Book Reviews
There are many facets, techniques and methods to making wire art jewelry. Even if you’ve been classically trained as a metalsmith, chances are you’ll only be taught a few of those numerous techniques. Certainly you can take specialized workshops to learn more about various wire techniques but then there’s the cost involved, possible travel, etc. If you’re on top of the market for this, you already know that DVD’s on the subject are scarce. So where are you going to learn everything you’d like to learn about making wire art jewelry? Books, books and more books.
Since we are largely left to rely on books to enhance our wire working skills, it’s important to choose those books wisely. Given that, I’ve been researching and reviewing the best how-to books on making wire art jewelry and this section provides you with those book reviews. So please, feel free to sit back, surf all this information and enjoy the inspiration that’s sure to follow.
Having spent a fair amount of time teaching wire weaving techniques to those new to wire jewelry making, I've spent some time thinking about what would be the best books for them to start off with. Below are some of the very best introductory books for making wire jewelry that I could find.
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Braiding, the process of moving strands of fiber or wire (or both) over one another in repetitive steps, can be as easily learned as the many other wire jewelry techniques. You can start with the simplest braiding method and incrementally and often rapidly, increase your skill level.
There is a vast opportunity to make braided wire art jewelry so please, let the books presented here give you a window into this wonderful world of potential.
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Making chains, the process of creating wire links and then inserting one into the other, can be a very enjoyable pursuit for the wire jewelry artist. While some might consider this repetitive process tedious, to those of us addicted to wire, we know that part of the secret beauty of working with wire is that it is contemplative, centering and soothing. Chain Maille, as a wire jewelry technique, elaborates on simple, single ring chain making and focuses on creating patterns by inserting multiple small rings into one another. Both single and multiple ring (chain mail) chain making are intriguing as well as extremely easy entry points for new wire jewelers.
In this section, you'll find some of the best books available for learning how to make chains and chain maille art jewelry.
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Crocheting was the first real hand craft I learned and to this day, it still fascinates and challenges me. A versatile craft, crochet offers innumerable applications for jewelry especially when combined with wire. You'll find some of the best and most inspiring books on crocheting and knitting with wire in this section.
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Adding other elements to your wire art jewelry can significantly improve your work as well as increase your overall skills as an art jeweler. This section has reviews on some of the very best books and techniques on how to do just that. Get ready to be inspired!
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Once you've made the decision to start selling your wire jewelry, there are several sales venues available to you: art fairs, trade shows, retail boutiques, shops, galleries and certainly internet opportunities. Are you going to try selling your work wholesale or retail? Or both? Before you move forward in selling your work, there are several things you need to educate yourself about to keep from losing money in the beginning. I've assembled some of the best books on the various ways to start selling your jewelry work here. Take the time to review these and see if you don't end up saving yourself a lot of potential difficulty.
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Wrapping and winding wire to create art jewelry has a long history. Easy to learn and become skilled in, wire wrapping these days is often the first of the many wire jewelry making techniques to be acquired. Combining wire wrapping with other wire techniques offers the potential for some truly amazing wire art jewelry. Enjoy the wire wrapping book reviews in this section.
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I've been thrilled the last few years to finally see some quality woven wire jewelry how-to books hit the market. Learning how to weave wire can catapult your hand control over wire. Woven wire also can add a level of complexity and interest to your jewelry pieces as well as a new level of sophistication. While some of the techniques may seem intimidating at first, persistence will have you finding mastery far easier than you'd have imagined. Check out these lovely volumes.