From a steady stream of in-house classes and visiting guest instructors swinging by and making jewelry in the studio with us, we’ve had an amazing time this year. We learned a lot of new techniques using the jewelry supplies, findings and tools we sell here at Halstead. If you’ve missed any of our previous studio blogs, here are a few pictures from our 2015 photo album:
Bonnie Apra from Dakota Stones was our first guest instructor. She brought gorgeous beads and taught us how to create asymmetrical pieces mixing multiple stones, findings and footage chain.
We started out designing our own necklaces and then Bonnie worked one-on-one with us teaching us how to balance the pieces so they can be worn comfortably. Here’s a link to my previous blog about her visit: Adventures in Jewelry Making – Taking and Teaching Classes. We had a blast with Bonnie!
I was very fortunate to have Johanna Ingram as an instructor earlier in the summer. Here is a blog that I wrote about my jewelry making sessions with her at Harold Studios: Phoenix, the scalding hot desert sun and a very long drive… what could possibly be more fun than that? I was ecstatic when I learned that Johanna was heading north to teach us all how to make spinner rings.
Johanna patiently taught us the mathematical formula used to size the rings. Everyone who attended the classes loved what they made! I definitely recommend giving it a try.
Belle Brooke was the The 2008 Halstead Grant Winner. She taught a small group of us how to make hollow rings accented with colorful gemstones.
This was an intensive two day course and the skills she taught us were invaluable! We had a great time. To see her amazing work you should check out her website at Belle Brooke Designs.
Katie Hacker is the host of PBS’s Beads, Baubles & Jewels and she stopped by to play in the studio, too. She has been contributing here on the blog. Check out her latest post: Trend Alert: Unconventional Earrings, which includes our latest Trend-E-Video.
Since the busy season is now upon us, the studio lights are officially turned off and classes are temporarily suspended until 2016 rolls around. The great news is that many of our employees have moved past the beginning levels of metalsmithing and are set to begin intermediate skills next year.
As for me, I’m still at Yavapai College working on my final project of the semester (a custom bezel necklace/earring set), I’ve already signed up for Jewelry ll which will cover casts, molds and lidded vessels and I’ve started working on our 2016 Jewelry Studio syllabus. Whew, we’re busy here! But, I can’t wait to share our classes with you next year.
Have a wonderful holiday season!
