with a few books on jewelry

Tim McCreight's The Complete Metalsmith has been required reading in nearly every metalsmithing class since the original edition was published in 1985! This spiral bound, 312-page Complete Metalsmith: Professional Edition is aimed at experienced metalsmiths and includes a full page on mokume gane and a total of 1600 hand-drawn illustrations. The hidden spiral binding holds the book open to any page so you can refer to it while you're working at your studio bench.

While the jewelry making kits for beginners have instructions, it doesn't hurt to consult with a few books on Pearl Jewelry making as well. Personally, I prefer lots of photos (since I'm a very visual person), and these books have great pictures! Plus, you will find lots of step by step instructions - perfect for the beginner! So, dig in...learn, and most importantly, have fun!

Now... you'll see my personal little commentary here. After investigating every book and what people had to say about them, I honestly can't say, "Get this one above all others." Frankly, they're all pretty wonderful... well... except: You'll notice that I added the "for Dummies" book. The "for Dummies" series has a kind of formula that doesn't always quite lend itself to a topic. For some reason, as I was looking at these books, I wasn't "seeing" myself learning from that book. But, I include it because the series IS well known for providing decent resources. Ok. Done with that disclaimer! Now... take a look at these beauties!

Don't worry if it seems like nothing much is happening after the first few passes through the pasta machine. You'll probably start to see some strange patterns after about 10 passes (see the photo at the left). That's normal! The exact number of passes required to achieve a color gradient varies, but usually it takes around 20 passes or so. You will start to see fairly distinct bands of color that will start to blend with the adjacent colors gradually with each pass through the pasta machine rollers. Continue folding and rolling until the color gradient is as smooth and gradual as you would like (see large photo above).MORE:Fashion Jewelry Store