Design and Make Your Own Jewelry
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Design and Make Your Own Jewelry |
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Good quality jewelry is beautiful to own and wear, and jewelry making really is
an art form. For centuries, this art was protected and handed down from father
to son through various apprentice programs. The necessary knowledge was withheld
and kept to a small number of specialists. Things are far different in our time
– and various jewelry equipment suppliers and gemstone sellers have done all
they can to make things easy for individuals to try for themselves. The
necessary knowledge is now easy to acquire. If you have any artistic flair or
talent, there is no question that you can make your own, special art pieces to
wear. When you make your own rings, pendants and other items, there is no
question that your jewelry becomes very sentimental. You can also produce unique
items different from anything that might be seen is a standard, commercial
store. There is also little question that you can save some significant money by
making your own adornments.
Many folks are intimidated by the skills which they imagine are needed. Certainly some craft skills need to be learned, but not all jewelry skills are hard to learn or take massive amounts of equipment – some are really fairly simple. This is why many folks have taken up crafting their own adornments as a hobby. Most start out with beading, but there are whole worlds of gemstone work and metal smithing that interested individuals can grow into. It is very possible to start out small and grow into purchasing equipment and supplies as your knowledge, interest and skills increase. In fact you can learn the basics about the skills involved on this website. The pages are not, by themselves, sufficient to teach you all you need to know, however they will give you the flavor of what is out there. They will also give you an idea on how difficult that skill is and what tools are needed. There are also books are available to help you learn.
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A world of different kinds of beads are out there many people are producing all kinds of bead jewelry. Beads can be combined with metal work, crystals and other items to make some very unique and special pieces. Check in here and get a feel for the possibilities in bead work.
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Setting Your Own Gemstones: Folding Prongs A huge variety of pre-notched, polished pieces of jewelry are available to set your special gemstones in. Rings, pendants and other items created this way look very much like the professionally created pieces you see in your local retail store. Simply learn to fold down the prongs and you can create your own high quality jewelry art.
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The lost wax casting process was invented by the ancient Egyptians, and independently discovered and used by the pre-Columbian tribes of central and south America. It is extremely important still today, and something like 60% of all new jewelry is produced through on version or another of this ancient method. |
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Steam Casting: A Variety of Lost Wax Casting If ancient and primitive peoples could do lost wax casting, so can you. The necessary tools and equipment can be purchased right over the internet, and books are available to teach you what you need to know. Here are the basics of how you can do your own lost wax casting using steam. |
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The high tech modern version of how you can produce your own jewelry. Precious Metal clay is a moldable material made with a powder of precious metals suspended in an organic binder. Once formed into the desired shape, the material is heated to a certain point and the binder disappears, leaving a fused metal product which can be worked and used to produce jewelry. Several types are available, and both silver and gold based clay products are available to the artist. |
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Soldering Techniques To Make Jewelry Soldering can be used in combination with a variety of other methods and techniques to produce some beautiful jewelry. It can be used a primary method, but is most commonly used to attach things to existing pieces. |
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Making that perfect and special piece of jewelry art requires a plan and a design. Here is a discussion of planning out your jewelry design, selecting the necessary tools and techniques and then putting your plans into action. |
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Buying Jewelry Making Supplies There are a large number of suppliers that offer a wide variety of materials for sale that will assist and help the jewelry artist. This page has a discussion of purchasing those materials and some recommendations on the best ways to make your purchases. |
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Books About Gems and Jewelry Making This set of web pages has a loads of useful information on making your own jewelry, but there is always lots more to learn. Here is a set of great books on various topics related to making jewelry. I heartily recommend these books to to those who want to take up making their own jewelry.
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Of course there are many metals used for jewelry, but gold will always be the standard. Here is an article on the many jewelry uses of gold, purity measurements for karat gold and colored gold alloys.
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In times of old, the goldsmith was the most respected artisan of all, and he worked with the most precious material known to the ancient world. The skills of the goldsmith to create beautiful objects was passed down from father to son for ages.
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Man and Gold: Through The Ages In many ways the history of man is the history of gold. Gold was one of the things most valued in the earliest of civilizations. Yet this beautiful metal is heavily used in today's most high tech applications.
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Take a look here to see a special Gold-Quartz and Columbian emerald Pendant which I created using a pre-notched, pre-polished setting and the techniques discussed on this website. |
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Collecting gems and gemstones is a hobby that is growing rapidly. What does it take to become a gemstone collector? Well, its not as expensive or as difficult as you might imagine to get started. |
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A Gemstone Information Encyclopedia Take a look here to see my special Gemstone Information Encyclopedia, containing information about all types of gemstones, and a special Gemstone FAQ.
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Can you really go out and dig for your own gemstones? You bet, and its possible to find some nice ones if you work at it. Check in here to learn more about the world of rockhounding and digging your own gems.
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Want to know a little bit more about this crazy prospector guy? Well, here's a little bit more about me, and how I got into prospecting: Chris' Prospecting Story
