Warren Feld Jewelry

Taking Jewelry Making Beyond Craft

Posts Tagged ‘handmade jewelry’

HOW TO BEAD A ROGUE ELEPHANT: The Musings Of A Jewelry Designer: Authenticity

Posted by learntobead on April 21, 2024

Warren Feld

Warren Feld

An authentic life is a limitless life.

So what prevents so many jewelry makers and other artist types from living their authentic lives? What prevents so many designers from making choices and taking advantage of opportunities which are not limited by anyone — not limited by friend or family or boss or colleague or perceptions of cultural and social norms?

Aloise was sitting there, fidgeting, only half listening to the discussion in my class about jewelry design, when, suddenly, unusually with a forceful voice and expression, she said, No one likes her stuff. No positive feedback in response to seeing any of her necklaces or bracelets or earrings. She loved her designs, she stated plainly, convincingly. But no one else seemed to. Her designs did not resonate with her friends and the people around her. She loved making jewelry. She loved her style. She loved the pieces and materials she was using. But, because of the nil-to-negative feedback, she never felt authentic as an artist.

If you saw her pieces, you would immediately come to the conclusion that there was no reason for the negative feedback, except, perhaps, that her pieces did not reflect the current fashion. Well conceived. Well-made. Clearly a point of view.

My response to her was simple: They are not the judge, you are. The problem for you is not your design skills. The problem is that you need to either to connect with a different audience, or, much more difficult, you need to learn how better to express what makes sense and has value for you in your own jewelry design work to your current audience. It’s like thinking your design process out loud — how you made choices about materials, techniques and composition.

Design Is A Tool For Expressing Authenticity

Authenticity and design are integral to each other. Design is a tool for expressing your authenticity. You will have difficulty feeling and expressing your authentic self in public without reference to good design. And, ultimately, you can’t have good design without an ability to express your authentic self. Cannot have one without the other.

Authenticity means conveying a sense of your being genuine. Real. True to your values. Consistent and coherent in how you relate your inspiration to your aspiration when creating a piece of jewelry. Then, continuing to be consistent and coherent as you implement your aspiration, understandably making changes and tweaks along the way, into your finished jewelry design. This requires a lot of honesty with yourself. A lot of self-reflection and what is called metacognition. Your jewelry becomes a sincere expression of you and you-the-creator’s vision.

That’s authenticity. The sum of all your choices in the design process. Technical. Artistic. Social. Philosophical. Each piece of jewelry you make is evidence to the world about all the choices you have made. Choices about translating vision into a tangible form. Selection of visual elements, product functionality, technology and technique. Accepting or rejecting client desires and hoped for experiences. Steering your business towards particular ideas about branding. Design can enhance. It can amplify. It can set boundaries. It can increase accessibility. Engage. Impact.

Gennifer refused! She refused to listen to me about how important it is to relate the materials you choose to your design goals. She made wrap bracelets, usually two bands around the wrist. She sold them for $300 each. Took her about 2 hours to make each one. The materials she used were cheap. If the price tag you put on your jewelry has no relationship to the effort and materials you put into it, you’re not being authentic.

A wrap bracelet consists of beads ladder-stitched between two pieces of leather. She used Indian leather, which dries out and cracks easily. Does not hold up. She stitched her beads with fishing line. Fishing line in sunlight and heat dries out and cracks. Very quickly. She used glass beads from China. Glass beads from China typically are a clear bead with a color coating. The side of all her beads along the full almost 20” length of the bracelet which touched the skin had lost their color. Originally black, they were now white with peeling black. No reinforcement was placed on either end, so, on either end, again pretty quickly, the stitching would start to break and the two supporting strands of leather would come apart.

Gennifer’s wrap bracelets probably had $10–12 of materials in them plus two hours of labor. Her $300 price tag was not representative of appropriate design. She should have upped the quality of her materials: Greek leather, Czech glass or gemstone beads, micro bead cord for the stitching. She should have reinforced both ends, such as using a silk wrap technique. Then her pieces would be durable and justify the price tag, and be much more authentic to herself as a designer. Or, she should charge what her pieces are really worth: perhaps $75–100. I’ve yet to meet one of her customers who has gotten more than six months of use out of her pieces. To me, if Gennifer thinks she is being authentic, I’d tell her it’s contrived.

About Authenticity

Authenticity is multiplex. It functions on several planes.

You have material authenticity. Given the value you want to assign to your piece, your choice of materials, and how you leverage them, should be the highest, appropriate quality in durability, sustainability and craftsmanship.

You have technical and technological authenticity. Your choice of techniques and technologies, and how you leverage them, should bring your design to that optimum (sometimes called parsimonious) point of efficiency and effectiveness. That is, that perfect point where you can maintain both shape and suppleness.

There is emotional authenticity. Good jewelry should resonate with the customer. It should evoke genuine emotions in line with your audience’s intended desire(s).

There is cultural authenticity. Good jewelry shows respect and acknowledges any cultural influences and inspirations, when design elements are borrowed or otherwise represented.

There is contemporary design authenticity. In contemporary design, the designer substitutes personal values and understandings for those of traditional socio-cultural norms and values which influence more traditional design. You must always show respect for tradition while concurrently using your own authentic self as the measure and rationale for successful design choices within any designing process. You must overcome pressures to conform and present a curated version of yourself.

Another type is personal authenticity. As a jewelry designer, you always have something to say. It can be simple such as what you think might be beautiful or wearable or appropriate for a certain situation. It might be more complex where you make a series of interrelated choices relating your values and desires to those of your client.

Dilemmas For The Designer

For me, I grew up with both parents and teachers discouraging me from pursuing my creative self through the arts. Doctor or lawyer. Basically, those were the two allowed choices, as I was steered and tracked and encouraged (or discouraged) over all my young and teenage years. [Parents, if your child tells you who they are, support them!]

Finally, in my early 20’s, having achieved some separation from my overbearing career police, I made an attempt for a few years to paint. Pretty. Ok technique. No reflection of who I was as a person except perhaps, in the choice of subject matter. I tried to convey emotions and meanings, but, primarily ended up with pretty paintings to decorate my apartment. Friends and family loved them. Sold a few. But none of this was coming together as a reflection of my authentic self. I was in my 20’s but hadn’t found anything authentic about me.

Twenty years later, when I began to make jewelry, I felt a strong connection. With jewelry, I had to create something meaningful for both myself and my client. Both our understandings. Both our values. Both our desires. Jewelry by its nature requires this kind of dialogue. That challenge stirred me. It forced me to come to grips by reflecting on what I wanted the object I created to be, and how that compared to what someone else wanted. Add on top of this was the fact the design had to account for the fact that the wearer moves around and never wants to look clownish. Jewelry design, under these circumstances, becomes very complex. And, as a result of all this thinking and concerning and anticipating and interacting, my sense of authenticity began to grow and clarify and grow and clarify some more.

From my experiences, and those of my students and colleagues, I can identify several dilemmas and challenges for the designer who wants to find their authentic self and successfully express it through the designing of jewelry.

The originality dilemma. You don’t design in a vacuum. And most certainly, many of the design choices you make have been influenced by other designers around you. Finding a balance between originality and the influence of others can be daunting. But think about it this way. Define ‘originality’ as differentiation. Your authenticity will emerge and shine by the way you differentiate yourself from other designers and influencers.

The art market dilemma. For many of us, we want some level of commercial success. Often this means compromising our integrity as we bow to things like fashion, market trends, client expectations, commercial requirements and limitations. Sometimes, when commercializing what we do, we use the label “authentic” to commodify our jewelry, when we are really stretching the imagination and legitimacy here. The challenge is to find balance between making a living and maintaining true authenticity.

The shared understanding dilemma. Successful design emerges from the insights and applications of the values and desires of the artist in coordination and conjunction with the assumptions, values and desires of the client. That might mean some compromising. Some give and take. Some less authenticity. The designer must decide to what degree personal integrity will be compromised in the design process.

The vulnerability dilemma. Since jewelry must be introduced publicly — for someone to wear, to be exhibited, to be sold, to be collected — the designer, of necessity, must open themselves up. Be exposed. Be given critique and criticism. There is doubt and self-doubt. There is a questioning of whether you are truly genuine. The designer is faced with determining how to overcome feelings of vulnerability and how much ego-self-protection they want to build into what they do.

The evolution dilemma. You grow, you learn, you change over time. What you thought was your authentic self (and all that that meant) earlier in your career may be different than what it is now and how you want to express it now. In a similar way, your authentic self may vary a bit from one context to another. This might result in a tension between the consistency and coherency of your body of work as these relate to your authentic self as you see / feel / sense it in the moment. The designer, in this case, must grapple with whether to change or not, or if so, how much to change. If you are already an established business with a strong brand identity, this becomes especially difficult to deal with. Changing your brand identity is especially hard. You don’t want to be rejected by or confuse your audience.

During my jewelry designing career, all these challenges confronted me. I can honestly say that there is a give and take, from piece to piece that I have designed, between achieving that authentic self, and having to make some compromises. Often, when I find I have had to compromise too much — usually to conform to my client’s wishes — I concurrently design a piece in the abstract, one I can create which majorly resonates with many aspects of my personal authenticity as an artist.

One last point. Look around at all the jewelry available for sale and that people wear. There is a lot of sameness. Standardization. Very machine-made looking. In some sense, lacking in personality and individuality. Infusing your jewelry design with your authentic self helps you differentiate yourself from mass-produced or superficial alternatives.

How someone actually goes about finding and expressing their authentic self varies from person to person. This isn’t a straightforward process. You the designer must be guided by your own self-reflection, empathy and commitment to your core values, beliefs and desires. You must strive to align your choices about design with your inner convictions.

And remember:   Rogue Elephants are always authentic.    They can be no other way.

_______________________________

I hope you found this article useful. Please consider sharing. Thank you for clicking the CLAP HANDS icon at the bottom of this article.

I’d welcome any suggestions for topics (warren@warrenfeldjewelry.com)

Also, check out my website (www.warrenfeldjewelry.com).

Enroll in my jewelry design and business of craft Video Tutorials online. Begin with my ORIENTATION TO BEADS & JEWELRY FINDINGS COURSE.

Follow my articles on Medium.com.

Check out my books on Amazon.com

Subscribe to my Learn To Bead blog (https://blog.landofodds.com).

Follow my series HOW TO BEAD A ROGUE ELEPHANT.

Visit Land of Odds online (https://www.landofodds.com)for all your jewelry making supplies.

Check out my Jewelry Making and Beadwork Kits.

Add your name to my email list.

_________________________________________________________________

CONQUERING THE CREATIVE MARKETPLACE: Between the Fickleness of Business and the Pursuit of Design

Kindle, Print, Epub

SO YOU WANT TO BE A JEWELRY DESIGNER
Merging Your Voice With Form

Ebook , Kindle or Print formats

The Jewelry Journey Podcast
“Building Jewelry That Works: Why Jewelry Design Is Like Architecture”
Podcast, Part 1
Podcast, Part 2

PEARL KNOTTING…Warren’s Way
Easy. Simple. No tools. Anyone Can Do!

Ebook, Kindle or Print

SO YOU WANT TO DO CRAFT SHOWS: 16 Lessons I Learned Doing Craft Shows

Ebook, Kindle or Print

BASICS OF BEAD STRINGING AND ATTACHING CLASPS

Ebook, Kindle or Print

___________________________________________

Posted in Art or Craft?, art theory, bead stringing, bead weaving, beads, beadwork, craft, craft shows, creativity, design management, design theory, design thinking, jewelry, jewelry design, jewelry making, Learn To Bead, pearl knotting, professional development, wire and metal | Tagged: , , , , , | Leave a Comment »

Don’t Get Caught Falling Into The Abyss of Self-Doubt: Are any of these 8 questions keeping you from designing jewelry?

Posted by learntobead on April 20, 2024

Warren Feld

Warren Feld
11 min read

Keep From Letting ‘Doubt’ Paralyze You As A Jewelry Designer

For the novice, all that excitement at the beginning, when thinking about making jewelry and making some pieces, sometimes collides with a wall of developing self-doubt.

It’s not easy to quiet a doubt.

As a jewelry artist, you organize your life around an inspiration. There is some fuzziness here. That inspiration has some elements of ideas, but not necessarily crystal clear ones. That inspiration has some elements of emotions — it makes you feel something — but not necessarily something you can put into words or images or fully explain. You then need to translate this fuzzy inspiration into materials, into techniques, into color, into arrangements, into a coherent whole.

You start to make something, but realize you don’t know how to do it. But you want to do it, and do it now. However, to pick up the needed skills, you realize you can’t learn things all at once. You can’t do everything you want to do all at once. That initial excitement often hits a wall. Things take time to learn. There are a lot of trial and error moments, with a lot of errors. Pieces break. Combining colors and other design elements feels very awkward. Picking the right clasps and rings and connectors and stringing materials is fraught with implications. Silhouettes are confusing. You might get the right shape for your piece, but it is difficult to get the right movement, drape and flow, without compromising that shape.

To add to this stress and strain, you need to show your jewelry off. You might want someone to like it. To want it. To need it. To desire it. To buy it. To wear it. To wear it more than once. To wear it often. To exhibit it. To collect it. To show and talk about it with others. And how will all these other people recognize your creative spark, and your abilities to translate that spark into a wonderful, beautiful, functional piece of jewelry, appropriate for the wearer and appropriate for the situation?

Frequently, because of all this, the artist experiences some sense of doubt and self-doubt. Some paralysis. Can’t get started. Can’t finish something. Avoiding showing your pieces to others. Wondering why you became a jewelry designer in the first place.

Doubt holds you back from seizing your opportunities.

It makes getting started or finishing things harder than they need to be.

It adds uncertainty.

It makes you question yourself.

It blocks your excitement, perhaps diminishing it.

Doubt and Self-Doubt should be useful in forcing you to think about and question your choices. However, for many jewelry designers, it mostly holds them back.

Having doubt and self-doubt is common among all artistic types. After all, for much of what you do and how you spend your time, you’re mostly alone with your thoughts.

What becomes important is how you manage and overcome it. You do not want your doubts to get in the way of your creative process and disciplinary development. You want your doubts, rather, to inform them.

8 Major Ways Doubts Can Force You Into That Abyss

There are 8 major ways in which jewelry designers get caught beginning to fall into that abyss we call self-doubt:

1) What If I’m Not Creative Enough or Original Enough or Cannot Learn or Master or Don’t Know a Particular Technique?

2) What If No One Likes What I Make?

3) What If No One Takes Me Seriously As An Artist And Designer?

4) I Overthink Things and Am A Bit of a Perfectionist.

5) How Can I Stay Inspired?

6) Won’t People Steal My Work?

7) Being Over Confident or Under Confident

8) Role Confusion

1. What If I’m Not Creative Enough or Original Enough or Cannot Learn or Master or Don’t Know a Particular Technique?

Everyone has some creativity baked into their being. It is a matter of developing your way of thinking and doing so that you can apply it. This takes time.

So does originality. The word originality can be very off-putting, but it does not have to be.

At first, when you are getting started making jewelry, originality will mean that you will try different ways of personalizing projects. There are always things you can do to bring some aspects of originality to your pieces. This might be the choice of colors, or using a special clasp, or rearranging some elements in your composition.

Again, as with creativity, the ability to be more and more original will evolve over time. It is helpful to think of originality, not necessarily as coming up with something completely new, but rather as differentiation — how you differentiate yourself from other jewelry designers.

For almost everyone, you don’t begin your design career at the height of your levels of creativity and originality. Yes, if you look around you, other people are more creative and original than you or have more skills than you. Don’t let these observations be a barrier to your own development as a jewelry designer. You get there through persistence and hard work. You handle your inner critic. You may not be there, yet — the key word here is yet. But you will be.

2. What If No One Likes What I Make?

We all have fears about how our creativity and originality are going to be evaluated and judged. We project our self-doubts to the doubts we think we see and feel from others. What if no one wants to wear my pieces, or buy my works?

We can’t let these outsider reactions dictate our lives and creative selves. A key part of successful jewelry design is learning how to introduce what we do publicly. At the least, it is the core nature of the things we create that they are to be worn on the body. Jewelry is a very public thing.

Turn negative comments into positive ideas, motivators, insights, explorations. Allow yourself some give and take, some needs to step back awhile, some needs to tweak. Jewelry design and jewelry making are iterative processes. They in no way are linear. Your outcomes and their success are more evolutionary, than guaranteed.

Distressing about what others may think of your work can be very damaging to your self-esteem. It can amplify your worries. Don’t go there.

Don’t become your worst critic.

3. What If No One Takes Me Seriously As An Artist And Designer?

Jewelry design is an occupation in search of a profession. You will find that a lot of people won’t recognize your passion and commitment. They may think anyone can design jewelry. They may think of jewelry making as a craft or some subset of art, not as something unique and important in and of itself. They may wonder how you can make a living at this.

The bottom line: if you don’t take yourself seriously as a jewelry designer, no one else will.

People will take you seriously as they see all the steps you are taking to master your craft and develop yourself as a professional.

4. I Over Think Things And Am A Bit Of A Perfectionist

Some designers let a sense that their work is not as good as imagined get in the way. They never finish anything. They let doubt eat away at them.

Perfectionism is the enemy of the good. It’s great to be meticulous, but emotionally, we get wrecked when anything goes astray, or any little thing is missing, or you don’t have that exact color or part you originally wanted.

Go ahead and plan. Planning is good. It’s insightful. It can be strategic. But also be sure to be adaptable and realistic. Each piece is a stepping stone to something that will come next.

The better jewelry designer develops a Designer’s Toolbox — a collection of fix-it strategies to deal with the unfamiliar or the problematic.

Overthinking can be very detrimental. You can’t keep changing your mind, trying out every option, thinking that somewhere, someplace there exists a better option. Make a choice and get on with it. You can tweak things later.

Yes, attention to detail is important. But so is the value of your time. You do not want to waste too much time on trivial details.

Be aware when you begin over-analyzing things. Stop, take a breath, make a decision, and move on.

5. How Can I Stay Inspired?

Designing a piece of jewelry takes time, sometimes a long time. That initial inspirational spark might feel like it’s a dying ember.

Don’t let that happen.

Translate that inspiration into images, colors, words, sample designs, and surround your work space with these.

Talk about your inspiration in detail with family and friends.

6. Won’t People Steal My Work?

Many jewelry designers fear that if they show their work publicly, people will steal their ideas. So they stop designing.

Yet jewelry design is a very communicative process which requires introducing your work publicly. If you are not doing this, then you are creating simple sculptures, not jewelry.

Yes, other people may copy your work. See this source of doubt as an excuse. It is a self-imposed, but unnecessary, barrier we might impose to prevent us from experiencing that excitement as a jewelry designer. Other people will never be able to copy your design prowess — how you translate inspiration into a finished piece. That is unique and special to you. It is why the general public responds positively to you and your work.

7. Over Confidence can blind you to the things you need to be doing and learning, and Under Confidence can hinder your development as a designer.

Too often, we allow under confidence to deter us from the jewelry design and making tasks at hand. We always question our lack of ability and technical prowess for accomplishing the necessary tasks at hand. It is important, however, to believe in yourself. To believe that you can work things out when confronted with unfamiliar or problematic situations. It is important to develop your skills for thinking like a designer. Fluency. Flexibility. Originality. There is a vocabulary to learn. Techniques to learn. Strategies to learn. These develop over time with practice and experience. You need to believe in your abilities to develop as a designer over time.

With over confidence comes a naivete. You close off the wisdom to listen to what others have to say or offer. You stunt your development as an artist. You overlook important factors about materials and techniques to the detriment of your final designs and products. You close yourself off to doubt and self-doubt, which is unfortunate. Doubt and self-doubt are tools for asking questions and questioning things. These help you grow and develop as an artist and designer. These influence your ability to make good, professional choices in your career.

8. Role Confusion

Jewelry artists play many roles and wear different hats. Each has its own set of opportunities, requirements, and pressures that the artist must cope with. It’s a balancing act extraordinaire.

First, people who make jewelry wear different hats: Artist and Designer, Manufacturer, Distributor, Retailer, and Exhibitor.

Second, people who make jewelry have different needs: Artistic Excellence, Recognition, Monetary Gain, or Financial Stability.

Third, the artist needs to please and satisfy themselves, as well as other various clients.

Fourth, the artist constructs pieces which need to function in different settings: Situational, Cultural, Sociological, Psychological.

Last, the artist must negotiate a betwixt and between situation — a rite of passage — as they relinquish control over the piece and its underlying inspirations to the wearer and the viewer, who have their own needs, desires and expectations.

This gets confusing. It affects how you pick materials and supplies. Which techniques you use. What marketing strategies you employ. How you value and price things. Anticipating who your audience is. And the list goes on.

It is important to be aware (metacognitive) of what role(s) you play when, and why. Given the role, it is important to understand the types of choices you need to make, when constructing a piece of jewelry. It is critical to understand the tradeoffs you will invariably end up making, and their consequences for the aesthetic, emotional and functional success of your pieces.

Some Advice

While doubt and self-doubt can hinder our development as jewelry designers, some degree of these may be helpful, as well.

To develop yourself as a jewelry designer, and to continue to grow and expand in your profession, you must have a balanced amount of both doubt and self-doubt. Uncertainty leads to questioning. A search for knowledge. Some acceptance of trial and error and experimentation. A yearning for more reliable information and feedback.

Jewelry design uses a great deal of emotion as a Way of Knowing. Emotions cloud or distort how we perceive things. They may lead to more doubt and worry and lack of confidence. But they also enhance our excitement when translating inspirations into designs.

· Don’t let your inner doubts spin out of control. Be aware and suppress them.

· Be real with yourself and your abilities.

· Keep a journal. Detail what your doubts are and the things you are doing to overcome them.

· Create a developmental plan for yourself. Identify the knowledge, skills and understandings you want to develop and grow into.

· Remember what happened in the past the last time doubt got in your way. Remember what you did to overcome this doubt. Remember that probably nothing negative actually happened.

· Talk to people. These can be friends, relatives and colleagues. Don’t keep doubts unto yourself.

· Don’t compare yourself to others. This is a trap. Self-reflect and self-evaluate you on your own terms.

· Worrying about what others think? The truth is that people don’t really care that much about what you do or not do.

· Don’t beat yourself up.

· Get re-inspired. This might mean surrounding yourself with images and photos of things. It might mean a walk in nature. It might me letting someone else’s excitement flow over to you.

· Take breaks.

· See setbacks as temporary.

· Celebrate small steps.

· Keep developing your skills.

· Set goals for yourself.

_______________________________

I hope you found this article useful. I’d welcome any suggestions for topics (warren@warrenfeldjewelry.com)

Also, check out my website (www.warrenfeldjewelry.com).

Enroll in my jewelry design and business of craft Video Tutorials online. Begin with my ORIENTATION TO BEADS & JEWELRY FINDINGS COURSE.

Follow my articles on Medium.com.

Subscribe to my Learn To Bead blog (https://blog.landofodds.com).

Visit Land of Odds online (https://www.landofodds.com)for all your jewelry making supplies.

Check out my Jewelry Making and Beadwork Kits.

Add your name to my email list.

_________________________________________________________________

CONQUERING THE CREATIVE MARKETPLACE: Between the Fickleness of Business and the Pursuit of Design

Kindle, Print, Epub

SO YOU WANT TO BE A JEWELRY DESIGNER
Merging Your Voice With Form

Ebook , Kindle or Print formats

The Jewelry Journey Podcast
“Building Jewelry That Works: Why Jewelry Design Is Like Architecture”
Podcast, Part 1
Podcast, Part 2

PEARL KNOTTING…Warren’s Way
Easy. Simple. No tools. Anyone Can Do!

Ebook, Kindle or Print

SO YOU WANT TO DO CRAFT SHOWS: 16 Lessons I Learned Doing Craft Shows

Ebook, Kindle or Print

BASICS OF BEAD STRINGING AND ATTACHING CLASPS

Ebook, Kindle or Print

___________________________________________

Posted in architecture, Art or Craft?, art theory, bead stringing, bead weaving, beads, beadwork, business of craft, craft shows, creativity, design management, design thinking, Entrepreneurship, jewelry design, jewelry making, Learn To Bead, pearl knotting, professional development, wire and metal, Workshops, Classes, Exhibits | Tagged: , , , , | Leave a Comment »

So You Want To Be A Jewelry Designer: A Primer

Posted by learntobead on April 20, 2024

Warren Feld

Warren Feld

5 min read

Where can you learn jewelry making skills?…

It’s important to learn in an organized, developmental way. You want to be always asking how things are interrelated. What depends on what? You want to pose what-if questions so that you can train yourself to anticipate the implications and consequences of making one choice over another. What happens If? What happens When? What enhances? What impedes? What synergizes? What can be leveraged, and toward what objective? You want to reflect on your outcomes.

Some places for learning:

Local craft or bead store
Community college
University (art, fiber arts, metalsmithing,
fashion)
Jewelry design program
Fashion schools
Bead and Jewelry Making Magazines
Social media groups
Self-taught, crafting at home
On-the-job training
Certifications
Art institutes
Art grants
How-to books
Video tutorials
Networking with other craft artists

Types of Beading and Jewelry Making

There is so much to know, and so many types of choices to make. Which clasp? Which stringing material? Which technique? Which beads? Which strategy of construction? What aesthetic you want to achieve? How you want to achieve it? Drape, movement, context, durability.

Sample of Techniques:

Stringing
Assembling
Bead Weaving
Bead Working
Wire Working
Wire Wrapping
Wire Weaving
Silversmithing, Metal Work
Cold Connections
Fabrication
Casting
Fiber Arts, Knitting, Crochet
Micro-Macrame
Bead Embroidery
Kumihimo, Knotting, Braiding
CAD (Computer Aided Design)
Enameling
Lampworking and Glass Blowing
Stamping
Engraving
Polymer Clay, Precious Metal Clay, Sculpting
Lapidary
Woodwork, Carving

Types of Tasks Jewelry Makers and Beaders Do

Adjust, reshape, resize, create and attach clasp assemblies
Cutting stones, setting stones, determining value and authenticity of stones
CAD (Computer Aided Design), 3-D Printing
Fabrication, stamping, engraving, casting, soldering, cold connections, shaping
metal wire and sheet, annealing
Model and mold building, sculpting
Manage thread tension, create self-supporting shapes, manage movement, drape and flow
String, weave, netting, embellish, embroider, knit, crochet, braid, knot, wrap, assemble
Understand jewelry-making as a process, from beginning to end
Select color, proportion, volume, shape, forms, size, silhouettes, themes
Place and Arrange design elements and components
Read patterns, figures, graphs
Select materials and techniques
Determine measurements
Assess stress, strain, strength, suppleness, stability and synergy
Understand and access the creative marketplace, introduce their pieces publicly

Learning Objectives

A. Technical Mechanics

1. Managing tension, whether using thread, cord, string or wire

2. Holding your piece to work it

3. Reading simple patterns, figures, graphs

4. Selecting appropriate materials

5. Identifying areas of potential weakness, and strategies for dealing with these

6. Determining measurements, including width and length of a piece, especially in relationship to bead and other component sizes

7. Extending your piece, such as adding thread or wire

8. Finishing off your piece and adding the clasp assembly

B. Understanding Craft Basis of Technique or Stitch

  1. Starting the technique or stitch
  2. Implementing the basic technique or stitch

3. Finishing off the basic technique or stitch

4. Learning variations on the technique or stitch

5. Embellishing the Stitch, including fringe, edge, bail, strap, connectors

C. Understanding Art & Design Basis of Technique or Stitch

1. Learning implications when choosing different sizes/shapes of beads or
other components, or using different stringing materials

2. Understanding relationship of the technique or stitch in comparison to
other techniques or stitches

3. Understanding how bead asserts its need for color

4. Creating your own design with this technique or stitch, in reference to
design elements and jewelry design principles of composition

5. Creating shapes, components and forms with this technique or stitch, and
establishing themes

6. Building in structural supports, and other support elements, into the
design

D. Becoming a Bead Weaving or Jewelry Making Designer

1. Developing a personal style

2. Valuing or pricing your work

3. Teaching others the technique or stitch

4. Promoting yourself and your work

5. Advocating for jewelry as “Art” and as “Design”

Types of Tools Needed To Get Started

Scissors
Chain nose pliers (inside of jaws smooth)
Flat Nose Pliers
Side Cutters
Flush Cutters
Tweezers and Awl
Assorted sizes of hard wire, cable wire, bead cord and bead, thread, elastic string
Ruler
Crimping pliers
Hammers and mallets
Steel block plate
Doming block, anvil
Sizing cones
Hand held torch and fire-proof work surface
Bead stoppers / clamps
Color wheel
Work Surface or Pad
Bead board
Round nose pliers
Ring, Jump Ring, and bracelet mandrels
Needles, wax
Jeweler’s saw and blades
Good lighting
Comfortable seating

Finding jobs and pathways utilizing your skills as a jewelry designer…

There are actually many career pathways for people who have backgrounds in jewelry making and bead working. Besides the obvious pathways of making jewelry to sell, or teaching jewelry making, there are still many job and career opportunities for you.

Jewelry maker
Illustrator
Fashion designer
Stylist
Metalsmith
Teacher
Lapidary
Gemologist
Jewelry repair
Wood worker
Fiber artist
Lampworking and glass blowing
Physical and Occupational Therapist
Counseling
Custom designer
Engraver
Sales
Merchandising
Website design
Data analyst
Grants writer/reviewer
Program director
Video instructor or host
Jewelry assessor
Display and Packaging
Influencer
Writer
Business Developer

_______________________________

I hope you found this article useful. I’d welcome any suggestions for topics (warren@warrenfeldjewelry.com)

Also, check out my website (www.warrenfeldjewelry.com).

Enroll in my jewelry design and business of craft Video Tutorials online. Begin with my ORIENTATION TO BEADS & JEWELRY FINDINGS COURSE.

Follow my articles on Medium.com.

Subscribe to my Learn To Bead blog (https://blog.landofodds.com).

Visit Land of Odds online (https://www.landofodds.com)for all your jewelry making supplies.

Check out my Jewelry Making and Beadwork Kits.

Add your name to my email list.

_________________________________________________________________

CONQUERING THE CREATIVE MARKETPLACE: Between the Fickleness of Business and the Pursuit of Design

Kindle, Print, Epub

SO YOU WANT TO BE A JEWELRY DESIGNER
Merging Your Voice With Form

Ebook , Kindle or Print formats

The Jewelry Journey Podcast
“Building Jewelry That Works: Why Jewelry Design Is Like Architecture”
Podcast, Part 1
Podcast, Part 2

PEARL KNOTTING…Warren’s Way
Easy. Simple. No tools. Anyone Can Do!

Ebook, Kindle or Print

SO YOU WANT TO DO CRAFT SHOWS: 16 Lessons I Learned Doing Craft Shows

Ebook, Kindle or Print

BASICS OF BEAD STRINGING AND ATTACHING CLASPS

Ebook, Kindle or Print

___________________________________________

Posted in Art or Craft?, art theory, bead stringing, bead weaving, beads, beadwork, craft shows, creativity, design thinking, jewelry design, jewelry making, Learn To Bead, professional development, wire and metal | Tagged: , , , , | Leave a Comment »

I need your help writing an article – beginning as a jewelry artist/designer

Posted by learntobead on April 18, 2024

​​Hi everyone,

I need your help.



I am writing an article about how jewelry designers began their careers/hobbies/avocations.    

I would be interested in you sharing your stories.    


Some of the questions I want to explore in my article:

1) How did you get started making jewelry?     motivations, intentions, whether the start was very dramatic or mundane, whether you thought it was fate, destiny, luck, personal choice.     Was there a particular point in time, or some kind of evolution?


2) What was your first moment of validation like?    Not when you started making jewelry per se, but when you started telling people and feeling like an ‘artist’ or ‘designer’.      It might have been a quiet admission, coming out to yourself as an artist.    It might have been something public, like selling a piece, exhibiting it, some reaction from a client.   It might have been some kind of break-through or finding newness or inspiration.    It might have been a feeling of originality.   A lot of people make jewelry, and can be very talented at it, but do not consider themselves as ‘artists’ or ‘designers’.


3) To what extent did beginning as a jewelry artist/designer feel like a response to society or family or local culture?    Art doesn’t exist only because of feelings and emotions.   There is a complex infrastructure within which the jewelry designer needs in order to survive.    How would you describe this infrastructure within which you work and because of it you can survive.     To what extent does it help you to enhance your work and vocation?   To what extent does it impede you?


4) Were there special circumstances that were critical in your beginning and development as a jewelry artist/designer?     Were there specific excitements, anxieties, challenges you faced?


5) For you, was there a beginning, and then a beginning again?     Describe how difficult it was to begin again.    How did it feel/seem to question or know whether you could create again?


6) What kinds of things have enabled you to keep going as a jewelry artist/designer?    What contributed to your ability to survive your creative life?



I may or may not reference what you share in my final article.    Unless you specifically tell me it’s OK, I will not use anyone’s real name in my article.


I appreciate you taking the time to share.    I know a lot of jewelry designers and would-be jewelry designers can learn a lot from your experiences.




Warren
warren@landofodds.com

www.warrenfeldjewelry.com

That’s it for now!    There is a lot of creative expression all around the world right now.    Hope you get to experience a lot of it, either first hand, or through social media online.



WSF

Posted in Art or Craft?, art theory, bead stringing, bead weaving, beads, beadwork, business of craft, creativity, design thinking, jewelry design, jewelry making, Learn To Bead, pearl knotting, professional development, wire and metal, Workshops, Classes, Exhibits | Tagged: , , , , | 4 Comments »

Promotional Discount – 4/24 and 4/25 only – Business of Craft Video Tutorials

Posted by learntobead on April 25, 2014

PROMOTIONAL DISCOUNT
Two Business of Craft Tutorials
Thurs 4/24 and Fri 4/25 only

I enjoy teaching about the business of craft.     Over the past 25 years, I’ve learned many insights about creating, marketing and selling jewelry.     Two of my video tutorials – “SO YOU WANT TO DO CRAFT SHOWS” and “PRICING AND SELLING YOUR JEWELRY” are available on the http://www.CraftArtEdu.com website.

 

CraftArtEdu.com is running a two-day – THURS, 4/24 and FRI, 4/25 only — special discount on these video tutorials, which you might take advantage of.  I’ve appended their promotional announcement below.

 

Warren

 

 

 

Ah, summer. It’s a time for county fairs, music and craft festivals! If you’ve ever considered selling your jewelry or other handmade items in local shows and venues, you know it’s a significant investment of both your time and money.  In this email, you’ll find two classes from Warren Feld that can help you avoid some costly mistakes and find success! Warren has over 20 years of selling experience – and he shares his hard-won lessons with you. We’re also featuring a few classes with projects that just might be fun to make and sell! All classes are at Super Deals (through Friday!) Enjoy! Donna Kato Founder, CraftArtEdu.com

So You Want to Do Craft Shows  with Warren Feld

You can make good money… IF you know what you’re doing. Warren shares his years of valuable experience and business expertise in the form of sixteen in-depth, approachable lessons so you can maximize your chances of success!  Jam-packed with practical, actionable information, Warren’s lessons cover everything involved in running a successful and profitable show including how to:

  • find, evaluate and select craft shows that are right for your work
  • set realistic goals, build a budget and calculate your break-even point
  • determine the amount and type of inventory you should bring
  • price your work and deal with “hagglers”
  • set up your booth for success, including design, layout and merchandising tips
  • handle cash, credit cards and deter shoplifters
  • and so much more.. this class is almost two hours long!

Warren includes lots of advice and helpful resource links, too. All you need to provide is a pencil, some paper, a calculator and your enthusiasm for running a successful, profitable craft show! Preview and Purchase Warren’s Class All Levels | $30 | $24 through Friday!

Pricing and Selling Your Jewelry  with Warren Feld

Can you make money by selling your jewelry? Yes, you can! Warren has years of experience selling jewelry at craft fairs, flea markets, on consignment, in galleries and eventually in his own store and online. In this class, he shares words of advice and everything he knows about the essential key to success: Smart Pricing! Preview and Purchase Warren’s Class! All Levels | $15 | $12 through Friday!“This class is worth its weight in gold. The information is presented in a clear and thorough manner. Warren shares his extensive knowledge in a very easy to understand format.” ~ Mary C

Add To Cart! These Bargains End Friday!Special Prices on These Classes Expire Midnight CT, Friday, April 25, 2014

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VOTE FOR ME

Posted by learntobead on January 20, 2011

VOTE FOR ME

I entered my jewelry work in a contest called ARTISTS WANTED: A YEAR IN REVIEW. There are many judging levels to the contest. One of them is a public review. The public is asked to judge and rate the collection online. If you have the opportunity, I would appreciate if you would visit the website. At the top right corner, are a five star rating system, with 5 as the highest score. Voting ends around February 8th.

Go to:
http://www.artistswanted.org/oddsshop

Thanks — Warren

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GO VOTE – 2009 7th Annual The Ugly Necklace Contest

Posted by learntobead on May 27, 2009

PRESS RELEASE –5/27/09
TOPIC:  THE UGLY NECKLACE CONTEST 2009
uglynecklace header

Semi-Finalists Announced – Voting Begins!
7th Annual 2009 The Ugly Necklace Contest
– A Jewelry Design Competition With A Twist
May 27, 2009 thru July 15, 2009

 

 VOTE HERE

Six Jewelry Artists from around the world have been selected as Semi-Finalists of The 7th Annual 2009 The Ugly Necklace Contest – A Jewelry Design Competition With A Twist, by a panel of four judges from The Center for Beadwork & Jewelry Arts and Land of Odds. Voting begins On-Line on May 27th, thru July 15th for the Winner and Runner Up Grand Prize: $992.93 shopping spree on Land of Odds web-site (www.landofodds.com ) Runner Up Prize: $399.07 shopping spree on Land of Odds web-site.

 

 

OUR SIX SEMI-FINALISTS

 


Lori-Ann Scott
Spokane, Washington
“Sweet”

Deborah Eve Rubin
Rockville, Maryland
“Ode To An Ugly Necklace”

Jolynn Casto
Logan, Ohio
“Four Season’s Necklace”

Sarah Allison
Gresham, Oregon
“Walk In My Garden”

Juli Brown
Wells, Minnesota
“Coffin Nail Necklace”

Lynn Margaret Davy
Wimborne, Dorset, United Kingdom
“The Story of My Beading Life”

 

 

LAND OF ODDS
Attention: Warren Feld
www.landofodds.com
718 Thompson Lane, Ste 123, Nashville, TN 37204
Phone: 615-292-0610; Fax: 615-460-7001
Email: warren@landofodds.com

Synopsis:

It’s not easy to do Ugly!

So the many jewelry designers from across America and around the Globe who entered our 7th Annual 2009 The Ugly Necklace Contest, found this contest especially challenging. After all, your brain is pre-wired to avoid and reject things which are ugly. Think of snakes and spiders. And even if you start your necklace with a bunch of ugly pieces, once you organize them into a circle, the very nature of an ordered round form makes it difficult to achieve Ugly. Yes, “Ugly” is easier said than done.

Who will win? We need the public’s help to influence our panel of judges.

Does our Minnesota entry make even lung cancer look pretty? Or does our entry from Ohio give the four seasons a bad name? Surely, our Oregon entry didn’t mean to step on and crush all the flowers in her garden. Nor did our entry from Washington intentionally put down anyone with a sweet tooth or an obsessed passion for the fork. From Maryland comes this perplexing challenge: can Trash be Ugly? We would assume so, until we try to make a necklace from it. And from England, another kind of trash – bead project trash – comes to signify what ugly things happen when you don’t finish what you started.

Our respected judges evaluated these creatively-designed pieces in terms of hideousness, use of materials and clasp, the number of jewelry design principles violated, and the designer’s artistic control. Extra points were awarded for artists’ use of smaller beads, because it’s much more difficult to do Ugly with these.
Now it’s time for America and the World to help finalize the decision about which of these 6 semi-finalists’ Ugly Necklaces to vote for. The winner will truly be an exceptional jewelry designer. The losers….well….this isn’t a contest where you really can “lose”.

Come see these and the other semi-finalists’ pieces at www.landofodds.com, and vote your choice for the Ugliest Necklace, 2009.
And if you are in the Nashville, Tennessee area, please stop by The Open Windows Gallery (fine art jewelry) at Be Dazzled Beads, where the 6 semi-finalists’ Ugly Necklaces are on display through September 15, 2009.

 

ABOUT UGLY NECKLACES

The UGLY NECKLACE CONTEST (www.landofodds.com/store/uglynecklace.htm) is a jewelry design contest with a twist. The contest presents a challenge not often tackled — at least intentionally. The contest draws the jewelry designer into an alternative universe where beautiful artists create ugly necklaces. It’s not easy to do.

“Ugly” is more involved than simple surface treatment. It is not just laying out a bunch of ugly parts into a circle. It turns out that “Ugly” is something more than that. “Ugly” is the result of the interplay among Designer, Wearer, and Viewer. “Ugly” is very much a result of how a necklace is designed and constructed. “Ugly” is something the viewer actively tries to avoid and move away from. “Ugly” has deep-rooted psychological, cognitive, perceptual, sociological and anthropological functions and purposes.

As research into color and design has shown, your eye and brain compensate for imbalances in color or in the positioning of pieces and objects – they try to correct and harmonize them. They try to neutralize anything out of place or not quite right. You are pre-wired to subconsciously avoid anything that is disorienting, disturbing or distracting. Your mind and eye won’t let you go here. This is considered part of the fear response, where your brain actively attempts to avoid things like snakes and spiders…. and ugly necklaces.

This means that jewelry designers, if they are to create beautiful, wearable art, have to be more deeply involved with their pieces beyond “surface”. Or their pieces will be less successful, thus less beautiful, thus more disturbing or distracting or disorienting, thus more Ugly.

Luckily, for the jewelry designer, we are pre-wired to avoid these negative things. This makes it easier to end up with pieces that look good. Beauty, in some sense, then, is very intuitive. On the other hand, it makes it more difficult to end up with pieces that look bad. You see, Ugly goes against our nature. It’s hard to do.

The Ugly Necklace Contest is one of the many programs at The Center for Beadwork & Jewelry Arts in Nashville, Tennessee, that encourage beadwork and jewelry makers to test their design skills, have fun, and learn some fundamentals about jewelry design in the process.

Call for Entries – 8th Annual 2010 The Ugly Necklace Contest
— A Jewelry Design Competition With A Twist
Read the Contest Rules at www.landofodds.com/store/uglynecklace.htm . Entries accepted between 9/15/09 and 3/15/10.
To add your name to our email list associated with The Ugly Necklace Contest, send an email to: oddsian@landofodds.com
and Write “Ugly Necklace Email List” in the subject line.

Sponsors:
Land of Odds www.landofodds.com,
Phone: 615-292-0610; Email :warren@landofodds.com
Land of Odds provides bead and jewelry making artists with virtually all their beads, supplies, books and jewelry findings needs, with over 30,000 products. Retail/Discounts/Wholesale.

Be Dazzled Beads www.bedazzledbeads.com
Center for Beadwork & Jewelry Arts www.landofodds.com/beadschool
Open Windows Gallery – Fine Art Jewelry www.landofodds.com/store/openwindowgallery.htm
Learn To Bead…At Land of Odds Blog blog.landofodds.com

Other Programs at Land of Odds:
ALL DOLLED UP: Beaded Art Doll Competition
www.landofodds.com/store/alldolledup.htm

Jewelry Design Workshops in Cortona, Italy, with Toscana Americana
www.landofodds.com/store/toscananarrativesynopsis.htm

 


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Naming Your Business

Posted by learntobead on April 28, 2009

NAMING YOUR BUSINESS
What on earth do you think you would buy from The Flan Corporation?

Flan? The Spanish kind or the Mexican version?

Flans? Whatever they are – automotive parts?

Franny-Lisa-Alicia-Nancy kind of stuff?

Would you ever buy a Swarovski necklace of glass pearls, crystallized elements, 14KT gold clasp and real faceted emeralds from The Flan Corporation?

The Flan Corporation is a Chinese company that sells handcrafted, beadwoven jewelry. I don’t know what “Flan” means in Chinese, but, here in the US, it’s not a word that would immediately make me salivate about handcrafted, beadwoven jewelry.

It’s really difficult to pick a business name. It’s harder than naming your child. It’s harder than naming your dog. I’ve tried many times with varying degrees of success. And the first business name you pick might seem great and work great at the beginning, but will it evolve with your business as well? Maybe yes, maybe not. What’s important is not only how good your business name sounds, and how appealing it is today, but also how adaptable it is over time, as you grow or change your business.

I can’t claim 100% success with my tries at naming a business. Take “Land of Odds.” This has been my best name-selection to date, but it hasn’t been perfect.

I came up with that name 30 years ago for a hobbyist type business, where I refinished antique lamps, and some other antiques, for people. When James and I started our jewelry, beads and gifts business, I thought that Land of Odds would be good for that, as well. The name “Land of Odds” always gets such great responses from people. And it is memorable.

As our business grew and grew, Land of Odds – the name – grew with it. We added more handcrafted jewelry, unusual greeting cards, some neat clothing, collectible lines. The name still worked.

Then our business hit a wall. We were located downtown, and the city of Nashville took away 6,000 parking spaces within an 18 month period of time. The city had renovated this downtown historic district, and for various reasons, cars and parking got in the way of continued development. Our business dropped precipitously. I had to put us into Chapter 11 for awhile. James and I dissolved our business partnership, and we put most of the assets in a new business for him that we called Be Dazzled, and we put most of the liabilities under the Land of Odds name.

Now we were functioning with two names used to describe similar businesses that emphasized unusual, often hand-crafted jewelry, gifts, collectibles, gourmet foods, posters, clothing, and beads and jewelry findings.

I shut the physical Land of Odds store down, and continued the business as an internet company – http://www.landofodds.com . The online company was still called Land of Odds. At first, I put all our merchandise online – beads, jewelry, gifts, clothing, posters and gourmet food. Only two categories did well – beads and posters. I slowly began narrowing our focus to beads and posters, and eventually beads only.

As an online entity, we needed to get top placements in search engines in terms of key words like beads and jewelry findings. Search engine robots that indexed a business name with the words beads and/or jewelry findings in the name, would automatically assign it a higher ranking for those terms. A better online name would have been Beads At Land Of Odds or Land of Odds Beads.

“Land of Odds” was still a name liked by all, but it no longer had the same strong association with beads and posters, and then with beads only. The business grew quickly online, and “Land of Odds” began to have a strong “brand” following. But again, no longer the most strategic business name, given what I was doing now.

“Be Dazzled” was another popular name. The image James had for this business was jewelry that was hand made and wowed people. The business faltered, however. We got rid of most of the merchandise, turned Be Dazzled into a bead store, and eventually recombined Land of Odds and Be Dazzled. At the time we recombined them, both had strong brand identities, so we kept both names. We managed the physical store called Be Dazzled separately from Land of Odds – the online store. When Be Dazzled became all “beads”, I added the word “BEADS” everytime I referred to Be Dazzled — “Be Dazzled Beads” — , from our stationery to answering the phone to setting up its website — www.bedazzledbeads.com .

In the bead business, there are many variations on the name “Beadazzled”. Most people, even regular customers who visit the shop everyday, think that’s our name. We were lucky that Be Dazzled/jewelry morphed so well into Be Dazzled/beads. But we would have been better off if we had worked “beads” into the name somehow. There are a couple of small chain operations called “Beadazzled.” For awhile, someone opened up a bead store in Nashville called “Beadazzled”. There’s always some confusion for and with our shop name.

Read the rest of this entry »

Posted in business of craft | Tagged: , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment »

HOT LINKS – From Connie Welch

Posted by learntobead on April 8, 2009

 

Well we have an interesting winner with the beadstudies – we now have Jean Power giving us her comments along with Diane – So anyone else who would like to chime in – please do so
…Bead StudyII       By the way last time at Bead Studies – Lily was there and barked at Warren until he got up and got her a chair – she then sat at attention  and became a member of the discussion. We need a picture of our own Ewok pup at BEADS
 
Today is so cold here in Nashville – 42degrees at my house I am going to give you something to do
 
 
 
Paper Puppet Palooza  for Kathleen
 
 
 
That should keep everyone busy for a while.
  C

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