Unravelings

How to Use a Screw Punch - Beading Daily

This nifty little hole-making tool is just a few inches long, only weighs a couple ounces, and is very powerful. I like it because it uses no energy other than the light twist you expend from your fingers, and when punching holes in metal, there's not the crazy amount of heat produced on the metal piece as with an electric drill. I find my holes are also cleaner than the freehand ones I make with my Dremel; there's no bouncing and scraping, which sometimes happens when I'm drilling a thick piece of metal.

Learn how to use the punch: www.beadingdaily.com

You can find this Screw Punch in my store.

Writing Product Descriptions for Your Jewelry: Part 5 - "Designer"

by Chelsea Clarey (TangoPig Jewelry Creations)

When we sell through catalogues or online, we have a unique challenge to face.

How to make up for the absent experience of touching and holding jewelry? How do we persuade people to connect to a piece of jewelry though a computer screen or a glossy page?

One way is to provide text descriptions, or copywriting, that gives the reader an added emotional response through artful presentation.

However, description space is usually limited, and shoppers' attention spans always are! Every word in the space we have becomes important.

In this article we're going to examine the word "designer," and try to figure out exactly what we mean by it.

via www.home-jewelry-business-success-tips.com

Steampunk 101: Create Romantic and Edgy Steampunk-Style Jewelry - Jewelry Making Daily

Search for Steampunk on Etsy and you'll find almost 70,000 results . . . and 6.5 million on Google. To help put this cool trend in perspective, searches for "silver jewelry" net a little over 2,800 results on Etsy and 6,440,000 on Google—or 60,000 less than Steampunk.

What is Steampunk, anyway?
Steampunk gets its name from a time or "world" where steam power was used, typically the Victorian era and the 1800s. It was a romantic time full of arts and beauty but also full of discovery and new technology, like the invention of steam power. The Steampunk movement aims to combine those two feelings. Though it seems like a hot new idea, the term was actually coined in the 1980s and the work that led to the creation of the term (books, movies, even art) is even older—from the 1960s and '70s. A large part of the trend's popularity comes from science-fiction writing that was set in the steam age of Victorian England.

Simply put, Steampunk is industrial and mechanical "stuff" with an elaborate and romantic—albeit incongruous—Victorian twist. Good examples seen on Wikipedia include "coal-powered flying boats, ornate submarines, and Victorian dialogue."  Like I said, incongruous! But interesting.

via jewelrymakingdaily.com

Tucson's Top 5 Wire Trends - Daily Blogs - Beading Daily

Wire was hot, hot, HOT! The colored wire spools were delightful to drool over. Many of the booths had folks giving demos on creating your own wire masterpieces. Like potato chips, once you start, there's no stopping.

Wireworking pajama parties until the wee hours were plentiful in Tucson! A tradition sure to continue next year.

via www.beadingdaily.com

 

 

Match Patone's Spring Colors to Your Bead Stash - Daily Blogs - Beading Daily

by Jean Campbell

I always get excited when Pantone releases their fashion color reports. These color-splot lists feature the shades top fashion designers are using on the runways for any given season. Spring 2011's report has an "exotic journey" theme, with the designers citing their color influences as anywhere from New Wave French electronica (Honeysuckle) to Peruvian textiles (Regatta) to a 1950s garden party (Lavender). The great thing for us jewelry designers is that these reports can give us a leg up on one area of design that many of us struggle with: color. Why not rely on the pros to help us be fashion forward?

via www.beadingdaily.com

Mixed Metal Mania by Kim St. Jean

I just received a copy of Mixed Metal Mania for review and dove right in. Here's the scoop.

Mixed Metal Mania makes metal jewelry accessible to a brand-new audience---those looking to include wire, metal and other materials in their work. Beginning with a excellent introduction to both traditional and "unconventional" tools, the book then moves into basic metalworking techniques, including cold connections, sawing, soldering and more. These sections of the book are detailed enough to get a novice off on the right foot.

Kim then moves on to simple projects before building into more challenging work. The author also includes the stories of inspiration behind each project, adding to the appeal of this book.

I found most of the projects in the book attractive and aspirational, with detailed, well-written instructions. The major flaw of the book is the lack of crispness in both the photographs and the text. Sharper photos and text would make the book much more visually appealing and easier to use as well.

About the author: A former public school instructor and current owner of a retail store, Expressive Impressions, Kim now combines her love of teaching with her creative talent as a jewelry maker. Kim teaches metalsmithing and other jewelry-making techniques at the William Holland School of the Lapidary Arts, the Bead&Button Show, Swarovski's Create Your Style in Tucson, the Wildacres Retreat, and other venues across the U.S.

Get your copy of Mixed Metal Mania here.

How Do I Maximize My Jewelry Sales?

How Do I Maximize My Jewelry Sales?

Kim shares her success strategies for targeting her niche clients - and then placing her jewelry right where these people are most likely to be.

via www.home-jewelry-business-success-tips.com

Bead Mavens: Using Lampwork with Seed Beads

It isn't always easy to combine bead weaving and lampwork. On the face of it, it should be easy; after all, they're both made of glass. But the scale involved often causes beaders to give up and consign the mess they've made to the UFO (unfinished objects) drawer.

via beadmavens.blogspot.com

Making Mixed Media Art Charms and Jewelry

From the charm bracelets we wore in school to the collection of charms we use to remember our travels, these tiny works of art hold a special place in the heart of most people.

Making Mixed Media Art Charms & Jewelry is a must have for anyone who loves charms. It gives art charm fans a quick and easy way to express their creativity.

Nine techniques are clearly explained, including working with resin, fiber, found objects, glass, metal, and more.

Two of the leading ladies in the art charm community, Peggy Krzyzewski and Christine Hansen, have teamed up to share their inside information and inspirational style. Peggy Krzyzewski has more than 20 years of experience teaching and selling art. Christine Hansen is a freelance nonfiction writer who teaches at Shipwreck Beads and makes her own line of lampworked beads. They are both active art charm makers and swappers.

Now that all the background it out of the way, I'll let you know what I think of this book. In a word: fabulous. The projects are fun and creative. The instructions are clear and easy-to-follow. The photographs are crisp and concise. Do I recommend the book? You bet! The Table of Contents below will give you an idea of the variety of projects featured in the book.

CHARM SCHOOL 8
Materials
Basic Tool Kit
Basic Techniques

PAPER 18
Mixed-Media Paper
Collage Charms
Mini Lotus Book
My Lucky Shooting Stars

FOUND OBJECTS 26
Bells, Not Bullets
Acey Deucey Dicey
Found, Fixtured, and Funky

POLYMER CLAY 32
Op-Art Bicones
Celtic Magic
Fortune Cookies

PLASTIC 38
Friendly Plastic Falling Leaves
Sweet Little Shrink Plastic
Totally Tubular

WOOD 44
Collage on Wood Bead
Snazzy Scrabble Tile
Carpenter's Rule

FIBER 50
Sputnik
Fabric Inchies
Amulet Bag

RESIN 56
Found Flowers Bouquet
Resin in Bezels
Shout BINGO!

METAL 62
Pressed Penny Souvenir
Sliders and Swirls
A Fine Impression

GLASS 68
Basics of Working with Glass
Microscope Slide Showcase
Mini-Treasure Bottles
Meet Me in Paris

PUTTING IT ALL TOGETHER 76
Old Skool Charm Bracelets
Memory Wire Bracelet
Art Charm Earrings
Princess Necklace
Wine Glass Charms
Y Lariat Necklace
Mixed-Media Cluster Pendant

SWAPS AND MORE 90
Who are we and what do we know?
Sources & Acknowledgments

What every beader needs: ideas to inspire your beadwork

Last week, as I took things off the walls of one place to move into the place where I live now, I realized how important it is to me to be surrounded by beautiful bits of inspiration. I like to live with things that not only give me visual joy, but also goad me to make new beaded jewelry designs and entice me to experiment with color and shape. Being visually inspired is something that all "artistes" require. But, you know what? This really makes just as much sense for us beaders, since we, too, need shape and color ideas just as much as those folk who push around clay or paint.

Here are some beader-specific ideas about how to get visually inspired in your space every single day:

via www.beadingdaily.com