Art Jewelry Boot Camp: Fine Finishings Week 1

Welcome to Week One of our new Art Jewelry Bootcamp: Fine Finishings!!! If you missed Staci's post last week about this new bootcamp, I encourage you to go read it, because all of our members at LMAJ have a unique and diverse perspective to draw from.

 I'll be back with you tomorrow to share some wordy and philosophical perspectives about fine finishings but today I want to talk about:

 WIRE GAUGES.

 Too Thin?

 Too Thick?

 Just Right?

 Let's talk about basic wire gauges.... There are at least 3 realms of standard gauges at the minimum you need to have in your basic toolbox for basic wirewrapping and art jewelry making. As an artist develops his or her skills and particular style, they usually add more gauges to round things out.

This is a VERY old piece of mine that used very thin (TOO THIN in my opinion now!) wire to wrap the bails of the pendant. I'm guessing it was 24g since there are also wrapped pearls in this piece. You can tell I compensated by wrapping it twice and 3 times through the holes, but I'm glad my work has evolved since then!!!!

20-21g. 
20-21 gauge wire is the widely accepted standard for earring wires. Larger gauges, such as 18 or 16 will stretch, irritate, or even tear the majority of customers while smaller gauges such as 22 will be too thin and will not enjoy longevity or will bend easily. This standard gauge also works well for wire wrapping large hole or ethnic beads. 20-21g when formed and properly work hardened either by chasing, hardening with a mallet and tumbling will produce a sturdy and beautiful finished ear wire.

These are handmade earwires I make from 20g brass wire.

22-24g. 
This is the perfect wire wrapping gauge for most bead stringing and basic bead wire wrapping applications. 22g will fit most gemstones and art beads and has a heavy enough presence to balance the work. Certain gemstones, like pearls and tiny finer semiprecious stones may require even a 24g. You may also find you lean towards 24g if you have a tendency to work very small or do very delicate work.

This is an older piece of mine but has a wide variety of wire gauges. The urn shap was formed from 16g brass wire, the Buddha pendant was wrapped with 20g, and the small glass beads were wrapped in 24g.

This is a more recent piece where I used 16g  copper wire to form a sturdy wire wrapped bail for this pendant while I wrapped the beads in 22g wire.

16g-18g. This is the perfect basic starter HEAVIER gauge wire for beginner smaller clasps, links, heavy jumprings, and beginning heavier wirework. It is generally still malleable enough without a torch annealing to wrap large bails, make wire wrapped links and connectors on their own without the use of other beads.

Staci used 18g to wrap these pieces. It is a bit lighter than 16g but allows her the flexibility to securely wrap these large pendants together.

Once you begin adding and refining your wire toolbox, you'll rely on your own judgement and burgeoning expertise to acquire a broader knowledge of different wire gauges and how useful they are in your particular piece or work!

Do you have any favorite wire tips when selecting the best solution for a piece? We'd love to hear your ideas in the comments below!!!

Hold Your Fire Boot Camp: Online Tube Rivet Tutorial Videos

by Barbara Bechtel

How have your cold connections been coming along everyone? I had hoped to have my own video on tube rivets prepared for you today but the holiday preparations are getting the best of me this year and so I have a little more work to do on it before it's ready for you! I hope you'll join me on Wednesday to see my take on tube rivets and how to tackle them if you've never tried before!

Until then, I wanted to leave you with these two really great videos by some of my favorite YouTube resources, Nancy L.T. Hamilton and the fine folks at Beaducation.com. If you haven't already subscribed to their YouTube channels, I highly recommend checking out all of their informative videos. Both are always excellent resources.

I also want to remind you that our Boot Camp Blog Hop is next Monday, December 16th! So don't forget to blog the pieces you've been creating and come back next week to share and visit everyone's blogs!

First up is a nice video by Nancy L.T. Hamilton:

and second is this new video by Beaducation.com (it covers all types of rivets)

See you Wednesday for my own video!

Art Jewelry Boot Camp: Easy No Solder Hoop Photo Tutorial

by Barbara Bechtel

I noticed lots of positive comments (here and on our Facebook page) about boot camp posts where no soldering is used.

I rarely solder my hoops and while I sometimes use a tube rivet to add a little something extra, it isn't necessary. This style of hoop is perfect if you're just starting out with a torch since we're only using it for annealing. It also makes a nice petite drop with a lot of presence.

Begin with 2- 2" lengths of 10g wire. You can use up to 14g. for a lighter drop.

Anneal your wire with the torch until glowing and quench.

Using your hammer and bench block, flatten the ends of each wire until they're nice and thin.

If you're metal begins to get tough, anneal again.

File the burs from the ends of the wire to make a nice round curve. Anneal one more time.

Using your round nose pliers, find the center of your wire and bend in half around the based of the pliers to make a U shape.

Using your flat or chain nose pliers, slightly bend the flattened ends out straight.

....So it looks about like this.

Grasp both ends with your flat pliers and squeeze to meet in the center. 

 

 

 

 

Next, using a drill or punch, make a small hole in the top to hang.

Hammer the drop area near the curve to flatten it slightly and work harden it (it should already be pretty work hardened if you're using 10g). Next pickle or clean to removed the fire scale. I wait until the very end to pickle since I usually anneal them 3-4 times. Finish to your liking. (I antiqued mine in liver of sulphur)

Finish simply by attaching to earwires, doing a simple wire wrap as I did. Adding charms to the droplet at the bottom would also be cute!

Hope you enjoyed and I'd love to see what you make! Don't forget! Next week is our Boot Camp Blog Hop! Make sure you add your photos to our Flickr group or post them on Monday and come back here to add your link!

It's just a circle, right?

by Barbara Bechtel

Today I thought I would reflect a little on our current Art Jewelry Boot Camp theme, Hoops! After all, a hoop is just a circle, right? The circle being one of the most basic shapes can often be over looked in its simplicity but has held meaning for humans for hundreds, if not thousands of years.

We're all familiar with the symbol of the circle as it pertains to marriage and weddings. The wedding ring represents a symbol of unending love and fidelity. The long tradition of a simple round band has long been a tradition.

We're all familiar with the circle as it pertains to the circle of life. The unending circle of birth, life, and death. In Native American culture, this circle is often represented as a medicine wheel and in Japanese symbology by the Enso. In popular music, it is often referenced by the "wheel", the "wagon wheel", or the "wheel in the sky".

In this post, I wrote about my mobius links as another variation of the hoop and circle.

In what ways have you found the circle symbolized in your work?

Hoooping it UP!

by Barbara Bechtel

I'm really excited about the current Art Jewelry Boot Camp topic is hoops! Hoop Earrings are my favorite style of earring to make and with multiple techniques and endless variations of beads and dangles, you can see where it becomes a fun challenge to try to hoop it up!

I thought I would give you a little personal history tour today of some of my favorites I've made since I became hypnotized by the hoop....

This is my very first hoop I attempted to make on my own about 3 years ago when I began to make more of my own components.... I was searching for ways to make some different earring pairs from polymer clay. (If you're interested on how to make this style of hoop, the complete instructions and these earrings appear in the Winter 2011/12 Issue of Belle Armoire Jewelry, pgs. 121,128)

Smitten with that easy wire wrap style, I started looking at using the hoops as frames for my beads, in varying styles as shown above.  This is a very easy and addictive way to make large (yet light) statement earrings for everyday.

Getting bolder and wanting to fine tune my metal work, I started to use very large heavy gauge wire to form more substantial hoops and even branch outside the tradition round, as in the almond shape above.

By leaving the hoop open, you can achieve different affects, like this earring, above which I call my squash blossom earring, drawing my inspiration from Native American squash blossom necklaces of the Southwest.

These are more current and have become a best seller. I vary the size/gauge of the metal and the shape occasionally, but lately I tend to let the simplicity of the hoops speak for itself! A teardrop shape just like those above are even my own everyday earrings!

Boot Camp Clasp Round Up

In case you missed it, Monday was our Boot Camp Blog Hop for our current topic, Securing the Perimeter AKA CLASPS! There's still time to hop on board because of this busy time of last minute summer/ back-to-school! We've extended the hop to add your links through Friday, so if you thought you missed it, be sure to add your blog link here!


There's been some lovely and really insight-FULL posts on clasps this time around, so I thought I would go back and give everyone an overview!

Copper Tube Clasp - Boot Camp Tutorial -Mary Ann starts off our bootcamp with a great tutorial on forming a clasp using copper tubing as a closure!

Adventures in making a new clasp design....  -Stacie Florer challenges finds inspiration in some forms around her home to come up with a new and unique clasp.

Clasps: Practical, Pretty or both? -Staci Smith shares her inspiration and her tips for finding your go-to clasp.

boot camp - button & fiber closures - Mary Jane gives her tips and suggestions for making beautiful and strong button closures.

Twisted, Crusty Toggle -Kelli shares a beautiful and pataina-ed tutorial for a handmade toggle.

Boot Camp: Tackling the Toggle  -Staci Smith shares how to make a beautiful wire toggle clasp

Clasp Tutorials & How to work a clasp into your Design. -Genea shows off some of the lovely clasps made by LMAJ members and around the interwebs and her tips for incorporating them into a necklace design artfully. 

Finding Closure

Carol shows us how to beautifully bead woven clasps can effortlessly become part of a design and even enhance the final piece.

Boot Camp: Securing the Perimeter aka: clasps -We start off boot camp by showing a oldie but goody of a standard wire wrapped clasp tutorial by Kelli.

Art Jewelry Boot Camp: Clasps that identify -Barbara shares her signature clasp and how she changes it up while maintaining a signature style.

Book Review: The Missing Link: by Cindy Wimmer -Stacie Florer reviews Cindy Wimmer's forthcoming book on links and shares how useful it could be in transforming some of the ideas into clasps!

 

Art Jewelry Boot Camp: Clasps that identify

by Barbara Bechtel

Once you become comfortable making clasps you may find yourself returning to your favorite, time after time. It can become synonymous with your work, with people identifying your pieces through the way you construct and finish your pieces.

My favorite and most often used type of clasp.

Because the clasp is usually the last piece added, although you may have planned the piece out in its entirety, the clasp is usually the finishing touch becoming the signature, much as a painter signs his piece at its completion.

Adding different closures with a standard clasp can help you switch up the look while still maintaining a signature style.

Many artists sign their work with a personalized tag or hallmark when their finished and often this is found near the clasp. Your signature can even become part of the toggle. I often do this when I use a button type clasp or toggle where I have more room for stamping.

I often combine this clasp with signed buttons as a secure hook for bracelets and necklaces.

When used with leather, this signed button closure adds a finished look to even simple bracelets.

Next MONDAY is our BLOG HOP and we can't to see what types of clasps you've been creating! Make sure to come back next week to join in on the fun!

Art Jewelry Boot Camp Work Out Round Up

Good Morning! I thought I would highlight some of my favorites from last week Boot Camp blog hop! If you missed seeing all of the beautiful designs, you can always go back and hop! I know everyone would love to have you visit their blog and read your comments.

by Fresh Baked Designs

I love the free form nature of these beautiful flower shapes! The wire wrapping around the gemstone round is also very innovative!

by the moon and seven stars

I've long been wanting to try a bit of coiling and these links really have my brain spinning!

by Mary Harding Jewelry

And finally, I love the organic and asymmetrical focal piece that Mary made!  The circle bit is somewhat reminiscent of a medicine wheel which appeals to me!

A GREAT BIG THANK YOU to everyone who participated and stay tuned for our next boot camp coming up in just a few weeks!

Art Jewelry Boot Camp: Wire Work Out Blog Hop!

Welcome to our Art Jewelry Boot Camp Wire Work Out Blog Hop! We want to see what you've been busy creating with wire!

Hop along by following the links below or add your blog link to the list if you've been giving that wire a work-out!

Beautiful Wire Workouts by our own Staci Louise!

And if you're hopping, show those boot campers some love by leaving a comment on their blog! Want to learn more about Love My Art Jewelry's Bootcamp? Click here!

Textured Wire Sprial Donut Connector

by Staci L. Smith

Here is just a little something you can make with your new textures- using the alphabet stamps again, combined with Stacie F's texturing wire post.

 

Take 6-8" of 12 gauge copper wire.  Spiral it into a coil, but leave a big open middle to create a sort of donut.

 

With a chasing hammer, hammer it to flatten the surface.

 

 

Then use the ball end of your chasing hammer to flatten the ends a little more.

 

 

Then I took my letter x, the period, and the letter I to make patterns on the wire.  I stamped them just like I would on sheet metal, it was just a little trickier to line them up.  Then I used my chasing hammer to flatten the wire again.

 

 

Add some liver of sulfur and polish off the high spots, and voila!  A wire textured spiral donut.

 

 

It is fun, and very sturdy, and it can be used as a pendant or a connector.

 

Hope to see what you have been playing with at our blog hop April 8th.

What kind of Metal can I texture?

by Staci Smith

This was the first question I asked when buying my metal supplies.  I remember how shocking it was that you could use 24 gauge metal and it wasn't paper thin.  I was thinking in wire terms, and thought it would be frail and thin.  Now, the number gauges run in the same way wire does, smaller number, thicker gauge, but they certainly feel very different.

 

So I thought I'd give you a little information on metal sheet.

 

The most popular metals are sterling silver, copper and brass.  I highly recommend starting with copper.

 

Copper is softer then brass, and cheaper then sterling silver.  So it works easy, and if you make a mistake, it's not a devastating financial loss like it would be with sterling silver.

http://www.thunderbirdsupply.com/proddetail.aspx?StockNum=170104

 

 

When you go to buy sheet metal, some places sell set cuts- like 3x6" or 6x12".  Others (like www.thunderbirdsupply.com) let you choose your own cut size.  This is handy to know depending on what you plan to do.

 

For example, at Thunderbird, you can order 10 pieces cut at 2x7.5" if you are planning to make cuffs (not sure what cuff standards is, I just picked that measurement at random)- they are pre-cut to the size you want.  They also have the option of set sizes.

 

Another thing to consider when ordering or buying sheet, is how you plan to cut it, and what you want to use it for.  26 gauge is very thin, very lightweight and easy to manipulate.  This is great for fold forming items that may be used in earrings.  I also use 24 gauge often for earring designs so they aren't too heavy. 

 

If you need something to be sturdy and unbendable under stress, you want to use a thicker gauge, 22-18 gauge.  Keep in mind how you plan to cut these sheets.  You can only use metal shears up to 22 gauge (usually).  So if you need thicker metal sheet, you will need to saw it.

 

I have ordered the standard large sheets of metal 6x12" and I found them too bulky to work with.  I don't have a quick way to cut them down, so it's been awkward to work with them, which I why I like to customize my sheet size.

 

I hope that helps with some questions you may have on buying sheet metal.  For a beginner, especially for our Metal texture Boot Camp, I highly recommend copper.  It cuts and stamps like butter!

 

We can't wait to see what you guys are working on.  Remember- the blog hop is April 8th.  On that day, you will be able to link up to our site.  Happy hammering.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 



Art Jewelry Boot Camp: Textured Metal Challenge

Welcome to our second Art Jewelry Boot Camp challenge of 2013.....Textured Metal!

For the next few weeks, we will be sharing innovative, inexpensive ways to texture metal by hand. There are plenty of wonderful options in a fully equipped metals studio for texturing metal and plenty of neat products out on the jewelry craft market these days for achieving wonderful textures and patterns, but we want to see what you can do with what you have!

Today, I'm sharing a video about different textures I've achieved with simple household materials...and some tips for getting you started on your texture journey!






HIGHLIGHTS/TIPS from the video:

*If you have "nice" hammers, keep them separate, so in your creativity, you don't use your good hammer for hammering, let's say a piece of wire or a steel screw!

*Keep your eye out in thrift stores and discount stores for items that will make interesting textures! Old hammers, screwdrivers, and other steel bits like steel window screen will fuel your creativity!!!! By that same token, don't use household tools that you would like to use again for their intended purpose! You (or your significant other!) will be really sore that you messed up a screwdriver to make texture next time you need it for a household task....

*Anneal your metal with a torch so it's nice and soft to receive the texture.

* Use an old bench block or anvil when texturing or hammering. After lots of texturing, your block or anvil will become dented and rendered a bit more useless if you need it for finer applications. I FLIP mine! One side is nice and smooth and shiny and the other is a bit pitted and dented from repeated texturing.


Our next Art Jewelry Boot Camp hop will be on April 8th! LET'S GET TO WORK, RECRUITS!!!! Remember to upload your lovelies to our Flickr group and remember to check out the rules if you haven't done so.


Remember, this challenge is about texturing by HAND. For the purposes of this challenge, we DO NOT want work textured by the following:

*Etching
*Sandblasting
*Rolling Mill
*Alphabet/symbol Stamping (unless you are using it in an innovative way to make fabulous texture)
* Textures from craft embossing machines

All these have their place and may be in a FUTURE challenge, they're just not for THIS challenge. :) Thanks!

Wrapping it Up - Balled Head Pins

by Staci Smith

This is our last week to focus on balled head pins before switching gears.  Look here next week for a new Boot Camp.  Perhaps you will learn a new technique, or just have a chance to show off what you do with a technique you already use.  We love having this chance to interact with you all and see your creativity in action.

If you are new to Love my Art Jewelry, you can read about Boot Camp Here.

We are just wrapping up a Boot Camp that taught how to make balled head pins.  You can see that tutorial here.  (we also have a menu to the top left of the blog where you can find a link to all the tutorials we've posted here in LMAJ)

If you haven't had a chance, you can click here to go to the blog hop we had.  Everyone dug deep and did some really creative things with head pins.

 

 

 I liked this design by Lynda Carson.

 

 

 

I hope you enjoyed our first Boot Camp and hope it is something you all join us in through the year.  I know we had a blast.

 

 

I also wanted to give a reminder that our Art bead Love Chain is still going strong.  If you want to read about it, click the tab to the right labeled Art Bead Love Tour that looks like this.

 

 

 

 

If you would like a chance to participate, click the "Follow the Love Chain" tab that is above it.

 

Thanks again for making our firt Boot Camp a Success.  Have a creative week!

Art Jewelry Boot Camp: Balled Head Pin Alternatives

So how have you been enjoying our first challenge? Today I wanted to share with you a fabulous resource on youTube, the wonderful videos of Nancy LT Hamilton!

If you haven't checked out her videos, I highly encourage you to do so. On a variety of metalsmithing topics, Nancy walks you through step by step in a relaxed, funny, and highly skilled way. If you've been browsing our challenge topics, you'll notice that there are quite a few who used the balled headpin as a cold connection and/or rivet, so I thought you would enjoy seeing this video!


Nancy posts new videos on all different techniques often, so be sure to subscribe to her youTube channel and visit her website for a variety of resources and to see her magnificent work!

Art Jewelry Boot Camp: Balled Headpin Blog Recap

by Barbara Bechtel

WOW! We're all so excited about the response to our very first Art Jewelry Boot Camp! Staci & I have worked really hard along with the other members here at LMAJ to come up with this new concept and there is always a little trepidation with putting your new idea out there in the Universe to see if it will take root!

Just in case you missed it, last week was our first blog hop, and we invited you to share what you have learned or challenged yourself to based on our current challenge, the balled headpin.

Not just for wire wrapping dangles, we challenged you to innovate with the balled headpin: begin making your own, double balling them, trying different metals, and using them in other ways!

Let's take a look over some of my personal favorites from the blogs and see what neat solutions and challenges were made and conquered!

Gaia Copia made these stunning organic and sparkly combination polymer heapins with balled headpin embellishments!


Love the subtle and sweet complexity of these handmade chandelier earrings by Libellula Jewelry!


I think turning balled wire into its own element and giving a bit of texture is a wonderful and creative solution! by silverniknats

If you missed participating, stay tuned! We'll be revealing our next new challenge in a few short weeks, followed by lots of tips and tutorials to inspire!