Lapidary Journal Jewelry Artist September - October 2018

TYPE MIGHT BE TREATED as a decorative element, but its main function is to inform. That’s why business cards spec’d in 4 Point Myopic Fine, as an editor of mine once put it, don’t do a very good job of helping customers find you again. Especially not those in the over-40 crowd who struggle to read close up but are blessed with the disposable income to spend on your jewelry. I come upon this small but critical phenomenon frequently at craft and trade shows, mostly among the under-40 crowd of jewelry artists who don’t need cheaters (yet). Artist eyesight aside, given how far electronic screens have supplanted paper and ink since the business card’s invention, it’s really no surprise. Cards are now but an extra way of reminding someone of…

Your Design Riffs Designs based on projects and jewelry shown in previous issues of Lapidary Journal Jewelry Artist. Your Settings Next Time Riff on the design of any of these or other pieces within this issue, using a design feature such as color, texture, form, value, line, space, repetition, balance, contrast, unity, or variety for your sketch. Please indicate which piece your entry is based on. DEADLINES: OCTOBER 31, 2018 Email digital scans at 300 DPI or send photocopies of no more than three sketches per challenge, indicating the design factor that is your starting point. Sketches will not be returned. WRITE TO US ANYTIME: What do you think about what you’ve seen and read in Lapidary Journal Jewelry Artist? SEND SKETCHES & LETTERS for possible print or online publication to: Karla.Rosenbusch@fwmedia.com. Please include your name, city, and…

TYPE MIGHT BE TREATED as a decorative element, but its main function is to inform. That’s why business cards spec’d in 4 Point Myopic Fine, as an editor of mine once put it, don’t do a very good job of helping customers find you again. Especially not those in the over-40 crowd who struggle to read close up but are blessed with the disposable income to spend on your jewelry. I come upon this small but critical phenomenon frequently at craft and trade shows, mostly among the under-40 crowd of jewelry artists who don’t need cheaters (yet). Artist eyesight aside, given how far electronic screens have supplanted paper and ink since the business card’s invention, it’s really no surprise. Cards are now but an extra way of reminding someone of…

Niki Grandics Fabia Earrings Fair-trade ruby slices from Liberia, Montana sapphires, 14K recycled rose gold Lexi Erickson’s The Lady of the Stones Pendant Amethyst sage, ammonite, sterling silver Chelsea Bird’s Salix Rings Sterling silver, glass enamel Betsy Lehndorff’s Pearl on Pearl Pendant Freshwater pearls, sterling silver Bario Neal’s Lash Vertical Cluster Ring 6mm carnelian, 13x12mm emerald, 10mm blue topaz, 14K gold Susan Mahlstedt’s Rings Depletion gilded sterling silver, oxidized sterling silver, 18K gold, black quartz drusy, lime green quartz drusy Luana Coonen’s In Our Hands Ring Silver, 14K yellow gold, transitional cut diamond from Perpetuum Jewels Eva Sherman's Fused Silver and Stone Bracelet Sterling silver, faceted stones Michelle Brennan’s Burt the Beaver Anodized aluminum and EPDM rubber rings Become an LJJA Contributor! Contributors’ guidelines for print or online publication can be found at www.interweave.com/jewelry…

Your Design Riffs Designs based on projects and jewelry shown in previous issues of Lapidary Journal Jewelry Artist. Your Settings Next Time Riff on the design of any of these or other pieces within this issue, using a design feature such as color, texture, form, value, line, space, repetition, balance, contrast, unity, or variety for your sketch. Please indicate which piece your entry is based on. DEADLINES: OCTOBER 31, 2018 Email digital scans at 300 DPI or send photocopies of no more than three sketches per challenge, indicating the design factor that is your starting point. Sketches will not be returned. WRITE TO US ANYTIME: What do you think about what you’ve seen and read in Lapidary Journal Jewelry Artist? SEND SKETCHES & LETTERS for possible print or online publication…

LEFT TO THEIR OWN INSTINCTS, most artists will follow the muse wherever it leads. How else do you discover what lights your creative fire? It’s important to experiment. That sense of discovery and surprise is part of the fun. But sooner or later, if you want to get serious about selling your jewelry, it pays to focus. If you want to take it to the next level, you need a brand identity and a consistent body of work. I’ve been thinking a lot about this lately. Looking at the latest collections at Jewelry Market Week in Las Vegas, I’m always impressed by how successful designers manage to add or expand collections and still maintain their signature look. I also recently went through the process (again) of co-judging a grant for jewelry artists —…