The Art of Creating Jewelry

I started making jewelry as a hobbyist. I didn't know where to start so I took a class on basic beading.

What I learned in that class I still use today. And I will never appreciate enough that the teacher turned me on to the ultimate in jewelry suppliers. Rio Grande is the place to buy just about any jewelry supply that you need. And if you don't want to buy from them, then they are the source to compare to. They don't carry everything, but within their market, they have a very good selection. They have so many items that they put out 5 catalogs a year.

When I started I was essentially making jewelry by putting beads on a wire in different patterns.

I spent my first two years learning the best way to finish necklaces, bracelets, and earrings.

I learned where to buy beads, and had a lot of fun shopping for them. And I have to say the best place to buy beads is from bead shows where you can touch and feel and see the beads in person.

After a while, I started wanting a certain style of beads that I couldn't find anywhere and that is what took me to the second stage, creating my own beads.

Finding a style that is uniquely yours is part of becoming a true artist. It was not until I started looking for beads that I wanted and couldn't find them that I started on that journey.

I learned about a new process at that time called Precious Metal Clay and I started making my own components out of fine silver.

Precious Metal Clay allowed me to make any shape I wanted out of clay, then fire it, and end up with a fine silver piece.

It was the perfect medium for me to develop my style.

I am a true believer in finding a style and sticking to it. It takes a while to find the style that you love. I experimented for about 5 years until I started to settle on a style.

As a gallery owner, I know that the artists whose work is remembered are the ones that have a distinct style. It limits you in one way, because you can only work within this style, but it makes you more creative because you develop the style more fully.

My style has become an organic looking style using fine silver, natural stones, pearls and glass primarily although from time to time I add or change parts of it.

Working on developing a style has been the best part of creating my jewelry over the last few years. Narrowing down what look I wanted to express, and really honing it down to specifics has been a challenge and also freeing at the same time. I am loving it.

The next step of course is selling. And that is where I am now. I am ready to wholesale my work. That means working with galleries, and boutiques as customers and helping them choose what will sell best to their customers. It also means creating a production level that will support my wholesale customers.

Selling is hard. It is an entirely differently set of skills than creating. That is why so many artists find it difficult to sell. Selling means putting yourself out there, promoting your work, and having the confidence to stand by your creativity even when it gets rejected by others. Because selling is all about overcoming rejection.

I am totally in love with my own artwork. I love the texture, and the feel of it. I love the look of it.

In order to promote, market, and sell your work, you need to feel the same. If you don't, then you are not ready to sell it.

What I do now is completely different from where I started. I am the designer of the look, then I find the pieces I need to make the look work. When I started, I was just putting existing beads in a pretty pattern.

The true artist creates. The amateur assembles.

Making jewelry is artwork. Don't let anyone tell you differently. And good artwork sells.