Art Jewelry magazine Editors' Blog : Youtube

Heard about anvil shooting yet?? You've got to watch this video!

Addie Kidd — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 15:22:00 GMT

A quick hello here from the Art Jewelry magazine headquarters.

So I came across this video the other day, and absolutely had to share it with you. You won't believe what this guy can do with an old jeweler's anvil! The gentleman in the video, Gay Wilkinson from Missouri, is apparently a World Champion Anvil Shooter. Who knew there were such things?!?

Video: How to Shoot an Anvil 200 Feet in the Air.

To sum up the video:

Put a whole bunch of gun powder beneath a heavy (think 100 lbs [45 kilos]), traditional blacksmith's anvil.
Using a fuse, ignite the powder. When the powder explodes, the anvil launches high into the sky.
Run.

My "inner giggling adolescent" got such a kick out of this video. I think my favorite part (besides the obvious explosion), was the aftermath - I was fascinated to see how deeply the anvil's impact embedded it in the ground.

Of course, I don't recommend trying this at home. As cool as this "sport" is to watch, I'm glad I have the distance of YouTube and the internet to protect me. I may just be a bit too much of a fraidy-cat to hang out in that field while they're shooting off anvils. Even with safety gear, how exactly do you predict where a flying anvil is going to land?

And if you just can't get enough anvil shooting, here's another video link. It's an anvil-launching montage!

Take care, and have an explosive Tuesday!

~Addie~

[Via Kottke]

Sneak peek behind the scenes as Art Jewelry magazine's editors tape new jewelry-making technique video tutorials for you!

Addie Kidd — Fri, 01 May 2009 21:24:00 GMT

Last week I told you about the free demonstrations of jewelry-making techniques that Art Jewelry magazine will be offering at the 2009 Bead&Button Show. Well, our online homepage poll last week showed that 73% of you guys have never even been to the show!

I hear you... traveling and workshops are expensive. So even if you can't attend the Bead&Button Show in Milwaukee, WI, you can still sit in on free demonstrations from the editors of Art Jewelry.

I'm talking about our online How To Jewelry-Making Videos. You can learn all sorts of stuff by following along as Jill and I explain various jewelry-making tips and techniques.

Plus our videos are shown in extreme close-up, which is a clearer view than you'll likely get in a class anyway. Ever tried to crowd around a teacher to see what they're doing?? Me too, and it can be frustrating when they're demonstrating a tiny little wee detail and you're the one stuck at the back of the group!

So here's a behind-the-scenes peek at how Jill and I make our videos.

Early in the morning, the camera crew of Keith, Roger, and Dave set up all the lighting around our workbench.

In this photo, Roger is using a light meter to check the lights and help us avoid any distracting shadows.

Then later, when Jill and I come in, the lighting and camera angles are checked and re-checked. You can see that we have two cameras. That way when Dave and Roger are editing the videos together after our shoot, they always have their pick of the clearest shot – you'd be amazed how often our hands get in the way!

Luckily, to help us with that, we have dual tv screens setup just off-camera, which you can see here. They help us keep track of where our hands are, and what's shown clearly within the frame of each camera's angle.

[What's tricky though, is doing a technique, while making sure that nothing (like your shoulders or stray hair) gets in the way, while watching both tv displays, AND verbally explaining what you're doing! *phew!*

That's why sometimes it's easier to just scrap the original audio, and voice-over the video later. We don't have to do that too often though, and prefer not to - it usually turns out better if we can go with the original flow of the visual and audio together.]

In this photo, you can see me pointing out the various pliers you'll need to make a wire spiral.

As I'm pointing to the tools, my eyes are fixed on those tv screens (that's my concentratin' face ;-) ). Jill took this picture from just behind the tv displays.

Shooting a bunch of videos — we taped seven that day — can be sort of hectic. After all, there are five of us in this little work room, with wires all over the floor, a tv cart, two camera stands, and lighting equipment setup everywhere!

(Did I mention how hot that tiny room gets with bright lights and a bunch of people after a few hours? Wow!)

But all in all, it's a pretty fun way to spend a day. We have a good time on our "Art Jewelry Soundstage." There's plenty of joking around, like in this shot, where I'm sharing a laugh with Keith. Maybe we should release a bloopers reel... :-P

We really love that we can offer videos to you guys — we know that there's no better way to help our readers learn new techniques that to show you ourselves. All or our jewelry-making videos are on our Web site. They're free to watch, you just need to be registered on the site first, which is also free.

FYI, We also have a selection of some of our videos on YouTube! Visit Art Jewelry magazine's YouTube channel to subscribe – you can get email updates whenever we post new videos. And you can easily share your favorite videos on social sites like facebook, myspace, twitter, stumbleupon, or by embedding the videos on your own Web site or blog. Have fun with it. :)

I'll keep you posted as to when our newest videos are finished in the editing room.
Until then, have a happy Friday!

~Addie~

Video gives sneak peek inside Ford Forlano studios and how they make polymer clay art jewelry

Kristin Sutter — Fri, 19 Sep 2008 14:26:00 GMT

If you like polymer clay jewelry, chances are you've seen work by Ford Forlano; that is Steve Ford and David Forlano, with Maryanne Petrus-Gilbert doing metalwork. We first featured Ford Forlano's work in "A Rarefied Medium," an article by Ronna Weltman (September 2006) about A-list polymer clay jewelry. If you've never seen their work, prepare for a treat. For me, Ford Forlano pieces never disappoint. The texture, the shape, the color — the pieces are always exciting and elegant. When I'm feeling creative, I tend to work better on my own. So it was really interesting to learn more about the team's collaboration in this video.

It shares not only great images of their studios and finished pieces, but also a bit about their history and how they continue to work together. Check it out!

—Kristin

Art Jewelry magazine now has a YouTube channel!

Addie Kidd — Thu, 17 Apr 2008 20:21:00 GMT

Last week, I shared our newest videos with you folks – the 3-part series on Setting a Cabochon in a Bezel. They've been quite popular. Apparently there are a lot of people out in the jewelry world wanting to learn how to bezel-set a stone, and looking for a video to teach them.

Well, we hear you loud and clear! We understand that reading about an action or technique just isn't quite enough sometimes. (Though if you do want to read about it, we're a touch partial to our little publication. *wink*) Every once in a while it's easier to just watch someone do whatever it is you're aching to learn.

So we've opened our own YouTube channel. Yes, we've decided to spread our tutorial wings past our own Web site, and share some jewelry-making instructions with the YouTube community at large.

We've posted some of our most popular videos on our new Art Jewelry Magazine Channel page:

http://www.youtube.com/artjewelrymag

So, check 'em out and make comments. We'd love to hear about what you enjoy about the videos, what else you'd like to learn, and even about how you're applying these techniques in your own designs.

And keep an eye out for new videos in the future. We'll be unveiling some new videos this week and next month!

~Addie~

So what's the deal with "RSS??" Let's chat (and watch a fun video!) about syndication, news feeds, subscriptions, and blog readers.

Addie Kidd — Thu, 27 Mar 2008 20:26:00 GMT

So here's a subject that had me somewhat confused for a while.

Actually, that's not right at all. I wasn't confused...I flat-out avoided a topic (RSS, in this case) that for the longest time felt mysterious, overwhelming, and complex to me. And in my avoidance of this ever-growing area of the web, I missed out on all kinds of information and time-saving convience.

So now that I've seen the light and changed my uncharacteristically Luddite-like ways, I want to help anyone who may feel hesitant about stepping into the world of blog subscriptions. Don't worry, it's not as confusing as it looks from the outside.

First of all, RSS stands for "real simple syndication." And it represents a way for you to electronically subscribe to and automatically gather blog posts and other continually updated information, like news feeds, on the web.

You've likely seen one of these little symbols floating around on one of your favorite web pages. They indicate a "feed," or website that has a constantly-updating stream of information to which you can subscribe.

These buttons can be short-cuts that allow you to click and subscribe to whatever you're reading. Though sometimes they're not a button, just a small symbol or link at the bottom or top of the page.

To view all those feeds you'd like to subscribe to, you'll need an RSS reader or blog reader – that's a program or Web site that collects and updates all your subscriptions automatically.

I like to use Google's blog reader because I find it easy to navigate, and I can quickly share blog articles with my existing Google email contact list. But you can use any blog or RSS reader. Just type "blog reader" into any search engine and find the reader that suits you best.

If you're a visual learner, like me, then this cute and simple video (via CommonCraft's site) may help explain it better than I can.

Click here for the Youtube link to the video.

Once you've found a reader, you can cut and paste your chosen feed's link in it, and you'll be all set!
Here's two links to get you started!

Use this link to subscribe to the Art Jewelry blog:
http://cs.artjewelrymag.com/artcs/blogs/artjewelry/rss.aspx

You can subscribe to this link to see every new postings on the Art Jewelry forum:
http://cs.artjewelrymag.com/artcs/forums/aggregaterss.aspx?Mode=0

Here's a screen shot of my reader, showing a list of recent Art Jewelry forum posts. If I find one I want to respond to, I can just click on the headline and I'm instantly taken to that page on the Art Jewelry forum. It's amazing how much time you can save, and it makes keeping up with a community SO much easier.

I promise you, if you're anything like me, you'll be looking for subscription icons EVERYwhere! (blogs, newspapers, forums, comment feeds, stores, photo-upload sites, social networks, etc.) I may have been reluctant and slow to catch on the RSS craze, but now I'd say I'm a full-fledged RSS-convenience-addict.

Happy Subscribing!

~Addie~

PS If all this information has stirred up any questions, post them below. I'll do my best to help you out.