Beginner's Corner

This article lists the basic tools found in a standard Western Goldsmith's toolbox.

Making a simple or basic link chain to display your pendant designs is a great way to add further value...

A ring fits well when it is no longer felt on the finger. If in the course of time the...

Fire scale or fire stain is a reddish purple toned 'bloom' or 'stain' that appears on silver/copper alloys such as...

We asked a number of top jewelers to tell us their best practices, techniques, and tips for creating satin, brushed,...

Liver of sulfur, a stinky jewelry studio standby, can be used to create beautiful patinas on Silver, Silver Precious Metal...

Originally published under the title: Selecting the Correct Saw Blade This article provides and describes useful tips for selecting the...

Goldsmiths and silversmiths use hammers frequently in their work, silversmiths especially. A regular trade goldsmith might use a bench hammer...

After you learn to apply enamels by sifting, wet packing, brushing on crackle and firing the base coats, you are...

Available in a wide variety of formulas, epoxy resins are used in jewelry making as adhesives, as coatings, and for...

Making jewelry is sometimes seen as a difficult or an expensive proposition. In reality a basic metal working shop can...

Jewelers treat soldered objects with dilute acid solutions to remove oxides produced from heating and soldering as well as glassy...

Over the years, bad habits creep into our work procedures. Periodical review of our techniques is needed to assure us...

One of the most interesting things about the jewellery/metals field is that there are so many career options, so many...

Many jewelers see polishing as a mundane task. However, it is one of the most important operations in the process...

OK. You have just brought home your first acetylene tank and are ready to attach your new acetylene/air torch. This...

First the stone's diameter is measured at the pavillion and a dent is made in the metal for the pilot...

A selected bibliography list for the jeweler - Metal working, Casting, Plating, Enamelling ,Gem Cutting, Setting, Engraving and Etching, Other...

This paper describes a simple process of forming jump rings. These jump rings were formed from 16 guage sterling silver...

Do you know why that piece of jewelry that goes around your arm is called a bracelet? Or why a...

This page provides an international ring sizes chart you can view and/or download to be your guide in making or...

It is important to pick tubing with an appropriate wall thickness and material strength for the requirements of the piece....

Carat, karat, caret, and carrot are all pronounced the same, but each has a different meaning. Carat and karat, of...

When you've made the decision to learn hand engraving, you have basically 3 options: Spend little or no money but...

Dust is small particles of a material. There are dusts you can see in the air; these can be breathed...

This Metalsmith's Guide to Los Angeles can be useful to metalsmiths who are new to the Los Angeles area or...

In this article, we will continue our Back to Basics Series with an article on Sawing techniques.

I want to take what I have written in my previous articles 
and start tying it into jewelry welding applications....

When I ran a trade shop, time was money, and I often found myself sizing 50 to 60 rings in...

These pages contain a list of recommended tools to jewelry rendering, as well as a series of projects that I...

We use a method for cutting down firescale when using a Presto-Lite Torch along with an acetylene B tank. The...

In late 2006 I put together a survey on the Jewelers bench to which many Orchidians and others responded. There...

Many craftspeople have posture and body position problems. Ramazzini, the founder of occupational medicine and author of a groundbreaking book...

The purpose of precious metal testing is to determine, first, whether a given sample is precious or base, and, second,...

Aim for: a well laid-out, orderly workshop, well-lit by multiple non glare light sources, well-maintained equipment, electrically and fire safe,...

The word synclastic describes a form in which the dominant curves both move in the same direction. When the two...

When one gets a new file one traditionally dips it in alcohol and sets fire to it to burn off...

In high volume production operations, many jump rings need to be closed one after another. For such fast paced operations,...

What if you could sit down at your computer, spend a little time manipulating the mouse, keyboard or electronic pencil...

Although ultrasonic cleaners are great for removing gunk on jewelry, they do a poor job when it comes to removing...

This project is for beginners that wish to become silversmiths, part time or full time. Keep in mind that there...

In the Jewelers Bench Book, the MJSA/Ganoksin project published in spring 2008, there is an extensive look at what happens...

The links in this 16-in. (40.6cm) necklace are forged so they become flat and work-hardened. The pearl in the featured...

A short review of construction and soldering principles would be a good idea at this point. They're fairly basic. Principles...

Below are steps for an easy way to create equal divisions in setting stones that jewelers need to know. Dividing...

You start to turn and there it is again. You go to stand up from your chair and it happens...

There are a few scientific methods for precisely determining karat gold purity, some destructive (fire assay) and others nondestructive (X-ray...

In the jewelry world the term cold connections usually describes mechanical joining techniques that are used to fasten together parts...

Jewelry making is a big job. That is that there is a lot to know and a lot to learn....

Full eBook.48 Pages: Jewelry and metalsmithing are hard work, and also very rewarding. There is great pleasure in creating with...

The optical characteristics and properties of gemstones often provide the fastest and best methods of identification. A certain amount of...

The next time you sit down at your bench, don't think of it as just a bench. Think of it...

Noise is so common that we don't tend to think of it in terms of exposure in the same way...

Our castings can be flawless, our assembly precise, and our settings secure -- but let any surface go a bit...

This page offers a list of some useful North American Sources for Equipment, Materials, information, etc that would be very...

Here are some very helpful stone setting tips provided by Gerald Lewy to help and guide you when working on...

In working on jewelry there are many tasks that seem simple - you just do it and don't think about...

This article lists the following useful bench tools for jewelers including contact information where they can be purchased or ordered....

The holiday season can be rough on jewelers. The long hours spent toiling at the bench trying to fulfill last...

How you light your shop, illuminate your working area, experience the reflection from surfaces and the paint you choose for...

Do not get caught in the dark - make certain your shop is well lit. In the jewelry shop, two...

This is a method to reduce technical problems which one repeatedly experiences. We all find during the learning process that...

Sawing is an essential skill for a bench jeweler. This article will show you a technique that will increase your...

Bench jewelers hate to throw out used tools. By training and by nature we try to conserve the materials we...

Ergonomics is the safe and effective relationship between a worker and the work environment. For the bench jeweler who spends...

Often craftspeople start out making craft objects in their living space, a kitchen, a living room, and sometimes continue working...

Every bench jeweler has experienced the frustration of trying to sand and polish a nearly inaccessible area on a piece...

While it is clearly impossible to give a set of rules for each tool and procedure that goldsmiths use, this...

How you set up your shop, your working procedures and workspace can affect your safety, comfort, stress level and efficiency...

Shaping a bezel on stakes is a process of forming the metal by stretching. First the metal is bent with...

Jeremy Pavlow shares his common jewelry making bench tips by taking advantage of other tools and materials not normally used...

Repairing jewellery is an extremely tricky job. Work often pretends to be something else, metal is not what it is...

Take a look around you. Chances are there is a flex-shaft or a dust collector you've neglected because you've been...

Bench Jewelers often use different methods to accomplish the same work. I believe the end results are what is important,...

n this installment we present a mold cutting technique called a spiral cut, which is designed to facilitate the successful...

Being more organized, and planning how you use your time will mean that you will spend less time on some...

What is a bench trick? A shortcut? A faster way of doing something? A better method? A tool used for...

In the course of my 30 years in the jewelry industry, I can recall many instances of damaged equipment and...

The soldering process, used extensively in all aspects of jewelry manufacturing and repair, joins two or more pieces of metal...

This article page is from a segment of the Metalsmith Magazine (1984 Spring), “Health Hazards”, discussing questions from readers about...

In this project, I will demonstrate a clever method of making equally sized beads. These beads can be used for...

This article page is from a segment of the Metalsmith Magazine (1983 Summer), "Health Hazards", discussing questions from readers and...