Jewelry Making as a Hobby: Keep it Enjoyable and Sustainable

Taking on jewelry making as a creative hobby has a wide range of benefits. But once you’ve gotten hooked, how do you make it sustainable and enjoyable long term? Read on for our best tips!

Tube bezels are a beautiful and simple way to add faceted stones to your jewelry designs. Learn more about them and find some inspiration.

by Ashley Maldonado

Using Tube Bezel Settings in Your Jewelry -

Easily make a variety of jewelry designs sparkle with tube bezel settings. Learn more about these versatile findings and find project inspiration to try out.

by Erica Stice

5 Unisex Designs to Expand Your Jewelry Collection

Trying to find a way to bring in new clientele? Incorporate these 5 unisex designs into your existing jewelry line to expand your collection.

Create simple hoops using sterling silver wire! Hoops are a staple in earring collections and can be made in a large variety of sizes.

by Erica Stice

How-to Make Simple Wire Hoop Earrings

Create simple wire hoops using 20-22 gauge sterling silver wire! Hoops are a staple in earring collections and these can be made in a large variety of sizes. Have fun adding hoops to your jewelry designs!

Adding handmade jewelry to your boutique or gift shop inventory is quick and easy but often gives a great return. Read on for some of the best ways to make and add jewelry to your boutique store.

by Ashley Maldonado

Sterling Silver Necklaces for Easy Gift Sales

Simple sterling silver necklaces make great gift options for your customers, without much effort from you. Simply adding charms to a necklace chain or earrings can help build out your inventory for seasonal surges.

Learn how to create simple s-hook clasps with our step-by-step guide & video.

by Erica Stice

Fabricated Wire Clasps - Simple Wire Hook Clasps

Fabricating jewelry clasps opens up a world of jewelry making opportunities! Learn how to create simple s-hook clasps with our step-by-step guide & video.

Add texture to your jewelry designs. Read the in-depth article and then watch the how-to video. Discover texturing today!

by Erica Stice

Texturing Metal for Jewelry

Texturing is a lot of fun! Discover popular ways to texture on jewelry metals. Watch the video below for even more information on this popular jewelry-making technique.

by Kelli Vanyek Greene

Beginner Jewelry Making Projects

If you are interested in jewelry making but are new to the craft it can be intimidating to know where to begin. To get you started we have compiled a list of 8 great beginner jewelry making projects!

Metalsmith Melissa Muir gives tips on working with jewelry wire and a step-by-step guide on how to create a wire cuff.

by Kelli Vanyek Greene

Jewelry Wire Work Tips from Melissa Muir

Learn wire jewelry frame fabrication tips from one of our preferred studio teachers, Melissa Muir. She shows you step by step how to make this gorgeous wire work cuff using Halstead’s Sterling silver supplies and a beautiful cabochon!

How do you set-up a wire wrapping studio? From setting up your work area to basic supplies, we cover a lot of information in this article.

by Erica Stice

Setting Up Your Wire Wrapping Jewelry Studio

Ready to wire wrap? Get prepared with this article! We've covered the studio area, gauges of wire, beginner tools and some materials that you can use when wire wrapping.

Jump rings are a popular finding in jewelry making designs. Check out this article to find more simple ways to incorporate them into your pieces.

by Erica Stice

5 Creative Uses for Jump Rings in Jewelry Making

Play around with jump rings! I had a fun day playing in the studio with a few extra jump rings I had. Just laying them out on the bench and moving them around brought up a few ideas. These are quick assembly and soldering pieces that are perfect for beginners.

Read how you can elevate your hand stamped jewelry with these five helpful tips. From settings, to pattern wire or 14kt charms, they are simple changes.

by Erica Stice

5 Ways to Elevate your Stamped Jewelry with New Techniques

Hand stamping jewelry is a great way to create a personalized collection. If you add soldering, or any of these techniques, to the mix you'll be able to elevate your collection easily!

Whether you're a beginner or experienced, these studio schools will help advance your jewelry making skills with a variety of class options.

by Ashley Maldonado

Halstead's Preferred Studio Schools

We have developed great relationships with jewelry making schools all over the country. They offer a range of 1 day workshops to multi-week classes with experienced instructors.

Have fun adding wire embellishment to your jewelry making designs! By simply adding a swirl or organic shape, you've added a new element to your design.

by Erica Stice

Soldering Wire Embellishments to the Surface of your Jewelry Designs

Soldered wire accents allow you to create geometric designs with a line drawing feel. But, soldering thin wires onto sheet metal is a challenge. Our very own Studio Coordinator, Erica Stice, has some tips and a video.

Using a rolling mill in jewelry. From imprinting designs and rolling your own gauges to the main problems that occur if your not careful.

by Erica Stice

5 Ways to Use a Rolling Mill in your Jewelry Studio and Maintenance Primer -

Rolling mills and jewelry studios go hand in hand. Some jewelers use their rolling mills to imprint patterns on an annealed metal sheet. Others use a rolling mill as the raw material workhorse of their studios. See these and more uses in action.

Don't get stuck with the wrong chain length! A fantastic way to upsell your jewelry is by offering necklace chain extenders which will exten

by Erica Stice

3 Types of Necklace Chain Extenders

Don't get stuck with a too-short necklace! Whether it's by a customer's need or desire, longer necklaces are a must to carry. Necklace extenders can help take any pre-made design and add length. Learn about some of the most popular types of extenders Halstead offers.

Shaping fancy and pattern wires, soldering tips and choosing the right jewelry making tools to shape and form the wire links with.

by Erica Stice

Fancy Jewelry Wires: Shaping & Soldering Wire Links

Fancy wires are versatile jewelry studio materials. Check out this week's blog to see design ideas and learn how to shape and solder fancy wire links.

Learn about alternative stone setting methods for irregular shaped stones. We cover crystals, geodes, slabs, and more.

by Erica Stice

Alternative Stone Setting Techniques

Not all stones are perfectly calibrated. This blog covers alternative stone setting methods for crystals, geodes, and slabs. Use these techniques to create unique, one-of-a-kind jewelry.

Halstead Jewelry Articles tagged with beginner jewelry making projects