Art Jewelry magazine Editors' Blog : inspiration

New free fine-silver earrings project from Art Jewelry magazine, featuring water casting!

Addie Kidd — Wed, 25 Mar 2009 15:00:00 GMT

We just released Art Jewelry magazine's newest free downloadable project – in it you can learn how to make a pair of really fun mismatched Serendipity Earrings (click here to download the project). In the tutorial I walk you through all the steps necessary to solder and assemble the oxidized fine silver earrings you see at right.

I created these earrings to showcase one of my favorite (low-stress, non-fiddly, imprecise) jewelry-making techniques – water casting. I'm telling you, this technique is fool-proof! Even if you've never done a casting of any kind before, I guarantee you that you will make one-of-a-kind, artistic, and organic-looking components with water casting.

The result are instantaneous, which satisfies my instant-gratification streak. AND, if for some reason you don't like the components that you've made, you can remelt them and try again. You can't beat that!

[I added a teeny-tiny 2mm 24k solid gold accent ball to each earring. Little splashes of gold like that are a fantastic and inexpensive way to add color and panache to a jewelry piece. No seriously, this gold's not expensive: you can buy a pair of these little gold balls at Metal Clay Findings for less than 17 bucks!]

To see just how little time it takes to make a water casting, check out this video. (You need to be registered to view it, but registration is FREE!) Follow along as I pour molten fine silver into a bucket of water, and then immediately check out the results.

To learn all the particulars about water casting, read my article "Goof-Proof Water Casting" in the May 2009 issue.

And if you're mixing your own alloys to use with that water casting, you should check out our alloy calculator here. Just plug in the metal alloy you'd like to make and the calculator will instantly figure out the exact ingredient ratios for you. (Maybe it's just me, but here's a big whoo hoo for less math!)

Speaking of calculators, we also have a gold karat calculator for you too. Just plug in whatever karat of gold that you already have and the calculator will tell you what you need to add to your gold to change it to another karat (either higher or lower). How nifty is that??

If you give water casting a try, please post a comment and tell me how you like it.
I'd be surprised if it's not one of your new favorites.

Take care,

~Addie~

P.S. Click here to download our free desktop wallpaper for the month of March – a necklace by John Wik featuring a chain mail bezel around a guitar pick. How cool is that??

Small jewelry world! Finding inspiration and discovering connections

Addie Kidd — Fri, 13 Mar 2009 15:37:00 GMT

Oh, how exciting is this!

Cynthia Tinapple over at Polymer Clay Daily just posted about Bettina Welker's polymer work.
Bettina's polymer work was inspired by enamel bracelets made by Angela Gerhard.
Angela's enamel bracelets are going to be featured in our July 2009 issue – you can learn how to make one!

My fellow associate editor Jill is editing Angela's sgraffito enamel bracelet story even as I type. Check out this cool process photo from the article - in it Angela's cleaning up a finished panel of her enamel bracelet.

Isn't it wonderful when inspiration can jump across medium lines like that?! That's part of why I'm so happy that Art Jewelry has always been a multi-media jewelry-making magazine. We'll have polymer clay next to enamel, next to gold and silver, next to bronze metal clay, next to wirework. Whew!

I think it's even more amazing when artists give each other the credit that they all deserve. Sadly, too often ideas are "borrowed" without acknowledgment. But not in this case – Bettina's so excited about her source of inspiration that she even puts Angela's Flickr address in the captions of her photos. I think that her confidence must come from the fact that Bettina didn't copy Angela's work in the least. She saw something beautiful in Angela's work, and then used her own medium of choice to make that aesthetic look completely her own. Isn't art great??

So check out this little chain of inspiration connections, then look for Angela's sgraffito enamel project in our July 2009 issue. I hope you find inspiration from it to make beautiful artwork of your own.

Happy Friday,

~Addie~

November 21 Jewelry Gems of the Web

Linda Augsburg — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 17:21:00 GMT

Thanksgiving is almost here and no, I still didn't get any of those things on the list accomplished last weekend either. But I visited with friends and got some other things done, so it was productive none-the-less. And this weekend I'm focusing on home and projects, honest I am. (And speaking of projects, check out this great deal on downloadable PDFs on ArtJewelryMag.com. I might have to get a few of those myself tonight.)

As for those jewelry gems, inspiration seems to be the theme for the day.

Andrew explores a few examples of where he discovers inspiration and how it relates to the jewelry he makes in Finding Inspiration on The Writing and Art of Andrew Thornton.

Melissa gets inspired by a favorite strip from "Peanuts" on Strands of Beads.

Talk about interesting inspiration. Kerry Wilkinson works with resin and...fruit? Well, ok, it's really polymer clay! Go to Jewelry & Beading to read an artist profile of Kerry.

Tammy at About.com Jewelry Making found her inspiration in the scrapbook aisle. Check out her new Gathering Leaf Project - Use a chipboard sticker and some wire to make a leaf necklace for fall or to wear at the Thanksgiving table.

On Snap out of it, Jean! There's beading to be done!, Jean could easily picture herself as the lead in the book, The Secret Garden. Come play dress up with some jewelry using Green Girl Studios components!

And now for something completely different, it's not beaded, but it's quite entertaining! Carter Seibels for Divali Glass Jewelry shares some of her other creative talents this week. That's inspirational too!

Carmi's inspired to make a name tag she'll actually wear. Check it out on Carmi's Art/Life World.

Looks like Jen's been pretty busy lately! Read how Naughty Secretary Club and Etsy teamed up for a fun bracelet how-to project and a shopping guide for kitschy cool jewelry supplies.

And speaking of Etsy, Jennifer's showing some funky sticks for your hair this week both on Etsy and on Jennifer Jangles Blog.

Join Katie as she shares trends from the upcoming CHA Winter Show.

Art Bead Scene reviews their favorite tools: This tool gets around!

And if, after all of these, you're feeling inspired about publishing a beading or jewelry-making book, Kalmbach Publishing Co. is looking for authors. Read more at Bead&Button Magazine's blog.

Find out what tools you need for working with metals, metal clay, bronze clay, enamel, wire, chain mail, stone setting, engraving, finishing, polymer clay, and more

Kristin Sutter — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 20:16:00 GMT

Tools, tools, tools! Do you wonder what tools you should get if you're going to take up metalsmithing? How about metal clay, or polymer clay? Or, maybe you want to know what tools you should have on hand no matter what medium you're working in. Well, here's your answer: In the November 2008 issue of Art Jewelry, we published an eight-page bonus poster that tells you what tools you'll need to have in order to work in a given medium or for a given task.

We were so excited about the poster that we put the info up online too! (If, for some inexplicable reason you haven't picked up your issue yet, you can find a PDF of "The Right Tool" here.) Of course, the print version has its advantages: it's a pullout, so you can proudly display its glossy pages on your studio wall. And, it's one continuous sheet of paper, so you won't need as many thumb tacks to get it up there, and you won't have to spend time with your level making sure all eight pages are aligned. Of course, the biggest advantage to having the print version means that you have the rest of the issue surrounding it.

We hope the poster helps you as a shopping list, a quick reference (what do parallel pliers look like again?), and as a vision of beauty that only a tool junkie could love.

Enjoy!

—Kristin

P.S. Subscribers, if eight pages of info isn't enough for you, you might want to check out our archive of Product Reviews.

Video interview with Robert Dancik: jeweler, sculptor, and originator of Faux Bone

Kristin Sutter — Fri, 08 Aug 2008 17:54:00 GMT

At the 2008 Bead&Button Show in June, Senior Editor/Online Linda Augsburg was able to catch a few minutes with Robert Dancik to talk to him about how he got started making jewelry, where he's taking the craft, and how he uses Faux Bone. To watch the video, click here. If you're interested in learning how you can incorporate Faux Bone into your work, check out Robert's article, "Chart Your Own Mixed-Media Odyssey," page 28, in the September 2008 issue of Art Jewelry. The article will teach you how to make this bangle:

If this project inspires you to make a piece of jewelry, we'd love to see what you've come up with! Just post it in the Show Us Your Work thread in the Art Jewelry forum.

For your sun-worshipping pleasure: a look at some traditional Hawaiian jewelry by Philip Rickard

Kristin Sutter — Fri, 27 Jun 2008 19:46:00 GMT

I just came across an article about Hawaiian jeweler Philip Rickard, who wrote the book Hawaiian Heirloom: A Lasting Remembrance after researching the topic for six years. Rickard was recently commissioned to make traditional jewelry pieces for a historical feature movie about Hawaii's Princess Ka'iulani, who reportedly was fond of bracelets. Rickard's research led him to the discovery that one royal bracelet in particular held a message in its traditional Victorian symbols; Rickard calls the message "Queen Lili’uokalani's prayer." Click here to read more about the movie Rickard is involved with and to see news clips of an interview with him, where he shows his replica jewelry pieces.

Does jewelry from other cultures intrigue you? If so, what cultures? Do you buy cultural jewelry? Or do you make your own versions of it? I'd love to hear your stories and see pictures of your work!

—Kristin

Green Jewelry: if you're into pieces made from recycled, repurposed materials, check out jewelry by Mana Bernardes and the Touch NY show

Kristin Sutter — Mon, 19 May 2008 17:35:00 GMT

Personally, I get excited about anything green — I mean both the color (my favorite) and the concept. I learned about Touch, a group of eco-minded designers, a few months ago when I came across jewelry by Mana Bernardes, whose jewelry is showcased on the Touch Web site. For anyone in the New York area today and tomorrow (May 19th and 20th), you can check out the Touch NY show from noon to 7 p.m. at 148 11th Ave. According to the Touch Web site, they'll have products and installations made from recycled materials. Judging from the pictures on their flyer, the show looks like a great place to find fresh ideas and inspiration.

Have you ever made jewelry with the intention of making it green? I'd love to hear about it — and see pictures!!

—Kristin

Jewelry design inspiration is all around me, it seems. You too??

Addie Kidd — Thu, 08 May 2008 19:05:00 GMT

I brought a pack of bottled water in to work earlier this month. And as it was sitting on my desk, waiting for me to put it in the refrigerator, I noticed the back of the packaging.

It shows a photograph of an dormant volcano with a simple, hand drawn illustration laid over top of it.

The illustration depicts all the various sediment layers that rainwater filters down through within the volcano before the water's ready for this company to bottle it up and ship it off to jewelry magazine editor's all over the world.

As soon as I saw that illustration superimposed over that photo, it looked to me like the volcano was wearing a necklace.

All I wanted to do was go pick up a hammer and start texturing some metal. I could picture arranging and soldering the textured pieces together into layers, assembled it into this giant volcanic-inspired mixed metal collar.

Since I didn't have time to get to the studio right then, I just kind of let my mind play for a bit, and sketched a few ideas.

It doesn't matter if I ever end up making my volcanic sedimentary rock choker. The point is that I felt my inpiration and honored it, without judging it as silly since it came from "just some commercial packaging."

I wonder what will inspire me next.

Has anything unusual, or off-the-wall, or even mundane, inspired you?

If so, I'd like to hear about it in the comments section below.

~Addie~

"Art" jewelry: a souvenir bracelet from the Edward Hopper and Winslow Homer special exhibits at the Art Institute of Chicago

Kristin Sutter — Thu, 06 Mar 2008 21:12:00 GMT

I recently went to Chicago to visit a good friend, and topping my list of must-do activities was a very overdue trip to the Art Institute of Chicago. I'm embarrassed to say that I live less than two hours from the city and haven't been to the museum in 12 years — all I could remember was that both Seurat's painting of the park (A Sunday on La Grande Jatte) and Georgia O'Keeffe's cloud painting (Sky Above Clouds IV) are huge.

My friend and I decided to check out the special exhibits on Edward Hopper and Winslow Homer. I had only really seen Hopper's most famous painting, Nighthawks, so I wasn't sure what to expect. I was in for a treat. The exhibit was beautiful (his color palette was mesmerizing) and intriguing, and I was impressed by both his early and late work. He is now one of my favorite artists. I also really enjoyed the Homer exhibit — it's amazing to see such beauty!

Since I was so touched by the art, I wanted a souvenir. My first instinct was the tried-and-true high-quality postcard book, but the colors just didn't look as vibrant as the actual paintings (tall order, I know). Lucky for me, my friend found the one item that I would, of course, have to buy: a bracelet with images from Hopper's works.

It literally is "art" jewelry. It's so cool to have portable inspiration!

What's your favorite type of portable inspiration? Write your response in the "Comments" box below and click "Add" to share!

—Kristin

Cat-sitting has its rewards: a rose-cut diamond

Katie Streeter — Wed, 13 Feb 2008 17:14:00 GMT

Associate editor Addie Kidd returned from the Tucson gem shows last weekend, and as a gift to me for cat-sitting Begby, her cute kitty (see his photo to the left), she brought me a diamond. Actually, she brought three diamonds and let me pick which one I wanted.

All three are rose cut, which is perfect for me, since I want an antique-look ring. Each diamond is a different color and size, and I couldn't decide which one I liked best, so Addie suggested that I take them back to my desk and play around with them until I decided which was best for me. I pulled out a few jewelry-supply catalogs, and began to look at the different ring mounts available. I found that some catalogs print their rings close to actual size. Because of this, I could place the diamonds on top of the ring photos to get an idea of what the actual rings would look like with each of these stones. Soon, I knew exactly which stone I wanted, as well as the style of ring it will go in (you can see the diamond I chose placed on a catalog page to the right). Addie said that one of the stones would "speak" to me, and she was right!

When you buy gemstones or other jewelry-making supplies, do you know what you're going to do with the supplies at the time of purchase, or do you play around with them until you think of the perfect project?

––Katie

Diamond Snow?

Katie Streeter — Wed, 05 Dec 2007 21:50:00 GMT

It snowed again in southeastern Wisconsin last night, and my husband and I took an evening walk through the fluffy snow. As we walked, I kept my eyes on the snow-covered ground, watching the glitter as the streetlights illuminated the whiteness. It occurred to me that the flash and sparkle of snow can be as beautiful as that of a diamond — perhaps more so. Unfortunately, I don't know of anyone who has been able to capture snow in a piece of jewelry, so I'll have to settle for diamonds.

Do you know anyone who has captured the look of snow in their jewelry or art? What inspires your jewelry designs? Have you ever made a piece of jewelry with aquamarines to capture the color of the ocean or used peridot to capture the shades of spring?

––Katie

"Bring on the blizzard!" say makers

Kristin Sutter — Mon, 03 Dec 2007 19:31:00 GMT

Last Wednesday my weather widget began a red ticker tape warning: Expect loads of snow Saturday, turning to ice by Sunday evening. Whereas a lot of Wisconsinites would scoff at this kind of news, my heart does little happy-as-a-schoolgirl flips inside my chest. I love winter. I love going out into the cold, and I love coming in out of the cold. The season is both invigorating and cozy.

When I read the winter-storm warning, I was even more delighted at my plans to meet a friend at a yarn store on Saturday morning. What better way to enjoy a snowstorm than to be inside making something while the flakes swirl all around you? The snow forces you inside your home, and if you let it, inside your head. And for people who are makers, a chance to check in mentally generally means you'll be producing something physically mere seconds after the first "What if" hits your consciousness.

When I got to the yarn store early on Saturday morning, it was full of people buying supplies and heading home to hole up and knit away until the plows emancipated the roads. So how about you. Do you head for your studio as soon as inclement weather hits? What do you work on when you get there?