The Art of Jewelry Design: From Idea to Reality

I have taught Jewelry and metalworking for years, too often the students are clueless, cannot draw, unable to express themselves through art or know how, or unable to come up with suitable designs. This is by far one of the best books on the subject and could be used in other art mediums as well. I do not have the time or luxury to teach a course on drawing and design for jewelry. This is the book I recommend to them and is always on my syllabus. The book breaks into sections such as design elements like texture and form. It shows drawing styles, and visual journals such as a 3-D journal for those that like a tactile compositions. Even if you are already an establish artist, I feel this can be a valuable book for those times you feel you have no ideas for your next project. I have the first version and I am so glade it has been reprinted. I have this version as well. So the next time you think you have run out of ideas, pick up this book and just browse through it , the many examples and images will help.

This book is fantastic as a teaching resource. I mostly bought it for my own jewellery making practice but some of the pages will be of great use in my technology classes. Some of the jewellery is very unusual but I didn't buy it for the designs themselves, but rather the process of designing. I highly recommend this book for that purpose and am so glad I bought it. The only negative thing would be the size of it. For some reason I assumed for the price (more than I usually pay) I thought it would be bigger.

One of the best books about jewelry design I ever read. The author pass her experience and knowledge in the field teaching clearly every single step in the process of jewelry design. I loved it. It improved a lot my work.

If you are a jeweler this is a great book! Helpful and explains the true process of planning and executing a piece of jewelry. It is a great go to book.

It was difficult to rate this book for as an artist using different mediums for different projects, I really enjoyed how the book is laid out from something you see or think or dream about, putting it on paper, modify image, gather more info (research), testing, etc. to the end product - fabrication. It is important to understand this process...to put it to paper...to gather the supporting data or product needs...and so much more. Understanding the elements of design and creating something from these humble beginnings is imperative in any artistic endeavor. Therefore, this book should not be used for just jewelry but for many other art mediums. Yes, its foci is on metal work and creative, some bizarre, jewelry that should be in museums, high end studios and retailers, but you can apply the information presented by the author to many other art pieces.Yet, for the modern or common jewelry designer wanting to make pieces that appeal to a broad base of individuals, this is really not a book for them...unless you want to really understand the creative art process. The jewelry/metal designs within these pages are stunning - works of art. I drooled over several of them. Yet, many of the rings would definitely be unwearable. Thus for people wanting to design a functional and attractive piece of jewelry, this book is not for you.Artistic/Design value - 5 starsFunctional value - 1-2 starsCreative/Procedural value - 4 starsFinal rating - 3 stars

I borrowed this several times over the years from the library. I love it. I finally purchased it when one came up at a slightly more reasonable price. It's a keeper.

I needed help with trying to come up with ideas, and how to develop to a finished product. This book helped me a bit with this. To me, it was like being in a classroom. I truly enjoyed this book. I think it is hard to find a copy, but check it out if your library has it.

The title of this book infers that it will help the reader take ideas from the drawing board to a finished piece. I expected insight on how to overcome problems in jewelry design and specific techniques to aid in solving those problems. Unfortunately, that's not what the book delivers. There are a lot of slick photos of some rather bizarre jewelry, but not much information about how the pieces were made. If you are a budding jewelry maker in search of a book to help you create some original jewelry, skip this one.