copy of my Add an Ant necklace, but smaller. A lot smaller. Really,
really small. And in time for her wedding.
The original piece features castings of ants over two inches long. In the
new version, they need to be three quarters of an inch. Never one to pass up a
challenge, real or imagined, I start playing in the studio.
The result? Welcome to the art of making small, realistic ants out of sterling
silver wire, shot, and solder. With plenty of practice, youll learn to solder fine
gauge wire and tiny details techniques you can use for your own designs.

M AT E R I A L S

1 ounce of sterling silver casting


shot
18 inches of 20 gauge sterling
silver wire
6 inches of 22 gauge sterling
silver wire
1 pair of sterling silver posts with
ear nuts
Hard and medium solder in wire
form
TOOLS

Making the Bodies


Photo 1 When you look at a closeup

photo of an ant, youll see that its body


is made out of three major parts the
head, thorax, and abdomen. Add to
this a pair of jaws for carrying things,
eyes, antennae, and six legs. Look even
closer, and as a jeweler, youll see the
head is somewhat triangular and flat;
the thorax is long and bumpy; the tail
end, pear shaped. So study some online
images, look at live ants around your
home, then sort through your sterling
silver shot. Line the parts up, forming
two bodies. If some pieces of shot are
fused together, dont worry. You can

trim these away later with a saw.


Photo 2 Using a bezel burnisher, press
the three pieces of shot one at a time
into the soft Solderite board so they
touch. The underside of the ant should
be face down.
Photo 3 Flux the tops of the ants with
Prips Flux. It will flow underneath the
pieces of shot. Apply tiny snips of hard
solder between each segment. Keep a
couple of extra snips handy, along with
a solder pick.
Photo 4 Put on a face mask and safety
glasses. Heat the silver with a small
torch until the solder flows. The

HAND AND FABRICATION:


magnification or safety glasses,
bench pin, ring vise, saw and
0/4 blades, needle files, a dozen
Moores " medium and fine grit
sanding disks and mandrel, wire
cutters, fine-tipped needle nose
pliers, jewelry pliers, bench block,
hammer
SOLDERING: Double canister
face mask, small handheld Blazer
torch, brand new soft-grade
Solderite board, bezel burnisher,
solder pick, fine tweezers,
soldering tweezers, solder
stop (a sealed jar of yellow
ocher mixed into a paste with
alcohol), small brush, Prips Flux
in small spray bottle, water for
quenching, pickle, copper tongs,
toothbrush and hot soapy water
EQUIPMENT: Flexible shaft, shotfilled tumbler with burnishing
liquid
SOURCES

Most of the materials and tools


for this project are available from
well-stocked jewelry supply
vendors, many of whom can be
found in our Advertisers Index,
page 71.

March 2016

31

Design Start
My showy Add an Ant
necklace design and a
customer who wanted a
smaller version of it

5 6
7 8

#1 Design
Features
Lifelike jewelry
Nature
Earrings that make
people laugh

Solderite board, when used as a jig,


keeps things from shifting or rolling out
of position. Quench, pickle, and rinse.
TIP: Use a jewelers hammer to atten
the wire solder on a bench block, so you
can cut smaller snips and tuck them into
the joins. They dont roll of.

l a pida ry jo u r n a l ) ( J e w e l ry a rt i s t

Carve the Silver to Refine Shapes

32

Photo 5 Place the ant body head rst into


the ring vise, tighten with the wedge,
and use your jewelers saw or needle
les to carve the abdomen into a pear
shape. The end should be a slight point.
Photo 6 The body on the left is starting
to take shape. It does not have to be
perfect. Small variations and aws give
the ants personality.
Photo 7 Use Moores medium sanding
disks on a mandrel tted into your

10

exible shaft to rene and smooth the


abdomen, using your bench pin for support. These disks are exible and can be
pressed against the metal. Edges can
be used for cutting. If the disk catches,
wrinkles, or begins to vibrate, its time
to snap on a new one. As you make
progress, reposition the body in the
ring vise or hold it with your ngers. Dip
in water if the metal gets too hot. Leave
rough.

Make Legs
Photo 8 Cut 20 gauge wire into six
3-inch pieces. The extra length is handy
for later.
Photo 9 Using the tips of your round
nose pliers as a mandrel, bend the
middle of each length of wire into a
hairpin shape. Check the t. The bend
in the wire should t tightly around the
solder joins of the ants body.
Photo 10 Use chain nose pliers to bend
a 90 -inch tip at the end of each leg.
Trim the ends with wire cutters so they
are equal.

The body on the left is starting to take shape. It does not have to be
perfect. Small variations and flaws give the ants personality.

Photo 11 The last step for the 20-gauge


wires is to bend inch of the curved
end of the hairpin at a right angle so
that it is parallel to the tips. Gently pull
the legs apart.

11

GET MORE
PRACTICE
How to Solder
Jewelry 2016

Solder
Photo 12 Put on face mask and
magnication visor or safety glasses.
At the Solderite board, position the
body on the back legs so that the ants
backbone, if he had one, is facing up.
Flux well with Prips. Apply a tiny snip of
hard solder to each side where the legs
touch the body, and heat until it ows.
Keep a soldering pick and extra snips of
solder handy. Quench, pickle, and rinse.
Photo 13 Position the body on the center
and front legs, making sure they do
not touch. The back legs will keep
everything upright and steady. Flux well
and apply snips of hard solder. Heat by
waving the ame of the torch gently
over the piece, to avoid melting wires,
until the solder ows. I use sort of a
push-pull method, repeatedly bringing
the ame in close, then pulling back
until the solder ows. Quench, pickle,
and rinse.

12
www.shop.
jewelrymakingdaily.
com/how-to-solderjewelry-2016

13

Add the Antennae


Photo 14 Twist the ends of the 22-gauge
wire hairpins together and bend the
tip at a 90 angle. Trim. Use a solder
pick to puncture a hole in a fresh part of
your Solderite board. Place the twisted
tip into the hole for support and position the U-shape bend so that it rests
on the back of the ants head.
Brush solder stop over the leg joins,
avoiding the head area. Heat to burn
of alcohol fumes. To prevent the yellow
ocher from bleeding, heat the piece again,
then ux with Prips so that it turns snow
white on contact. Place a chip of medium
solder on the head at the antenna and
heat until solder ows. Brush the ame
over the body until it heats up, then over
the ne wires, until the solder ows.
Quench, pickle, and rinse.

14

March 2016

33

#1 Design
Challenges
Shaky hands and tiny parts
can make soldering diicult.
Protecting ne wires from
melting also can be a
challenge, especially when
working with hard solder.
The solution is practice!

15

17

16

18
Finish
Photo 15 At your bench, put on a face

see
more
work
Their Turn

l a pida ry jo u r n a l ) ( J e w e l ry a rt i s t

PAGE 8

34

19

mask. Use Moores medium sanding


disks to atten the underside of the
ant, reducing the wire ridges. Make
sure there is plenty of wire soldered to
the body so the legs wont fall of later.
Touch up the area where the antennae
were soldered to the head. You may
need to push some legs out of the way
to create room to maneuver.
Photo 16 Use your ngers and chain
nose pliers to bend legs and feet at
90-degree angles.
Photo 17 Trim of excess with cutters, leaving less than a -inch tip for each foot.

Photo 18 Use chain nose pliers to grip


and atten the ends of the feet and
antennae. Smooth the edges with
Moores ne grade sanding disk. Use
your pliers or ngers to gently position
the legs so that the ant appears to be
walking. Clean gently with a toothbrush
and hot soapy water.
Photo 19 Coat the back of the ant and
antennae with solder stop to protect
your work. On the soldering board,
place the ant on its back. Heat to burn
of alcohol fumes and ux with Prips
while the piece is hot. Flux the earring
posts. Melt a small snip of medium solder onto the end of each post. Place in
soldering tweezers and position on the
attened belly of the ant. Heat the tips
of your soldering tweezers, then the
body and post, until the solder ows.
Instead of focusing the torch ame on
the join, brush the hot gases over the
body and tweezer tips to avoid melting
ne wires. Quench, pickle, and rinse.
Place in a tumbler to polish for a
couple hours, burnishing the ants to a
high shine and hardening their delicate
legs. Add large ear nuts and enjoy an
unusual piece of jewelry.

BETSY LEHNDORFF is a silversmith in Northeast


Michigan, and has been writing for Lapidary
Journal Jewelry Artist since 2010. To see her work,
go to www.hubbardlakesilversmiths.com.

March 2016

35

SMOKIN STONES
By Sharon Elaine Thompson

The Other
Tourmalines

Warmly colored gems less often


in the limelight

38

boisterous, blended family. While there is a family resemblance in


their crystal structure and complex chemical composition, colors
and characteristics blur across species.
Three tourmaline color varieties have accepted name
descriptions: rubellites are pink to red; indicolite is a smashing
blue; and chrome tourmaline is an intense green, colored by
chromium. A fourth is tagged Paraba, the intense, nearly neon
blues/greens originally from the Brazilian state of Paraba.
However, not everyone agrees that this place name should be
used to describe a color regardless of provenance.
Attempts are sometimes made to herd tourmalines into species
by color. For example, one tourmaline species name that is
sometimes applied to yellow, orange, and yellow-green stones
is dravite. However, according to gemological references and
to folks in the industry who should know, dravite a virtually
opaque tourmaline that might be mistaken for a crystal-shaped
root beer candy is one of tourmalines more embarrassing
family members. The other example is schorl, a black and brittle

PHOTOS: COURTESY STULLER, INC.

l a pida ry jo u r n a l ) ( J e w e l ry a rt i s t

TOURMALINES ARE LIKE a big,

Tourmalines in all colors are a strong presence online and at jewelry


shows. Youre sure to find exactly the color youre looking for.

species. While some jewelry makers


incorporate dravite crystals into
pendants or earrings, on the whole,
its glossed over in jewelry.
When it comes to the other
tourmalines in their shades of
yellow, golden, honey, orange,
salmon, peach, lemon, mint, and
canary, its best to describe them
simply by their color. They may be
part one species and part another,
but theyre all beautiful tourmaline.
And thats what matters.

Facet It

How much does it cost? Faceted


yellow, yellow-green, and orange stones:
$5-$250/carat, depending on size,
clarity, color, and cut.
How hard is it to find? Tourmalines in
all colors are a strong presence online
and at jewelry shows. Youre sure to find
exactly the color youre looking for.

PAGE

40
STAR TREK TRILLION

What kind of jewelry can I put this


in? Pretty much anything. Tourmaline, at
7 to 7 in hardness, with no cleavage, is
a generally durable stone.
How easy is it to set? Easy with decent
setting skills. Faceted stones are often

caliber cut, and cabochons are flat


backed.
What settings are best? Prongs or
bezels work well for faceted or cabbed
stones. For tourmalines that will be
exposed to wear, protect the edges.
Artisan/studio dos and donts. No
steamer, no sonic, no heat. Heat-treated
tourmalines may change color if exposed
to high heat.
Wearer dos and donts. Use reasonable
care when wearing and enjoy them.
SHARON ELAINE THOMPSON is a freelance writer
based in Oregon. She has written for Lapidary
Journal Jewelry Artist since 1987. You can learn more
about her and read previous articles at
www.jewelryartdiva.com.

March 2016

39

FACET DESIGN

PHOTO: JIM LAWSON

Star Trek
Trillion
Created for tourmaline
but lively in almost
any gem material
BY JIM PERKINS

l a pida ry jo u r n a l ) ( J e w e l ry a rt i s t

I ENJOY
ASTRONOMY

40

and the television and movie


productions of Star Trek, and
when I looked at this trillion
design, it simply suggested Star
Trek to me. I dont remember
just why, but the shows arrow
point shaped insignia is like
a rounded triangle with an
inverted V taken out of it.
In any case, I especially like
trillion designs, and this one is
probably one of my favorites
because the same angles work
well for any material from
quartz to cubic zirconia. In the
past, some have argued with
me about odd symmetry gems
being hard to set and my claim
that they are more lively than
many even symmetry gems.
Over the years, I have shown
that odd symmetry stones

with mirror-image symmetry


are no harder to set than even
symmetry gems and that odd
symmetry does in fact create
a more lively gem. Trillions
benet from a triple bounce
efect, and other shaped odd
symmetry stones benet from
lightray splitting.
I cut this from old stock
gem rough I obtained from
www.hashnustones.com. It is
dichroic, meaning that it shows
one color through the c-axis, in

this case brownish/gold, and a


second color through the A/B
axis, in this case green.
To boldly go where no man
has gone before.

JIM PERKINS began to cut stone at age 12


in his fathers rock shop. He studied art and
design at Cuyahoga Valley Art Center and
at the University of Akron and faceting at
William Holland School of Lapidary Arts.
He has published several books, including
Learning to Facet in the 21st Century Using
the Fac-ette and Learning to Facet in the
21st Century Using the Facetron. Contact
him at jimperkins@zoominternet.net.

PAVILION
FACET

ANGLE

INDEX

COMMENTS

P1

46.70

02-30-34-6266-94

Create a temporary
centerpoint

P2

43.60

06-26-38-5870-90

Meetpoint at the
temporary centerpoint

P3

90.00

02-30-34-6266-94

Set size

P4

90.00

06-26-38-5870-90

Close corners, polish


girdle

P5

45.60

96-32-64

Create a new permanent


centerpoint

P6

44.00

04-28-36-6068-92

Meetpoint at the
permanent centerpoint

FACET

ANGLE

INDEX

COMMENTS

C1

41.30

02-30-34-6266-94

Set girdle height

C2

38.90

06-26-38-5870-90

Set girdle height

C3

34.00

04-28-36-6068-92

Girdle meetpoint

C4

18.00

09-23-41-5573-87

Meetpoint at C2 - C2

C5

21.00

96-32-64

Meetpoint at C1 - C1

C6

0.00

Table

Meetpoint at C3 - C3

CROWN

STONE NOTES
Angles for R.I. = 1.540

More
Tourmalines

49 + 12 girdles = 61 facets
3-fold, mirror-image symmetry
96 index
L/W = 1.008 T/W = 0.506 U/W = 0.505

PAGE

38

P/W = 0.427 C/W = 0.131


Vol./W3 = 0.173

SMOKIN STONES

March 2016

41

TRENDS
By Deborah Yonick

Get Smart
making jewelry functional in high-tech ways

l a pida ry jo u r n a l ) ( J e w e l ry a rt i s t

earable technology, aka


smart jewelry, is the
catchphrase on everyones
lips. Devices you can wear that track
steps, calories burned, heart rate,
body temperature, and sleep patterns,
signal important calls, lock your car
or house, and more will become an
integral part of our lifestyles.
The relentless expansion of high
tech into our everyday lives in the
guise of clothing, accessories, and
jewelry is an erupting mega-trend. In
2016, the development of wearable
tech with a functional link to health,
entertainment, notification, and
security is set to grow exponentially.
This new aesthetic is turning what
once were mere gadgets into coveted
jewels.
This is an historic moment for
both the tech and jewelry worlds,
hails Robin Raskin, Living in Digital
Times founder and editor, in New York
City. Shop better, live better, stay

42

Ringly
Into the Woods Ring
Connect to your phone through your
jewelry
Emerald, 18K gold
PHOTO: COURTESY RINGLY

connected, and look good doing it!


She praises jewelry as aspirational
and personal, a good storyteller, and
in tune with the language of the body
perfectly poised to capitalize on
this category.
Because jewelry is something we
wear every day, made with materials
that stand up to regular use, it lends
itself well to holding technology, says
Amanda Parkes, chief of technology
and research for Manufacture New
York, a Brooklyn, N.Y.-based incubator that brings together the fashion
and tech worlds.

Swarovski
Activity Tracking Jewelry Cleyera
Wristband
Silicone band, metallic-colored crystals,
black metal-look casing, square black
crystals
PHOTO: COURTESY SWAROVSKI

Wearable tech will be an important


category for the jewelry industry,
says Mark Hanna, CMO for the New
York City based jewelry manufacturer
Richline, an innovator in this category. From simple notification to more
complex control of devices and health
monitoring, the potential to integrate
these functions into a wearable piece
of jewelry exists.
STATISTICS
Wired magazine anticipates that
wearable tech will be as big as the
smart phone. According to Global
Web Index, 71% of those aged 16-24
want wearable technology. Nielsen
cites 77% of future intenders plan to
purchase a wearable tech device in the
next two years. Wearable technology
is expected to become a $10.5 billion
industry by 2018 in the United States
alone, reports BI Intelligence, growing at a compound annual rate of 35%
over the next five years.
Consumer research by the Los
Angeles-based research firm MVI

Wearable tech will be as big as the smart phone . . . expected to


become a $10.5 billion industry by 2018.

Marketing, via its Jewelry Consumer


Opinion Council August 2015, reveals
that 72% (1,012 respondents aged 2645) have heard of wearable tech, with
76% extremely to somewhat interested
in the category. Most compelling about
wearables is the ability they convey to
stay connected, their convenience, and
their multiple functionality.
MVI research reveals that women
are especially interested in this
category (64% of survey respondents
were female). Theyre looking for ways
to simplify their lives products that
have fashion styles and functions that
help them get through the day (i.e. reminders, ways to stay in touch, security
features), says Hanna.
PRODUCTS
Sports and tness enthusiasts and
professional athletes have pushed
the concept of wearable tech, says
Raskin. In fact, the pace of innovation
in the digital health arena exceeds all
other areas, cites Scott Amyx, Amyx
McKinsey, San Francisco-based smart
wearables innovation, strategy, and de-

Richline
Smart Jewelry
Cuff Technology
PHOTO: COURTESY RICHLINE GROUP

velopment agency. Some of the most


exciting applications are coming out of
the medical eld, doctors developing
wearable features that collect data for
clinical purposes.
Beyond health and tness, wearables
that entertain and streamline our day
are innovating the category as well,
cites Raskin, including Mighty Cast and
its NEX brand that lets wearers interact
with all their passions from friends to
music to gaming to movies to sports
via collectible Mod charms that are
connected to the cloud; or Pay2Wear
by Nymi, a bracelet that makes quick,
secure payments when you hover your
wrist over pay-and-go terminals.
There are also greater collaborations

Richline
Fitbit Compatible Jewelry
Pendants
PHOTO: COURTESY RICHLINE GROUP

between jewelry manufacturers and


watchmakers with tech companies. In
2015, Richline unveiled smart jewelry
designs and partnerships with Omate
and CUFF, and new products featuring dierentiated technology from
companies like Say and Mighty Cast,
as well as an assortment of compatibles
that oer stylish alternatives for use
with existing wearables like Fitbit and
Jawbone. Richline introduced two tiers
of products: ne jewelry in precious
metals, fashion jewelry in bronze and
base metals. In addition to tness
tracking, many of its designs oer
features centered on personalization,
notication, and discrete security.
We felt it was essential to balance

TRENDS

Looking Tech

PAGE

46
CYBERNETIC BARRETTE

CLOCKWISE FROM FAR LEFT

Swarovski
Activity Tracking Jewelry Piofiora Wristband
White silicone band, silver-toned crystals set
in Swarovskis Crystal Rocks technique
PHOTOS: COURTESY SWAROVSKI

Swarovski
Activity Tracking Jewelry Vio Reversible
Pendant
Clear crystal pav, black crystal pave,
rhodium-plated chain

l a pida ry jo u r n a l ) ( J e w e l ry a rt i s t

Swarovski
Activity Tracking Jewelry Slake bracelets
Carrier in Alcantara and crystals, available in
dark gray, gray, and black

44

entirely new innovations with elegant


options for existing products, tells
Hanna. On the one hand, there are
several popular tness wearables that
we can help make more stylish. On the
other, recent advances in technology
have made it possible for us to create
jewelry, for the elegant lifestyle, that
can do far more than tness.
Swarovski, fashions favorite gem
and crystal brand, also launched a year
ago its Shine line featuring Activity
Tracking Crystal, with interchangeable
bracelets, watchbands, and pendants,
now available in a solar powered
version. Also announced in 2015, a
partnership between CUFF wearables
and the Kiran Group, a leading manufacturer of diamonds, to bring stylish
smart jewelry to customers to stay
connected with loved ones and track
daily activity. In November, the watch
group Fossil acquired Mist with plans

to incorporate its technology into traditional watch designs. In fact, a growing


number of luxury watch companies
are innovating in this area, including
Movado and Tag Heuer.
By holiday 2016 this will be a very
promoted and available ne jewelry category, expects Hanna. Its now moving with a much broader base of jewelry
and watch manufacturers combined
with ever-increasing tech rms. We
expect to see many new oerings initiated by traditional jewelry rms from
the U.S., India, and China. Meanwhile,
mergers like Mist with Fossil are ac-

celerating the pace of synergy between


function and fashion.
POSSIBILITIES
Theres a big push for fashionable
function, says Raskin, taking whats
currently unattractive and techy and
making it discrete, stylish, and customizable. Experts hail that even before
people know and understand the function of the wearable they should want
and desire it because it looks good,
feels good, and is fashionable for what
theyre doing in their day.
Size has been a challenge for smart

Kiran Group
Wearable Tech
CUFF Bracelet
PHOTO:
COURTESY
THE KIRAN
GROUP

Dont chase tech for the sake of tech. Focus on functions and
capabilities that accentuate what your brand and products stand for.

jewelry in tting tech modules like


Fitbit into traditional designs, as
well as battery considerations. The
more functionality (lights, vibrations,
colors), the more drain on the battery,
says Hanna, who explains the more
the battery does, the bigger it is. Its
a tricky combination of the right size
overall, acceptable battery life, functionality, and ease of upkeep.
The better technology gets, reminds
Raskin, the smaller the packaging. She
sees more products using watch batteries, and expects to see more versions
solar powered and capable of wireless
charge. Parkes also cites developments
like lithium-ion ber battery yarn that
can be woven into textiles, likening it
to experimentation with 3D printing
circuits in the jewelry itself. Jewelry is
well-positioned for metals to be part of
the functionality.
Amyx advises jewelry makers interested in wearables remain true to their
DNA. Dont chase tech for the sake of
tech. Focus on functions and capabilities that accentuate what your brand
and products stand for. He reminds
makers that jewelry captures special
moments, reinforces connections, and
says Im valued, so the digital component must emphasize and enhance
these values.
Parkes cites Ringly as a great example of the possibilities, with a focus on
staying connected to people who matter
most. These smart rings in gemstones
like labradorite, onyx, chalcedony, and
moonstone send customized notications through vibration and light.
Explore how you can incorporate
technology into your own designs:
receivers can be embedded in jewelry,
promotes Parkes. She advocates that
jewelry makers concentrate on detail
and dierence. Think smaller collections and targeted audience. Do one
thing really well; nurture a specialization. Remember, people change the
jewelry they wear.

ABOVE

Ringly
Out to Sea Ring
Connect to your phone through your jewelry
Lapis, 18K gold
PHOTO: COURTESY RINGLY

LEFT

Kiran Group
Wearable Tech CUFF Pendant
PHOTO: COURTESY THE KIRAN GROUP

The challenge, says Parkes, is balancing the lasting value of jewelry and
ever-changing aspect of technology.
Theres something to be said for keeping things simple. For jewelry, whats
most important is fashion rst. It must
be a beautiful object youd wear regardless of the technology.
RESOURCES
If you want to learn more, Raskin
advocates checking out incubators/
collaborative spaces like Manufacture
NY that run labs and workshops about
wearables in the fashion and acces-

sories space, as well as oer access to


equipment like laser welders that may
be cost prohibitive to smaller artists.
Moreover, Raskin advises artists to
look to art and fashion institutes like
FIT and Parsons as the fashion industry
is diving into this space in a big way.
She recommends following whats
happening in the makers movement
on websites like www.Makezine.com
and blogs like Living in Digital Times,
FashioningTech, Wearable Insider,
and Wearable Style News (hosted by
Richline). Also, visit crowd-funding
sites like kickstarter and indiegogo to
see what people are up to.
DEBORAH YONICK has been writing about
jewelry and fashion trends for more than 20
years for trade and consumer publications
and online, and has loved both for much
longer! With roots in New York, she presently
lives and works in York, PA.

March 2016

45

JEWELRY PROJECT
SKILLS
Use of uncommon
jewelry materials
Metal fabrication

TIME IT TOOK
8 hours

Cybernetic
Barrette

A sci-fi take on what smart jewelry for the hair might look like

46

OPENING PHOTO: JIM LAWSON; PROCESS PHOTOS: COURTESY OF THE ARTIST

l a pida ry jo u r n a l ) ( J e w e l ry a rt i s t

BY ROGER HALAS

AS COMPUTER TECHNOLOGY

becomes
more and more integrated into our daily lives, we can imagine a day when
microchip implants and nano-robots will provide us with instant Internet
access or the ability to fight diseases at the microscopic level. This event,
called the Singularity, will occur when this human/machine interface gives
rise to a superintelligence that will make us, in a way, superhuman kind of
like the Borg from Star Trek, only less frightening.
Focusing on the Singularity, I designed a barrette with the look of a cerebral
implant, right out of science fiction. Since modern cybernetics originated in
the 1950s, I wanted to go with a vintage sci-fi look, using a circuit board and a
piece of dichroic glass with its dazzling color play to stand for the battery in this
futuristic bit of wearable art that looks like wearable tech.

4
M AT E R I A L S

18 gauge sterling sheet


22 gauge fine silver sheet
14 gauge sterling wire
2 circuit boards
One piece of dichroic glass
One French barrette attachment
TOOLS

SOLDERING: Torch setup,


firebrick, flux

Fabricate the Back Plate


Photo 1 First, find a piece of dichroic

glass that is roughly squarish or


oblong. There are many sources for this
all over the Internet, and its not pricey
at all. Do a search and you will find it.
The circuit boards can be purchased
through Frys Electronics. Cut a piece
of 18 gauge sterling, approximately 1
inch X 3 inches. The size really depends
on the length of the dichroic glass. For

mine, I actually used 3 inch.


Photo 2 Use fine silver wire and cut
a bezel for the glass. Typically, I use
sterling for everything, but since glass
is brittle, its safer to go with a softer
metal like fine silver that can be rolled
over the glass without too much
pressure.
Photo 3 Use hard solder for the bezel.
Photo 4 Solder the bezel to the back
plate.

HAND: Jewelers saw, tin snips,


Foredom or Dremel, vise, files,
pliers, beading tool set
OTHER: Dykem blue metal dye
SOURCES

Most of the tools and materials


for this project are available from
well-stocked jewelry supply
vendors, many of whom can be
found in our Advertisers Index,
page 71.

March 2016

47

A beading tool is normally used for stone setting, but it happens to have
sharp edges that will easily mark metal, so take advantage of that.
5

10

l a pida ry jo u r n a l ) ( J e w e l ry a rt i s t

Really Smart
Jewelry

48

PAGE

42
TRENDS

Photo 5 This is a trick I picked up while


learning how to make knives. Marking
metal can be problematic because of
oils and such, and ink tends to smear
of. A solution is a dye solvent called
Dykem Blue, which doesnt wear of
during fabrication like when you
inadvertently drag your palm across
the piece. Use the dimensions of the
two circuit boards, trace an outline, and
cut out two seats for them with your
jewelers saw.
Photo 6 Cut the two frames in half and
rene them with les and sandpaper.
Photo 7 The piece should look like this.
Photo 8 Solder those frames to the base
plate.
NOTE: You will notice here that I bent
the plate. You can do this in a vise

or with pliers, and it takes very little


efort.
Photo 9 More ling, just making
everything neat. Remember, this is a
technological device, so it should look
like something that was manufactured
with an artistic air, of course.

Create the Decorative Elements


Photo 10 For that vintage look, use a
beading tool as a stamp to make some
pretend rivets. A beading tool is

normally used for stone setting, but it


happens to have sharp edges that will
easily mark metal, so take advantage
of that.
Photo 11 Drill a couple of holes
through the base plate, using a 1/16inch drill bit and the French barrette
as a frame of reference.
Photo 12 Solder the prong into place.
Photo 13 Set the bezel.
TIP: To avoid breaking the glass, I use
the handle of a stone setting tool to
roll the metal over the dome. Since
ne silver is fairly soft, this does not
take much pressure.
Photo 14 Set the circuit boards.
TIP: Place a drop of glue on the back
of each to hold it in place.
Photo 15 And nally, attach the
barrette and bend down the prongs.
Its that simple. The next time you
go to a science ction convention,
remember, those people have an eye
for this sort of thing, and they will
appreciate it. And if they ask, call it
Vintage Borg.

11

12

see
more
work
Their Turn
PAGE 8

ROGER HALAS is a stone cutter, metalsmith and


jewelry designer who specializes in science fiction
and fantasy themes. He can be reached at rhalas@
jungleintrigue.com or through Facebook.

13

14

15

March 2016

49

50

l a pida ry jo u r n a l ) ( J e w e l ry a rt i s t

You learn by doing, but it helps to have advice

BY LINDSAY JARVIS

IOPENING LLUSTRATION: ISTOCK.COM; ICONS: FREEPIK.COM

What Do
You Know!

education
veryone learns dierently, especially
when it comes to jewelry making! We
wanted to ask the project contributors in
this issue to tell us a few of their favorite educational experiences.

Best Workshop Intensive


Betsy Lehndor, a talented and innovative
metal- and silversmith, shares some thoughts on
a teacher who left a lasting impact.
Tom Herman of Seven Fingers Jewelers is a
generous and personable American master and
was my most memorable instructor. Over a veday period of intensive instruction, he taught us
advanced silversmithing students that sterling
can take a lot of punishment. It can be moved
and annealed and then moved a lot more. It can
be carved and shaped with saws, les, gravers,
chasing tools, and Moores sanding disks.
Yes, I invested a lot to take this class. In
return, it gave me the courage to push my own
metalsmithing beyond what I thought was possible. Herman also is open to questions long
distance and I have consulted him several times,
including for stories, like the one I did in the
November, 2015 issue on carving a fern leaf

YES, I INVESTED A LOT TO TAKE


THIS CLASS. IN RETURN, IT GAVE
ME THE COURAGE TO PUSH MY
OWN METALSMITHING BEYOND
WHAT I THOUGHT WAS
POSSIBLE.

More from Betsy Lehndorff


IN THIS ISSUE:
Climbing What Earrings? by Betsy Lehndorff, PAGE 30
AVAILABLE AT WWW.SHOP.JEWELRYMAKINGDAILY.COM:
The Art of Production Jewelry: Making Multiples to Maximize Time
and Profits with Betsy Lehndorff, on-demand webinar
ABOVE

RIGHT

Betsy Lehndorff
Cat Pendant

Betsy Lehndorff
Add an Ant Necklace

PHOTO: JIM LAWSON

PHOTO: JIM LAWSON

Jewelry Displays that Stop Shoppers in Their Tracks with Betsy


Lehndorff, on-demand webinar
Lapidary Journal Jewelry Artist, April 2011, Tom Herman, cover artist

March 2016

51

What Do You Know!

LEFT

Brenda Schweder
Calder Study I Necklace
PHOTO: BRENDA SCHWEDER

BELOW

Brenda Schweder
3D Diamond Necklace
PHOTO: BRENDA SCHWEDER

I have several jewelry teachers with whom


I have studied who have greatly inspired me:
Sr. Mary Rosmarita Huebner, Susan Lenart
Kazmer, Keith LoBue, and the master of masters, Robert Ebendorf. Many more artists from
the contemporary art jewelry movement have
influenced my work. They have all followed
their own paths, and each has allowed me the
room and support to follow mine fine line
and all!

Inspired by Dad

More from Brenda Schweder


IN THIS ISSUE:
Tips from Brenda Schweder, PAGE 23
AVAILABLE AT WWW.SHOP.JEWELRYMAKINGDAILY.COM:
ABCs of Wire Wrangling Using Now thats a Jig! with Brenda
Schweder, video

Making and Designing with Simple Single Links on the Now Thats a
Jig! with Brenda Schweder, video

Jewelry making videos by Susan Lenart Kazmer are also available at


l a pida ry jo u r n a l ) ( J e w e l ry a rt i s t

www.shop.jewelrymakingdaily.com

52

bracelet. You can see more of his work at www.


sevenfingersjewelers.com and in the April, 2011
issue of Lapidary Journal Jewelry Artist.

Her Own Path

Gifted jewelry artist and creator of Now Thats a


Jig! Brenda Schweder tells us about some of her
many influences. My brother-in-law once said of
me: Theres a fine line between art and junk. At
the time, he was helping the family move, but even
so, Brenda says, I have specific tastes. Wacky,
way-out there, specific tastes. Out of the ordinary,
left of center, non-traditional tastes.

Master faceter and jewelry artist Jim Perkins,


who also creates his own facet designs, started
young and kept on going. Hes been cutting gems
and making jewelry for decades, and hes still
learning new things.
My father took cabochon lessons from a
rock shop near Findlay, Ohio, and bought equipment. I would watch him work on cabochons every night, but he wouldnt show me how to make
one. I was determined to learn so I would run
home after school and try to make cabochons on
my own until I finally got one good enough to set
in jewelry for my mother.
After that, I got the job of cutting cabochons
for my fathers shop. A couple years later, I did
cabochon repolishing for local jewelers, mainly
Masonic rings. In high school, I made jewelry,
ceramics, and copper enameling to sell. I wholesaled aquarium decorations and had a group of
women working for me so I could buy a car and
also play sports. While in college I taught classes
in copper enameling and cabochons/jewelry
making at Mobleys craft shop in Wadsworth.

SO MANY DIFFERENT
PEOPLE TAUGHT ME
OVER THE YEARS, AND
I HAVE LEARNED THE
MOST, I THINK, FROM
MY STUDENTS.

ne and applied arts. I had opportunities to


work as a commercial artist but never took them.
Instead, I pursued a career in machine-tool
engineering, specializing in optical comparators
and measuring machines.
I have always enjoyed lapidary and jewelry as
an avocation or hobby. Although I am not teaching at this time, I have taught faceting to people
from all over the United States and some foreign
countries, and I may teach again at a later date. I
enjoy publishing now in Lapidary Journal Jewelry
Artist and occasionally in the United States
Faceting Guild Newsletter. I have met many
fascinating people through my hobby, and have
learned the most, I think, from my students.

The Old Trial and Error

More from Jim Perkins


IN THIS ISSUE:
Star Trek Trillion by Jim Perkins,
PAGE 40

AVAILABLE AT WWW.SHOP.
JEWELRYMAKINGDAILY.COM:
10 Faceting Designs: Best of Lapidary Journal

Roger Halas works in several media from polished stones to forged metal. He gives us some
wisdom on being self-taught.
The truth is my educational background
in the realm of jewelry is fairly limited. Using
introductory jewelry books, I became a goldsmith virtually by trial and error. Torch, solder,
ux, and the possibilities were unleashed. After
all, soldering two pieces of metal together isnt
exactly rocket science, although having a basic
understanding of scientic principles helps with
the technical aspects of metal fabrication.

LEFT

Jim Perkins
Megans Wedding Stone
Antique Cusion Cut
Cubic Zirconia
PHOTO: JIM LAWSON

BELOW

Roger Halas
T-Rex Buckle
PHOTO: ROGER HALAS

Jewelry Artist, downloadable compilation

I also did all their [stone] slabbing and maintained their equipment.
In the old days where I grew up, many gem
club members Kent State professors, high
school teachers, and professional jewelers. I
beneted from all the time and interest they
showed me. My Dad had a number of books
and magazines, Lapidary Journal and Gems and
Minerals specically, which I always read from
cover to cover. So many dierent people taught
me over the years, people I met in my travels
throughout the U.S. I cant even begin to
thank them all.
In 1990, I took faceting lessons at Allens
Rock & Gift Shop in Westlake, attended William
Holland Lapidary School two years in a row, and
in 2001, I was at the Northwest Faceting Guild
in Portland, Oregon, where Jerry Capps gave me
a tutorialon using GemCad for creating facet
designs. When I returned home, I began designing myself. I had a good design background in
art in junior high and continued with evening
and weekend classes through high school. At
the University of Akron, one of mymajors was

More from Roger Halas


IN THIS ISSUE:
Cybernetic Barrette project by Roger Halas, PAGE 46
AVAILABLE AT WWW.SHOP.JEWELRYMAKINGDAILY.COM:
5+ Ways to Set Stones, downloadable compilation

March 2016

53

What Do You Know!

Learn More Now


Find the right learning center for
whatever you want to master next in
our section of mini profiles of schools
and other places of instruction.
PAGE 55

ABOVE

Roger Halas
Dragon Guardian
Medallion
PHOTO: ROGER HALAS

BELOW, FROM LEFT

Sarah Thompson
Fallen Pendant

Every material has a continuum over which it


can be manipulated with success on one end
and failure on the other. Once I know those parameters, I can focus on my role as an artist. And
that can apply to anyone. When standing in front
of a blank canvas, rst you learn how to paint;
from then on, inspiration tells you what to paint.

PHOTO: SARAH
THOMPSON

Sarah Thompson
Wendy Boulder
Opal Pendant

l a pida ry jo u r n a l ) ( J e w e l ry a rt i s t

PHOTO: SARAH
THOMPSON

54

Books and Exploration


Gifted and inventive wire jewelry artist Sarah
Thompson is currently Step by Step Wire Jewelrys
Artist of the Year. She shares some insight into
her background.
I started learning jewelry at an early age.
In the beginning, it was upcycling items found
around the house. By the time I was 14, I became
interested in beads. Not having the income to
take classes, I turned to the library to explore
and learn dierent beading techniques. Because
of this, I have never felt the need to take classes.
In 1994, I developed an interest in learn-

ing wire weaving and found that there was no


literature or classes teaching what I wanted to
learn. So I spent the next ve years developing
and guring out my style and how to apply wire
weaving techniques. For the last six years, I
have been passionately involved in working with
wire and learning from trial and error, as I am
continually trying to push the envelope on what I
can accomplish with just wire.
LINDSAY JARVIS is the Group Promotions Editor for
the Interweave Jewelry and Beading group. When
not tangled up in crafting supplies, she loves to take
walks with her husband and their toy poodle.

More from Sarah


Thompson
IN THIS ISSUE:
Ruffled Wire Woven Pendant project by
Sarah Thompson, PAGE 24

AVAILABLE AT WWW.SHOP.
JEWELRYMAKINGDAILY.COM:
Fine Art Wire Weaving by Sarah Thompson,
book
Wire Weaving Techniques: Mastering FineGauge Wire Weave with Sarah Thompson,
on-demand webinar

focus on... education

REVERE ACADEMY
of JEWELRY ARTS
San Francisco
M A S T E R S S Y M P O S I U M , A P R I L 4- MAY 1
2SHQWRDOOOHYHOV

3-day classes, 2-month


GLSORPDSURJUDPV

Barbara Heinrich
Jewelry Design & Creation

PROFESSIONAL TRAINING FOR EVERYONE

www. revereacademy.com

Shake Rag Alley


Center for the Arts
Mineral Point, Wisconsin | 608-987-3292

38 Jewelry Workshops in 2016

ShakeRagAlley.com

METALS
WORKSHOPS
Summer 2016 Metals Week Faculty
Sarah Doremus Elise Preiss
Joanna Gollberg Rachel Shimpock
Victoria Lansford Deborah Jemmott
Tom McCarthy

Register Now!
summer@idyllwildarts.org
951.468.7265

idyllwildarts.org
Use the code JA16 by April 15,
2016 to take advantage of the
5% pay in full discount.

March 2016

55

focus
on ...

education

Revere Academy of
JewelryArts
785 Market Street, Suite 900
San Francisco, CA 94103
(415) 391-4179
info@revereacademy.com
www.revereacademy.com
Take your jewelry to the next level! The
Revere Academy of Jewelry Arts in
downtown San Francisco covers professional instruction for students at all levels.
State-of-the-art jewelry studios feature live
close up video camera and wide-screen
TVs so students can see every detail. Short,
intensive, weekend classes in Design,
Fabrication, Argentium, Clasps, Polishing,
Wax, Casting, Setting, Diploma programs,
and more.

Clear Creek Academy of


Jewelry and Metal Arts
3648 Navajo St.
Denver, CO 80211
(303) 429-1401
Fax: (303) 650-4714
info@clearcreekacademy.com
www.clearcreekacademy.com
Clear Creek Academy offers classes,
intensives and workshops in silversmithing,
goldsmithing, lapidary, forging and forming,
casting and wax carving, stone setting, PMC,
enameling, jewelry photography and more.
Quality private or group instruction, exible
scheduling, small class sizes, and excellent
facilities and equipment. We also have a
student gallery to show and sell your work.

Jewelry Creations Workshop Work, Share, Learn

l a pida ry jo u r n a l ) ( J e w e l ry a rt i s t

1400 NE 131st St.


North Miami, FL 33161
(305) 610-6560
www.jewelrycreationsworkshop.com
Our fully equipped jewelry workshop is home
to visiting jewelry artists, monthly renters
and people learning the skills it takes to
make beautiful things. Our small classes assure the special attention you need to learn
the most possible. Rental spaces available
for professionals and novice jewelry makers
that enjoy the sense of community you get
at JCW. See you soon!

56

William Holland School of


Lapidary Arts
PO Box 980, 230 Lapidary Ln.
Young Harris, GA 30582
(706) 379-2126
lapidary@windstream.net
www.lapidaryschool.org
We offer classes in beading, cabochons,
silver, gold, wire wrappings, glass beadmaking, chain making, channel, faceting, gem ID,
mineral ID, intarsia, glass fusing, opals, silver
clay casting, jewelry repair, and gem trees,
from AprilOctober each year. Check out our
website.

Bill Fretz Workshops


PO Box 1010
20 Elm St.
Bucksport, ME 04416
(207) 469-2700
fretz@roadrunner.com
www.fretzdesign.com
Join Bill Fretz in metal forming in his personal workshop. The workshops are held
in a New England carriage house with all
tools and supplies provided in a very well
equipped shop. Concave and convex forms
are explored using Fretz tools with special
pricing for workshop tools. Workshop information and a technical column are available
at: HAMMERS/STAKES at
www.fretzdesign.com

Studio JSD
219 N. 7th St., Suite 4
Grand Haven, MI 49417
(616) 607-2470
www.studiojsd.com
Students at Studio JSD are encouraged to
develop their unique style as they learn
fundamentals in jewelry fabrication. Schedules include multiweek class sessions, studio
intensives, technical classes and visiting artist
workshops. Our guests enjoy a large, fully
equipped jewelry studio, small class sizes
and professional instructors, located near
the sandy shores of beautiful Lake Michigan.
Visit the website for current program schedule including special workshops with Gerry
Lewy, Michael David Sturlin, Julie Sanford
and Richard Salley.

Quench Jewelry Arts, LLC


681 17th. Ave. NE, Suite #100
Minneapolis, MN 55413
www.quenchjewelryarts.com
We offer a broad range of jewelry classes
and workshops for all ages and skill levels.
Master series as well as Metalsmithing 1&2
sessions, stone setting, wax carving, lost
wax casting, cuttlesh casting, enameling,
project-based classes and more. Creative
and inviting atmosphere located in the heart
of the NE Minneapolis Arts District.

Santa Fe Jewelers Supply


Bob Hazeltine, Instructor
3200 Mercantile Ct.
Santa Fe, NM 87507
(800) 659-3835
Instructor Ph: (505) 400-3274
info@sfjs.net, www.sfjs.net
bob.hazeltine@gmail.com
Novice or advanced, small group or private
(classes limited to 4). We offer instruction
for both the beginner and the journeyman.
Bob Hazeltine brings 40+ years of experience and award winning designs to the
classroom. Comprehensive training available
in basic and advanced techniques including stone setting, wax carving and casting,
soldering, and lapidary stone cutting and
polishing. Add vibrant color to your pieces
with Basic or Advanced Enameling classes.
SFJS now offers a complete line of enamels
and enameling tools as one of the newest
distributors for Thompson Enamels. Bob can
also customize curriculum to your particular
needs. Certicate programs offered. We look
forward to seeing you in class!

Taos School of Metalsmithing


and Lapidary Design
PO Box 3005
Taos, NM 87571
(575) 758-0207
mndesigns@msn.com
www.taosjewelryschool.com
Taos Jewelry School offers beginning
through advanced classes in jewelry and lapidary design throughout the year taught by
internationally recognized designer Marilynn
Nicholson, known for her unusual techniques
in cutting and setting stones, and innovative designs for catches and mechanisms.
Individual and small classes emphasize
personal attention in an artistically stimulating atmosphere.

Studio Jewelers Ltd.


32 E. 31 St.
New York, NY 10016
(212) 686-1944
Fax: (212) 689-7923
info@studiojewelersltd.com
www.studiojewelersltd.com
A jewelry trade school, licensed by the NYS
Education Dept. Day, evening, Saturday, full
and parttime courses. Basic jewelry making,
repair, diamond setting, wax modeling/casting, pearl and bead stringing, and design.
Financial aid available, VA approved. Studio
Jewelers, winner of the School of Distinction
2005 award by ACCSCT Accrediting Commission.

Creative Side Jewelry


Academy of Austin
321 W. Ben White Blvd., Suite 204
Austin, TX 78704
(512) 799-0731
info@creativeside.org
www.creativeside.org
Offering classes from beginner to advanced,
Creative Side is the top jewelry crafting school
in Central Texas. Private classes and studio
rentals are easy to book and cater to individual
or group needs. Courses vary each semester
from Introduction to Jewelry Making to our
Master's Series. We feature workshops including Forged Together where couples melt,
pour and form their own ne metal wedding
rings and Teen Summer Camps that introduce
metalsmithing techniques to budding artisans
in a safe and creative environment. We are also
the only facility currently holding Argentium Instructor Certication training. Visit our website
to learn more today.

The Craft Guild of Dallas


5100 Beltline Rd., #400
Dallas, TX 75254
(972) 490-0303
info@craftguildofdallas.com
www.craftguildofdallas.com
Since 1948, The Craft Guild of Dallas has
offered beginning to advanced jewelry and
metalsmithing courses. Mornings, afternoon,
and evening classes are available in our new
state of the art studios. Study fabrication, wax
carving/casting, design, stone setting,
enameling, beading, chain making, and metal
clay. Classes, workshops and our Metals Master Invitational Series are offered throughout
the year. Check our website at
www.craftofdallas.com for details.

12825 127th Ave. SE


Snohomish, WA 98290
(360) 568-7709
www.ArtatTheRanch.com
Located on 5 secluded acres just a few
minutes north of Seattle, The Ranch offers an
exceptional learning experience in a variety
of media. Our focus: small classes, brilliant
instructors. Coming in 2016: Cynthia Eid,
Mary Hu, Ricky Frank, Megan Corwin, Charles
Lewton Brain, Barbara Minor, Valentin Yotkov,
Ford Hallam, Daniel Essig, Robert Liu, Randi
Harper, Jesse Bert, Janos Varga, Chad Alice
Hagen, Jennifer Stenhouse, Molly Sharp, Alison
Antelman, Jayne Redman, and more. (Also on
Facebook & Crafthaus)

Shake Rag Alley Center for the


Arts
18 Shake Rag Street
Mineral Point, WI 53565
(608) 987-3292
info@shakeragalley.com
www.ShakeRagAlley.com
Choose from over 35 Jewelry Workshops
ranging from one to ve days in our wellequipped studio. Well-known visiting artists
as well as talented regional instructors
teach small size classes. Visiting artists
Richard Salley, Eva Sherman, Sarah Thompson, and Wisconsin artists Kay Rashka, Jill
Erickson, Leslie Perrino, Julie Lukosaitis and
more will lead workshops in 2016. Shake
Rag Alley is located in Southwest Wisconsin, about an hour west of Madison. Visit
ShakeRagAlley.com for more information.

focus on... education

The Ranch Center for Arts &


Craft

Georgian College
1 Georgian Dr.
Barrie, Ontario
CANADA L4M 3X9
(705) 728-1968
Andrea.wenchebach@georgiancollege.ca
www.jewelleryschool.ca
www.georgianc.on.ca/sdva
We offer comprehensive diploma and postgraduate certicate programs in beginner
to advanced techniques covering all aspects
of the jewelry arts and industry including
fabricating, stone setting, wax carving, casting, CAD work, 3-D printing, repairs, jewelry
rendering, hollowware, forging, lapidary,
reactive metals, business courses and more.
We have fully equipped jewelry studios, small
class sizes and provide professional instruction. Our students have won international
awards. Come join our creative, dynamic
group of students.

ADVERTISING

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(877) 613-4613
mkoponen@interweave.com

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(877) 613-4630
sgriess@interweave.com

neXt

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www.petersvalley.org

Layton, NJ
March 2016

57

Learn everything you


need to MAKE LEATHER
JEWELRY!

Whetherr youre
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Intro to

elry
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Build a solid foundation of le
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to more advanced shaping and soldering in this
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Learn all of Lexis tips and tricks as you:
Pierce metal, le, and cut to create a
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Create a beautiful small pot
Discover new ways to add texture and
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Patina and hand nish for several
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www.interweavestore.com/
make-open-and-hollow-forms

FACETS
news & product innovations
John Dyer
Internal Fire
88.17ct Brazilian Citrine

lapidary journal )( Jewelry artist

PHOTO: LICHTBLICK FOTODESIGN, HILTRUD & JRGEN


CULLMANN

60

OUTSTANDING GEMS
The 2015 German Award for Jewelry and Precious Stones was presented in IdarOberstein, Germany, on November 27, 2015. First place was awarded to John Dyer for
his 88.17ct red/orange Brazilian Citrine, entitled Internal Fire.
The competition, held every two years, rewards excellence in designer gem cutting.
Criteria for the award include gemstone design, concept, realization of the theme, and
quality of craftsmanship
MORE AT WWW.EDELSTEINE-DIAMANTEN.DE

BEST WIREWORK
RESOURCE
Wirework has become one of the most popular
and artistic forms of jewelry creation. For
evidence, just check out the spectacular designs
in Stylized Nature on page 18
and Sarah Thompsons
Ruled Wire Woven Pendant
on page 24.
For creating your own wire
jewelry designs, theres no better
resource than Step by Step Wire
Jewelry. And you can now get
all six issues from 2015 in one
convenient download. Youll
receive a years worth of wire
jewelry projects for levels from
beginner to advanced, as well
as articles for inspiration and
instruction.
AVAILABLE AT
WWW.SHOP.
JEWELRYMAKINGDAILY.COM

More Cool Tools &


Hip Tips
All jewelry makers love their tools. Debates about which
hammers or pliers or torches are best can get heated
and go on and on. And Helen Driggs loves her tools more
than most. Her Cool Tools & Hip Tips columns give advice
and suggestions about which jewelry tools to get and
where.
The digital compilation Jewelry Making Tools, Tips, and
More, Vol. 4: Cool Tools & Hip Tips, 2013-2014 ofers you
18 of Helens columns in one downloadable PDF. Youll
get Helens advice on topics like stone setting essentials,
enamel basics, tools for riveting and cold connections,
metal stamping, portable torches, and much more.
Remember to order the rst three volumes for
even more fun with tools.
AVAILABLE SOON AT WWW.SHOP.
JEWELRYMAKINGDAILY.COM

March 2016

61

FACETS
COMING IN
APRIL

Galatea
Dragon Pearl, 2012
King Pearl Collection
14mm Tahitian carved pearl
PHOTO: HAP SAKWA

American pearls
Pearl carving
Torch fired enamel floral

necklace
Wraparound raindrop
ring

NEWS TO SHARE?
? Facets accepts news and images

lapidary journal )( Jewelry artist

GEM AND
JEWELRY GUIDE
2016

62

The annual Tucson gem, jewelry, mineral, fossil,


and bead shows have come and gone for
another year. I hope you made it there. If you
did, I was the one you saw wandering around
the shows on the I-10 strip, oohing and aahing
over pretty cabochons and fish fossils.
But even though the shows are over, The
2016 Tucson Show Guide is the go-to source for
suppliers of all your jewelry-making needs. In its
pages, youll find the Annual Buyers Directory, a
comprehensive list of suppliers, their products,
and their locations which will help you find what
youre looking for all year round.
And its never too early to start planning your 2017
Tucson trip with The Tucson Show Guide.
AVAILABLE AT WWW.INTERWEAVESTORE.COM/
TUCSON-SHOW-GUIDE-2016

of new products, innovations,


industry happenings, and events as
space permits. Share your news by
sending items to karla.rosenbusch@
fwcommunity.com. Please be sure to
indicate Facets on the subject line.

DISCOVER THE

secrets of the

jewelry bench

A Whole World of Fine

PEARLS
All Kinds of Better Natural Stone

BEADS

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March 2016

63

ASK THE EXPERTS


questions, answers, & tips
By Tom & Kay Benham,
contributing editors

HOW TO CLEAN STAINLESS STEEL

Im trying to polish some laser-cut stainless steel pieces. I am


curious about the Japanese Pikal polishing paste, and I am trying
to remove scratches and bring the pieces to a nice shine. Do you think it
would work with a Dremel tool, or would I need a polishing wheel? So
far Ive tried a tumbler as well as the Dremel with traditional polishing
compounds from the hardware store.
Snapdragonstudio

Because we are unfamiliar with this compound and our online


A
search for Pikal paste produced no information on how to use it
or how it works, we can only oer advice about polishing in general. It
is important to know what level of nish youre starting with and what
level of nish you wish to achieve, plus how deep the scratches are
that you wish to remove. Generally speaking, polishes are not the ideal
media to remove scratches unless they are very shallow.
Whether your polishing job can be accomplished by using a small
Dremel tool or a large bung wheel would be determined by the size
of your laser cut stainless steel parts. If they are too large, it would take
forever to polish them, and conversely, if the parts are too small, you
may not be able to hold and control them on a large bung wheel.
Perhaps some other readers have experience with Pikal and can
share what they know about it. Other than that, we can only suggest
that you experiment with what you have at hand before rushing out to
buy some expensive polish that might just sit on your shelf unused for
the next ten years. Been there, done that!

l a pida ry jo u r n a l ) ( J e w e l ry a rt i s t

TIP: A ROLL MILL TEXTURE

64

We are ever on the lookout for new techniques to


produce texture and pattern for metalwork and jewelry,
and when a student at a recent workshop wanted to
create a very ne texture using the roll mill, it provided
an opportunity to experiment. There was little available
in the studio, so we had to improvise.
From a roll of heavy duty aluminum foil we found,
we tore off and crumpled a sheet several times the
area of the silver sheet to be textured. Then we
uncrumpled it and spread it out to the size of the silver
sheet. The foil was still heavily crinkled.
We adjusted the roll mill to a snug t on the silver
sheet, then sandwiched the foil and silver sheet
together and ran the sandwich through the mill.
This produced a very light, subtle texture pattern, nice but too light to meet the
students desire.

Next, we
prepared
two sheets of
aluminum foil
sandwiched
back to
back which
we heavily
crinkled
and then
partially opened as before. Then we
tightened the roll mill slightly and ran
the sandwich through the roll mill again.
This time the texture was exactly what
the student desired. Now we are sharing
this technique with you. Enjoy!

TIP: THE SANDBAG:


AN UNSUNG HERO
We nd we make frequent use of
sandbags in our workshop. First, some
general uses:
Placing a steel bench block on a
sandbag to embellish metal using texturing and/or stamping tools not only
deadens the noise but also reduces
vibrations.
A sandbag can be used to atten
metal that has been dished during
hammering: just place the metal on
the bag and atten with a urethane
dead-blow or rawhide mallet.
The sandbag holds and steadies oddshaped materials such as cylinders,
rectangles, and squares when working on them.
It is ideal for forming metal. One can
easily transform a round metal disc
into a shallow bowl by beginning at
the outside edge and just rhythmically tapping with a rounded nylon
hammer. Tap three or four times, then
rotate about 10 degrees, and continue
in a spiral as you rotate a full 360
degrees, moving in a little closer at a
time until you reach the center. If you
work carefully, the process is almost
automatic and will produce very nice
bowls.

Next, here are several ways we use our


sandbag for chasing and repouss:
We use the sandbag to elevate our
pitch bowl when we cant change the
height of our chair. As they say, If
you cant see the line, then you cant
chase it.
We can do light touch-up repouss on
the back of a workpiece using wood
or nylon tools on annealed metal
placed on a sandbag. This eliminates
another round of placing the work on
the pitch, repoussing it, and removing
it from the pitch.
One of the side effects of chasing a
pattern into the metal sheet is that,
after a while, the entire top sheet is
pushed down into the pitch, forming
a slight concave dome. This effect is
sometimes called oil canning, a name
derived from the old fashioned oil can
where you pushed on the domed bottom of the can to squirt out a drop of
oil. This concave surface detracts from
the depth of the surface.
Removing the metal sheet from
the pitch and cleaning it up allows
one to turn the metal over onto the
sandbag, and tap the bottom design
of the metal with a round nylon mallet. This does no harm to the workhardened chased lines, but pushes
the concave surface outward into
a convex surface. This causes the
chased surfaced to look fuller, with
more dimension, without ever having
to repouss it. For lack of a better
name we call this little trick poofing.

ASK THE EXPERTS VIA


EMAIL OR SOCIAL MEDIA!
? Send your questions and tips to:
karla.rosenbusch@fwcommunity.com.
Or post them to www.Facebook.com/
JewelryMakingDaily or www.Twitter.
com/JewelMakingDaily. Use the
hashtag #AskTheExperts.
Please include your full name and
where you live. Answers may appear
in a future issue.

TIP OF OUR
HAT TO . . .

Nechamkin 10
Small Pattern
Chasing Tools
We freely admit that
we have a problem
when it comes to jewelry making tools. Can you really ever have too
many? That would be a resounding No! from most of us involved in
chasing and repouss especially when it comes to the well-made
tools created by Liza Nechamkin.
We recently began using her new chasing hammer (described in the
September/October, 2015 issue), which has become a favorite, so we
decided to try some other tools and settled on the new 10-piece, small
pattern, chasing tools featuring 9/64 shanks designed especially for
jewelry scale and ne detail work, which perfectly meets our needs.
Because the tools are small, it was a bit difficult to distinguish the tiny
tips from each other, and we were pleasantly surprised to nd each
tool neatly stamped with its own tool number and use.
Lisa worked as a chaser/silversmith at Tifany & Co. for 13 years
and has used, seen, and been inspired by her large collection of 18th
century German, French, and American handmade chasing tools. In
keeping with these traditions, her tools are meticulously handcrafted,
with long graceful tapers, rounded edges, and well-polished surfaces,
making the tools comfortable, and easy to hold and maneuver into
even the nest detail. Kay is especially impressed by the hollow
planisher tool, which has a slight convex radius for tting over curved
surfaces. We both like that the tools are handcrafted in the USA, 100%
American materials and labor. We readily give this set a two thumbs
up rating.

We recently replaced our sandbags


with ricebags. Thats right: rice. We
nd that it works just as well as sand,
is inexpensive, and best of all for us,
rice weighs considerably less than
sand. We teach a lot of chasing and
repouss workshops and provide
toolkits for our students. Each kit
contains a pitch pot, pad, hammers,
mallet, chasing tools, bench block,
sandbag, scalpel, and the like so
the weight of each box is considerable. Since we drive a Prius, we are
in a constant battle to reduce the
weight of the tools we must transport: the weight 12 of sandbags really
does add up!
If your shop doesnt already include
a sandbag or two, you can easily nd

sandbags from most jewelry suppliers


these days. If you are a do-it-yourselfer when it comes to tools and equipment, you can make one or more bags
in different sizes to t your needs.
Simply sew two pieces of canvas,
denim, suede, or leather together
in a square or round shape, leaving
about a 1 opening. Trim around
the outside about a away from
the stitching, then turn the bag inside out. Partially ll the bag with
sand, or rice if you are adventurous,
and stitch the opening closed. Take
care not to ll the bag too full. Since
we are the belt and suspenders
type, we actually sew a couple rows
of stitches after we turn the bag inside out and before lling it.

March 2016

65

INDEX TO VOLUME 69
INDEX BY FEATURE/
PROJECT/DEPARTMENT

Lapidary Journal Jewelry Artist


April 2015-March 2016

FUN HOLIDAY JEWELRY: Upcycle Your Silver Scrap p. 60


SIN
SINCE

1
1947

With title, page numbers, month,


and year published.

INSIDE...
Super ways
to use
tassels
NOVEMB
NOVEMBER
OVEMBER
2015
015

l a pida ry jo u r n a l ) ( J e w e l ry a rt i s t

FEATURE ARTICLES
Artisan Jewelers Who Love Plastic, 54,
12-15
How to Tumble Stones, 26, 05/06-15
Jewelry on the Dark Side, 50, 09/10-15
Maker, Muse, & Pioneer, 42, 08-15
New at Buying Lapidary Rough, 60,
07-15
Photographing Gems and Jewelry, 48,
07-15
Research Your Market, 56, 08-15
Starting Your Jewelry Business, 34,
05/06-15
Stylized Nature, 18, 03-16
Texture with Hammers, Punches, and
Gravers, 18, 11-15
What Do You Know, 50, 03-16
Whats the Best Class Youve Ever
Taken, 54, 04-15
Wonders of Wood Jewelry, 50, 05/06-15

66

PROJECTS/DEMOS/FACET DESIGNS
Alien vs. Predator Ear Cuff, 46, 09/10-15
Bezeled Resin Birds Necklace, 18, 09/10-15
Big Bezel Pendant, 28, 05/06-15
Candelaria Turquoise and Sterling Cross,
20, 04-15
Climbing What Earrings, 30, 03-16
Colorful Enamel Dome Ring, 58, 09/10-15
Cybernetic Barrette, 46, 03-16
Designing with a Shape, 30, 11-15
Designing with Paper Clay, 54, 11-15
Easy Jewelry Photography, 56, 07-15
Fossilized Red Oak & Silver Pendant, 20,
07-15
Growth Rings Wood Brooch, 56, 05/06-15
Hammer Formed Fine Silver Bangles,
34, 01/02-16
Hammered Silver Rose Pendant, 48, 08-15
Heart to Heart Silver & Agate Pendant,
26, 01/02-16
How to Develop a Line: Production Ear
rings, 26, 07-15
Megans Wedding Stone, 14, 12-15
Memento Jewelry, 20, 05/06-15
Metal Clay Double Spinner Ring, 42, 04-15
Metal Clay Hinged Locket, 40, 01/02-16
Mixed Metal Pebble Pendant, 38, 12-15
Moving Metal Clay Ring, 48, 04-15
Mystical Moonstone Ring, 30, 12-15
Native American-Inspired Hammer Set
Pendant, 32, 08-15

Make this

PRONG
TEXTURED
PENDANT
... with surprise back!
Favorite Hand Tools
and Equipment
, HAMMERS, GRAVERS,
PUNCHES p. 18
, TUMBLER, ULTRASONIC CLEANER,
AND MORE p. 12

As seen in:
COOL TOOLS & HIP TIPS!

FINISHING
COLLECTION p. 14

Plus
LaserPatterned
Silver Fern
Cuf

John
Jo
ohn
o
hn Heu
Heusl
He
Heus
eus
eusl
us er's
u
usl
er'
er
r's
Pecto
Pec
Pectolite
Pe
ectolit
e
ctolite
lite
lite
e&
Pear
P
Pearl
arl
rl Pe
Pend
Pen
Pend
nd
dan
ant
a
nt
PAGE
AGE
G 40
GE
40

New Pinolith and Sterling Belt Buckle,


20, 08-15
Pectolite & Pearl Pendant, 40, 11-15
Picture Perfect Heads or Tails Pendant,
48, 12-15
Resin and Silver Earrings, 32, 07-15
Resin Sea Flower Pin-Pendant, 30, 04-15
Ruled Wire Woven Pendant, 24, 03-16
Saw Pierced Fern Leaf Cuff, 48, 11-15
Score and Fold Metal Star, 22, 12-15
Serendipity Holiday Pendant, 60, 11-15
Serpentile Chrysotile Pendant with
Rhodochrosite, 20, 01/02-16
Shrink Plastic Ring, 36, 08-15
Silver Sugar Skull Pendant, 34, 09/10-15
Square Wire Heart Pendant, 42, 07-15
Star Trek Trillion, 40, 03-16
Tasseled Collar, A, 26, 04-15
Tubular Transformation, 42, 05/06-15
Whimsical Carved Skull Jewelry, 28,
09/10-15
COOL TOOLS & HIP TIPS
25 Days of Hand Tools, 16, 12-15
Brass is the New Black, 14, 07-15
Forming Tools, 14, 08-15
Metal Stamping, 14, 04-15
New Tools for 2015, 14, 05/06-15
Plastic Fantastic, 14, 09/10-15
Pliers, Jigs, Formers, and Shapers, 14, 03-16
Shop Essentials, 12, 11-15
Tools I Cant Live Without, 14, 01/02-16
THE LAPIDARY JOURNAL JEWELRY
ARTIST DOERS PROFILE
Christy Klug, 80, 07-15
Cynthia Eid, 72, 03-16
Jim Perkins, 80, 05/06-15

Laura Beth Love, 72, 01/02-16


Melissa Cable, 72, 11-15
Michael Boyd, 80, 04-15
Nol Yovovich, 80, 08-15
Pauline Warg, 72, 12-15
Roger Halas, 72, 09/10-15
NET PROFITS
Facebook Insights: Boost Your Following,
10, 04-15
Get Ready for Proposal Season, 12, 12-15
Give Em Credit, 10, 01/02-16
Lessons from the Fall, 12, 09/10-15
New Ideas for Social Media Marketing,
10, 07-15
Online Etiquette, 10, 11-15
Strategize Your Social Media, 10, 03-16
Winning Contest Strategy, A, 10, 08-15
Work Local, Market Global, 10, 05/06-15
SMOKIN STONES
Candelaria Turquoise, 18, 04-15
Carnelian and Black Onyx, 09/10-15
Chrysotile & Serpentine, 18, 01/02-16
Fossilized Red Oak, 18, 07-15
Larimar, 38, 11-15
Memento Rocks, 18, 05/06-15
Moonstone, 28, 12-15
Other Tourmalines, The, 38, 03-16
Pinolith, 18, 08-15
TRENDS
All in the Details, 30, 01/02-16
Best Thing in Diamonds, 36, 04-15
Get Smart, 42, 03-16
Getting an Earful, 42, 09/10-15
Head Dressing, 28, 08-15
Lunatic Fringe, 26, 11-15
Mantras in Mosaics, 46, 05/06-15
Opal Essence, 26, 07-15
Spring 2016 Colors, 44, 12-15

INDEX BY AUTHOR
With title, page numbers, month,
and year published.
BRIGGS, BARBARA
Resin Sea Flower Pin-Pendant, 30, 04-15
CASE, KATE
Mixed Metal Pebble Pendant, 38, 12-15
CHEN, LILIAN
Square Wire Heart Pendant, 42, 07-15
DENBOW, KIRSTEN
Colorful Enamel Dome Ring, 58, 09/10-15
Shrink Plastic Ring, 36, 08-15

DRIGGS, HELEN I.
25 Days of Hand Tools, 16, 12-15
Bezeled Resin Birds Necklace, 18, 09/10-15
Brass is the New Black, 14, 07-15
Designing with a Shape, 30, 11-15
Forming Tools, 14, 08-15
Metal Stamping, 14, 04-15
New Tools for 2015, 14, 05/06-15
Plastic Fantastic, 14, 09/10-15
Pliers, Jigs, Formers, and Shapers, 14, 03-16
Shop Essentials, 12, 11-15
Tools I Cant Live Without, 14, 01/02-16
ERICKSON, LEXI
Fossilized Red Oak & Silver Pendant, 20,
07-15
Silver Sugar Skull Pendant, 34, 09/10-15
FORTES, BEATRIZ
Big Bezel Pendant, 28, 05/06-15
Hammered Silver Rose Pendant, 48, 08-15
Score and Fold Metal Star, 22, 12-15
FRETZ, BILL
Hammer Formed Fine Silver Bangles,
34, 01/02-16
FULKERSON, JEFF
Candelaria Turquoise and Sterling Cross,
20, 04-15
Heart to Heart Silver & Agate Pendant,
26, 01/02-16
Native American-Inspired Hammer Set
Pendant, 32, 08-15
New at Buying Lapidary Rough, 60, 07-15
FURMAN, KATE
Growth Rings Wood Brooch, 56, 05/06-15
HAAG, TERRI
Jewelry on the Dark Side, 50, 09/10-15
Photographing Gems and Jewelry, 48, 07-15
Wonders of Wood Jewelry, 50, 05/06-15
2016'S TOP SPRING COLORS! Foldform a Silver Star
SINCE

1947

Roger Halas's
Mystical
Moonstone Ring

DECEMBER 2015

PAGE 30

MAKE
THIS

Kite
Shaped
Ring
2-SIDED Spinning

Portrait Pendant

Facet the Perfect


Engagement Stone

MARRY SILVER
TO BRASS in a
hollow pendant

HANNICKEL, MIKE
Serendipity Holiday Pendant, 60, 11-15
HEUSLER, JOHN F., G.G.
New Pinolith and Sterling Belt Buckle,
20, 08-15
Pectolite & Pearl Pendant, 40, 11-15
Serpentile Chrysotile Pendant with
Rhodochrosite, 20, 01/02-16

Cold Connect
with a tap and die set
and more ...
AS SEEN IN COOL TOOLS
& HIP TIPS PAGE 18

Memento Pebble Pendant pg 20 Q Tumble Polish Rocks PG 26


SINCE
NCE
CE

1947
194
47

MAY/
MAY/JUN
MAY/JU
MAY/J
MAY/JUNE
/J
201
2015
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PAGE
AGE
GE 56
6

How-To, Tools, and More


DETAILS INSIDE PAGE 15

JARVIS, LINDSAY
What Do You Know, 50, 03-16

PLUS:
QT
 he

6 Essentials for a Successful


Jewelry Business Start
to Make a Big Bezel with
a Small Torch and Kiln
QC
 reate Curved Copper Jewelry
Elements from Hardware Store Pipe
QH
 ow

LEEDS, JOHN
Whimsical Carved Skull Jewelry, 28,
09/10-15
LEHNDORFF, BETSY
Climbing What Earrings, 30, 03-16
How to Develop a Line: Production
Earrings, 26, 07-15
Picture Perfect Heads or Tails Pendant,
48, 12-15
Saw Pierced Fern Leaf Cuff, 48, 11-15
McCARTHY, CATHLEEN
Facebook Insights: Boost Your
Following, 10, 04-15
Get Ready for Proposal Season, 12, 12-15
Give Em Credit, 10, 01/02-16
Lessons from the Fall, 12, 09/10-15
Maker, Muse, & Pioneer, 42, 08-15
New Ideas for Social Media Marketing,
10, 07-15
Online Etiquette, 10, 11-15
Strategize Your Social Media, 10, 03-16
Stylized Nature, 18, 03-16
Winning Contest Strategy, A, 10, 08-15
Work Local, Market Global, 10, 05/06-15
MELE, AZUR
Easy Jewelry Photography, 56, 07-15
MORNICK, ARLENE
Metal Clay Double Spinner Ring, 42,
04-15
Metal Clay Hinged Locket, 40, 01/02-16
Moving Metal Clay Ring, 48, 04-15
NATHANSON, LAUREL
Resin and Silver Earrings, 32, 07-15
Tasseled Collar, A, 26, 04-15
Tubular Transformation, 42, 05/06-15

And learn to manage


triangle wire

UPDATED
CUSHION CUT:

HALAS, ROGER
Alien vs. Predator Ear Cuff, 46, 09/10-15
Cybernetic Barrette, 46, 03-16
Mystical Moonstone Ring, 30, 12-15

PERKINS, JIM
How to Tumble Stones, 26, 05/06-15
Megans Wedding Stone, 14, 12-15
Star Trek Trillion, 40, 03-16

THOMPSON, SARAH
Ruled Wire Woven Pendant, 24, 03-16
THOMPSON, SHARON ELAINE
Artisan Jewelers Who Love Plastic, 54,
12-15
Candelaria Turquoise, 18, 04-15
Carnelian and Black Onyx, 09/10-15
Chrysotile & Serpentine, 18, 01/02-16
Fossilized Red Oak, 18, 07-15
Larimar, 38, 11-15
Memento Rocks, 18, 05/06-15
Moonstone, 28, 12-15
Other Tourmalines, The, 38, 03-16
Pinolith, 18, 08-15
Research Your Market, 56, 08-15
Starting Your Jewelry Business, 34,
05/06-15
Texture with Hammers, Punches, and
Gravers, 18, 11-15
Whats the Best Class Youve Ever
Taken, 54, 04-15
YONICK, DEBORAH
All in the Details, 30, 01/02-16
Best Thing in Diamonds, 36, 04-15
Get Smart, 42, 03-16
Getting an Earful, 42, 09/10-15
Head Dressing, 28, 08-15
Lunatic Fringe, 26, 11-15
Mantras in Mosaics, 46, 05/06-15
Opal Essence, 26, 07-15
Spring 2016 Colors, 44, 12-15
YOVOVICH, NOL
Designing with Paper Clay, 54, 11-15
Memento Jewelry, 20, 05/06-15

FIND BACK ISSUES


AT WWW.SHOP.
JEWELRYMAKINGDAILY.COM
March 2016

67

Make

Metal Clay

Findings

for Pins
and Pendants

with Nol Yovovich

How to Color Titanium


for Jewelry
with Nol Yovovich

How to

C o lo r
Ti t a n i u m

for Jewelry

Create colorful titanium through


heating and anodizing as you:
Discover
Disscov
Disco
over
er why
why titanium
tiitanium iiss tthe
he magic
magic
meta
al w
ith a
cco
omplished jewelry
jewelry artist
artist
metal
with
accomplished
No
l Yov
vov
vich
h
Nol
Yovovich
Explore the
th
he strength
stre
ength and
and lightness
lightness of
of
titanium a
ass y
you
heat
anodize
ou h
eat or a
nodize the
the metal
metal
for instant
insstant a
nd
db
rillliant co
olor ch
hanges
for
and
brilliant
color
changes
Mask,
Mask, texture,
te
exture
e, a
nd spot-color
spot-ccolor tto
o ccontrol
ontrol
and
your results
re
esults
www.interweavestore.com/
how-to-color-titanium-for-jewelry

wi
with
th N
No
o
o
ll Y
Yo
ovo
vov
ovi
vic
vich
ch

CLASSIFIEDS
RATES AND INSTRUCTIONS:

SCHOOLS & EDUCATION

MONTANA

Minimum 25 words. $2.50 per word for onetime insertions. Bold ad with frame $12.50
extra per insertion; Gold highlight extra $20
per insertion. Payment required by closing
for first-time and international advertisers.
Visa & MasterCard accepted. Call
Stephanie Griess at 970-613-4630, or e-mail:
sgriess@interweave.com. Closing Date: 60
days ahead of issue. Late copy will be run
in next issue unless otherwise instructed.
Visit us on the web at:
www.jewelrymakingdaily.com.

SUNNY TAOS, NM Year-round individual


and small classes. Beginningadvanced
fabrication and unusual stone-setting techniques. Taos School of Metalsmithing and
Lapidary Design, Marilynn Nicholson, PO
Box 3005, Taos, NM 87571. (575) 758-0207;
www.taosjewelryschool.com;
taosjewelryschool@msn.com

Harmons Agate & Silver, Inc.

CUSTOM MANUFACTURING &


DESIGN
WE HAVE 40 YEARS EXPERIENCE IN
VOLUME JEWELRY PRODUCTION. We
use de-oxidized sterling silver alloy, never
firescale! Metals used include de-ox silver,
de-ox 10, 14, 18k gold, de-oxidized yellow
bronze, silicon bronze, and white bronze.
Our special processing is cast and tumble
only or mechanical finish or complete
hand finish, ensuring a quality product.
We are experts in mold making in silicon
and latex rubbers. We provide small runs
or up to 1,000s of pieces. Model making
is also available. Please contact RUIDOSO
METAL WORKS through our website
www.ruidosometalworks.com or our
toll-free number (888) 552-5299.
GEM CUTTING SERVICES, GEM CUTTING
& SAPPHIRE HEAT TREATING SERVICES
from Sri Lanka, Faceting into Similar Standard of Top. American & European Gem
Cutters. Email: sithygems@yahoo.com.
Web: www.gemcuttingservice.com

GEMS, FINISHED
MASCOTGEMS.COM buy online precious
and semiprecious gemstones. For Exclusive
deals on Blue Sapphire, Ruby and Emeralds
please contact mascotgems@outlook.com.
PRICE LIST FREE. Lots of Old Stock at
Old Prices. Below Direct Importer Prices.
In Lapidary Journal Since 1972. Buy From
Expert Old Timer Dealer. Most Varieties
of Gemstones at Lowest Wholesale Prices.
Rough and Cut Loose Gems. jimsstones@
aol.com, (330) 453-4628, Jims Gemology, 1322 Harrisburg Rd. NE, Canton, Ohio
44705-1851.

l a pida ry jo u r n a l ) ( J e w e l ry a rt i s t

FINE GEMS: OPTIMA GEMS

70

www.OPTIMAGEM.COM We have the most


accurate colored stone grading in the
industry. Our FREE MONTHLY NEWSLETTERS include unenhanced color photos of
every gem we sell. We provide consistent
fine-quality calibrated gems with free color
matching. In addition, we have a huge selection of unique cuts, unusual gem types,
crystals, and bargain CLOSEOUTS. Call
or email our USA-based customer service
team today for honest and friendly service.
(800) 543- 5563 support@optimagem.com.
SPINEL, Black 5mm rounds, great Diamond
sub $.95 ea, www.optimagem.com. LAB
EMERALD, 9x7mm emerald barion (4 max)
$25 ea (800) 543-5563. NEW ITEMS, over
1000 every month. Register to view them all
at www.optimagem.com. FACETING SERVICE, your rough or ours, finest quality at
reasonable prices, (800) 543-5563.

LEARN JADE CARVING from one of the


worlds best jade carvers. Intensive 3/5 day
workshops in beautiful B.C. Canada.
Deborah Wilson, (250) 542-0630;
Email: deborahwilson.bc.ca

11295 Hwy. 16
Savage, MT 59262
Ph. (406) 798-3624
Email: harmons@harmons.net
Website: www.harmons.net
For all your wants and needs in Montana
AGATE rough, slabs, cabs, freeform carvings, handcrafted jewelry, specimens and
books on Montana Agate. Check out our
e-store at www.harmons.net.

NEW HAMPSHIRE
SHOWS
PATUXENT LAPIDARY GUILD is holding our Annual Jewelry, Gem, and Mineral
show April 16th 2016, from 10am to 5pm, at
Earleigh Heights Volunteer Fire Company,
Severna Park MD 21146. Fossils, minerals,
jewelry, cabochons and a childrens corner.
Admission $2.00, under 10 free. Join us for a
great family day!

Gem & Jewelry Shops


Find the finest rock shops, jewelry supplies
and lapidary materials. Whether you need
jewelry findings, mineral and fossil specimens, rough material, lapidary equipment,
gems, findings, jewelry, or the perfect gift,
you can find it here. For information about
adding your gem and jewelry shop to the
next issue, please contact Tina Hickman at
970-613-4697 or email thickman@
interweave.com.

ARIZONA

Santerres Stones n Stuff


42 Water St.
Exeter, NH 03044
Ph. (603) 773-9393
Website: www.SanterresStones.com
Minerals, fossils, stone carvings, 14k
jewelry, gemstones, wire-sculptured
jewelry, faceting and cabbing rough, beads
(including gemstone, Kazuri, Swarovski,
pearls, ceramic, lampwork), and findings.
Custom faceting and cabbing work offered.
Faceting and beading classes. Work done
on site. Unique hand-shaped cabs. Gift
items. Conveniently located in downtown
Exeter.

OREGON
Azillion Beads
910 Harriman St., #100
Bend, OR 97701
Ph. (541) 617-8854

TURQUOISE

Email azillionbeads@gmail.com.
Website: www.azillionbeads.net

6060 E. Thomas Rd.


Scottsdale, AZ 85251
Ph. (602) 620-3999

More beads than you can imagine! NEW


LOCATION IN BEND. Over 2,000 square
feet of beads. Call for directions.

Reconblock, Cabochons, Beads, Almines


Treated and Natural, Thin Sawblades, Rough
Fire Agate, Silica, Legal Burmese Jadeite.

NEW ONLINE STORE!

KANSAS

Ph. (914) 671 9003


Email: Jewelryinfo@sympaticodesigns.com
Website: www.sympaticodesigns.com

McMullen Jewelry Natural Stone Gallery


4717 E. Douglas Ave.
Wichita, KS 67218
Ph. (316) 684-1611
Website: www.mcmullenjewelry.net
Come and discover the wonders of nature.
A wonderful collection of loose gemstones,
cabochons, crystals, and mineral specimens.
Unique gifts, beads, and carvings. Custom
jewelry work in silver, gold, and platinum.
Professional repairs done on premise. Graduate gemologist on staff. The art and craft
of metal and stone. Pursuing a finer quality.

MICHIGAN
The Creative Fringe
210 Washington
Grand Haven, MI 49417
Ph. (606) 296-0020
Website: www.thecreativefringe.com
Were a full-service bead shop offering an
extensive collection of beads, findings, wire,
tools, books, lampworking, silver clay, sheet
metal and metalsmithing supplies. Cultivate
your creative side with classes and parties.
Open workstations available. Come to the
Fringe! Your creativity awaits you. Open 7
days a week.

Sympatico Designs LLC

Introducing a designer whose use of semiprecious gemstones in a contemporary


interpretation of timeless jewelry classics
are getting people talking. Ask about
the Infinity Necklace. Custom orders are
welcomed.

The Bead Warehouse/Marvin Schwab


Ph. (301) 807-9745
Email: beadware@rcn.com
Website: www.thebeadwarehouse.com
Monday Friday 9-5 EST
Offers beads, findings, fresh water pearls,
tools, Beadalon beading wire online & at
shows. A trusted source for over 20 years.
Sign up for emails.

ADVERTISERS' INDEX

SINCE

1947

Aeaducation......................................................55
C. G. M. Inc. ................................................. 36,37
Contenti Company ........................................... 1
Cool Tools ............................................................ 7
Craftoptics..........................................................13

FREE CATALOG

Davide Bigazzi Studio .................................57

THE #1 SOURCE to THE TRADE


ALL TYPES ROUGH & CUT GEMS

Diamond Pacific................................................ 3

KNIGHT'S BOX 411 WAITSFIELD VT 05673


FAX 1 802 496 5619 TEL 1 802 496 3707
e-mail: knights@madriver.com

Evenheat..............................................................71
Fire Mountain Gems ....................................C3
Gem & Lapidary Wholesalers Inc.......... 63

Polishing For The Professional

,ULVK:D[HG/LQHQ7KUHDG
1HFNODFH.LWV 3DWWHUQV

Gemological Institute Of America ........... 5


Halstead Bead Inc............................................ 7
Helby Import/Beadsmith ............................12
Hughes Associates .........................................71
Idyllwild Arts ....................................................55

J-KIT

6XSSOLHVIRU
%HDGLQJ)LEHU$UWV
%DVNHWZHDYLQJ (PEHOOLVKLQJ

Intro kit for precious &


non-precious metals.
- square wheels, knife
wheels, points & mandrels

5R\DOZRRG/WG 

Special Price $24.95

Interweave ...............12,29,57,58,59,63,68,71
_s

67:RRGYLOOH5G
0DQVILHOG2K


ZZZ5R\DOZRRG/WGFRP

OEsO

Joseph P. Stachura Co. Inc. ...................... 63


Knights ................................................................71

FREE 80 PAGE CATALOG


HUGHES ASSOCIATES

Monsterslayer, Inc. .........................................35

QUALITY PRODUCTS FOR


OVER THIRTY YEARS

Now Thats A Jig ............................................55

EPOXY 220 . . . . . . . . . . .amber clear bonding


EPOXY 330 . . . . . . . . . . .water clear bonding
TENAX . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .instant super glue
TENAX + Plus . . . . . .a thick instant adhesive
OPTICON 224 . . . . . . . . . . . . .fracture sealer
ATTACK . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .epoxy solvent

Otto Frei ............................................................ C2


Pacific Abrasives Inc. ....................................71
Paragon Kilns ....................................................71
Peters Valley School Of Craft ..................57
Pioneer Gem Corporation ..........................71

AT YOUR DEALER
18116 Mtka Blvd., Wayzata, MN 55391

Tel: 952-404-2626
Fax: 952-474-4636

PJ Tool Jewelry......................................... 13, 35


Reactive Metals Studios, Inc.................... 63
Revere Academy Of Jewelry Arts .........55
Rio Grande .......................................................C4

Love this magazine?


Then youll love our free
community for anyone
interested in creating
handmade jewelry!

Royalwood, LTD...............................................71
Shake Rag Alley ..............................................55

Get started with a free eBook


download and sign up for free:

SNAG ..................................................................55

www.JewelryMakingDaily.com/Free-eBooks

Tru-Square Metal Products ...................... 63


Tryon Arts And Crafts School .................55

Our 45th YEAR


O

Lortone, Inc. .......................................................13

TOP AAA Quality, Precision Cutt


ES
and Polished GEMSTONES

For:
Gem Collectors, HARD ASSET
T
Investors, Hobbyist Jewelers
Wirewrappers, Manufacturing, Jewelers
rs

1,000s of different
1
v
varieties
and sizes

PPIONEER
IIO
GEM CORPORATION
RATTI
TION
Dr. Edward J. Nowak, Jr.
PO Box 1513 LJ
Auburn, WA 98071-1513
Phone: 253.833.2760
FAX: 253.833.1418
email: pioneergem@seanet.com

www.pioneergem.com
i
The new, improved
Paragon SC-2 Pro fires
glass and silver clay and
anneals beads
Paragons SC-2 Pro also fires
enameling and decals. Sleek
stainless steel door and 9 handle; silent operation. Optional
bead door and glass window
available. Fires rapidly up to
2000F on 120 volts. Includes top
vent hole and plug. 8 wide, 7
deep, 5 high interior. Precision
electronic controller. Included are 2 printed instruction
manuals totaling 44 pages. Kiln ships by UPS. Made in
USA. Certified by TUV to CSA and UL safety standards.
Call or email for a free catalog.
Paragon Industries, L.P. / 2011 S. Town East
Mesquite, Texas 75149 / 800-876-4328
info@paragonweb.com www.paragonweb.com

March 2016

71

Cynthia Eid
Cresting Bracelet
Argentium Sterling and 22K gold

l apidary jou rn a l
J e w el ry a rt is t

PHOTO: CYNTHIA EID

DOERS PROFILE

FAVORITE PART OF DOING

I love the moment when I can see that


the idea is going to work and that the
piece will be as beautiful as Id hoped.
THE ONE THAT GOT AWAY

Hmmmm . . . I cant think of anything.


One of my rules for life is to live
without regret. Do your best; if you
mess up, try to x it, then forgive
yourself, and move on.
ON BENCH NOW

l a pida ry jo u r n a l ) ( J e w e l ry a rt i s t

Cynthia Eid

72

A foldformed sterling letter opener for


my mother; forged wires fused together
into hoop earrings, with granulation;
experiments with a possible new alloy
of Argentium Silver to see how it forms,
fuses, and enamels; hot-twisted samples
for an upcoming forging workshop:
pleasantly surprised to be able to use
this technique with Argentium Sterling,
which can be fragile when red-hot; and
piles of unnished work that has been
interrupted which I want to get back to
soon. More at www.cynthiaeid.com.

DONE

DOING

LATEST VENTURE

Cowrote Creative Metal Forming,


2013, with Betty Helen Longhi; won
design competition and received
Maker of the Lifetime Achievement
Award, 2003, from the Society
of North American Goldsmiths
(SNAG); was godmother to the
Knew Concept saws: having worked
with Lee Marshall designing tools for
the Bonny Doon hydraulic presses,
I suggested he alter one Bonny
Doon tool to become a new jewelers
saw design; codesigned aordable
Delrin anticlastic stakes with Betty
Helen Longhi that dont move when
you hammer on them; recognized
by Argentium International Ltd. as
a Pioneer working with Argentium
Sterling, 2012; cowrote with Michael
Good the anticlastic raising chapter
in Jewelry Metals, 2015; won three
Niche Awards; volunteered on the
Board of Metalwerx, a non-prot
jewelry school, for many years,
helping it grow and thrive, and
currently serving as its Chair.

Continue to explore Argentium


Silver alloys, working with Peter
Johns, the inventor its really
fun to be on the leading edge!
Editing video for Creative Metal
Forming. And, after giving the
technique a 40-year rest, I am
having a lot of fun enameling.

Recently, I was invited to make three


videos about creating with Argentium
Sterling under the auspices of
Lapidary Journal Jewelry Artist. It was
exciting to work in a professional
studio: there were three cameras and
three technicians on the set with me. I
was tickled to see the cameraman use
a clapboard at the beginning of each
clip, just like in the movies!
In Introduction to Soldering
Argentium, I demonstrate an earring
that I designed for teaching annealing
and soldering Argentium Sterling. In
Basic Argentium Fusing & Granulation,
I demonstrate making granules,
fusing them to at discs, a method
for forming the granulated discs, and
nally, the technique I use to neatly
solder the discs together to make
a lentil bead pendant. Intermediate
Argentium Fusing is about fusing wire.
After you have made this fun pair of
hoop earrings, youll really know how!
Available at www.store.
jewelrymakingdaily.com.

FIRST PIECE

I made three cast silver rings in ninth


grade, which I havent seen in a long
time but think are in the back of a
cupboard in my studio.
HEROES

Betty Helen Longhi, Fred Fenster,


Michael Good, Heikki Seppa
DESIGN SOURCES

Two things: a love of natural forms


and finding joy in the doing
of metalsmithing. I usually start
with a rough idea and let the
working process help me see the
possibilities.

e of
See the Full Lin
roducts Online
P
y
la
C
l
ta
e
M
C
PM
ingems.com
www.firemounta

www.firemountaingems.com
One Fire Mountain Way, DEPT C020 Grants Pass,
OR 97526-2373 1-800-355-2137

Americas Favorite Beading


and Jewelry Supply Company
Go online to see over 120,000 HOT jewelry-making
products and order a Fre e catalog today

You supply the creativity,


we supply everything else!

Fire Mountain
Gems and
Beads 2016

Karen Suarez, VA
karensuarezjewelry.weebly.com
Finalist, 2015 Metals JewelryMaking Contest

Color is King.
(hypoallergenic & tarnish-resistant, too!)

designs by Elizabeth Kirk and Michael Kirk

Take advantage of nano-ceramic e-coating for your


designs with the wide range of mixable, customizable,
ready-to-use Kliar colors!
Brilliant colorwithout sacriicing the look, feel
or sound of the underlying metal in your jewelry.
Hypoallergenicno worries about skin sensitivity.
Tarnish-resistantpieces stay beautiful without
constant polishing.

Download your FREE introduction to e-coating article today at: http://tinyrio.com/e-coating.

r iog r ande.com 800.545.6566 #RioJeweler

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