Metalwork

The Studio

| Andrea Watson O'Dell

My studio is located in the guest room of our apartment and I spend many happy hours at this little desk. I love that it looks out to the large grassy/wooded area behind our apartment and that the sunlight fills the room in the mornings – the time of day when I’m usually working on jewelry. I enjoy working from home, and even though it is only a side business at the moment, I can’t until I am able to support myself part-time!

 

I do miss the company of other people when I am working though and I dream of the day when I can move my studio into a shop or gallery run by artists. This craving has been satisfied for the time being, however. Just a few weeks ago I began working at River to Sea Gallery inside Chandler’s Wharf in downtown Wilmington. My jewelry has been in the shop for over a year now and I am ecstatic to be working there part-time.

 

 

During the slow season when customers are few and far between, I work on my jewelry to the hum of the bustling old building. From inside the gallery, I can hear other artists at work, a fountain bubbling away in the atrium, creaks in the old ceiling from the offices above, the quiet echo of a relaxing playlist, and the occasional (and contagious) laugh of a certain artisan. Needless to say, I couldn’t be happier to be spending time in this charming building.

Soldering Basics from Rio Grande

| Andrea Watson O'Dell

I absolutely love the Rio Grande Video Library. Mark Nelson is an instructor at Rio Grande and he does all the video demos for Beads, Baubles, and Jewels (their website is also an excellent resource for anyone interested in making jewelry). This is a pretty basic demo for soldering, but I’m really interested in finding out more about the paste solder Mark uses in the video…

Sneaky Goldsmith Trick: Finishing

| Andrea Watson O'Dell

This is such a great tip for sanding/polishing hard to reach areas. This would have been ridiculously helpful for a few of the pieces I made in college…

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A “Sneaky Goldsmith Trick” to Detail-Finish Problem Areas

by Douglas W. Canivet – © GIA – 2011

Every bench jeweler has experienced the frustration of trying to sand and polish a nearly inaccessible area on a piece of jewelry. The goldsmith who can detail these small corners and crevices can bring his or her work up to the level of fine jewelry. Anything that gives the work a cleaner, more attractive look translates into greater sales in the showcase.

One of my favorite “Sneaky Goldsmith Tricks” involves a lowly material not normally associated with making jewelry: fiberglass-reinforced packing tape, found in supermarkets and stationery and office supply stores. It contains many very fine fiberglass filaments that create a super-strong hold for packing parcels.

Bench jewelers use this tape to reinforce sanding and polishing papers. Once the tape is applied, the papers can be cut into small shapes that exactly fit the problem area you are trying to finish. (Cut the shapes you need with an old set of scissors — the abrasives will dull the blades over time.) These custom-shaped papers are flexible, easy to hold and can reach spots that files, gravers or traditional polishing tools may not.

We use the packing tape in GIAjs Jewelry Arts classes. We apply a piece of tape the same length as a jewelerjs saw blade to a strip of abrasive paper and then cut it into several narrow strips that fit the saw frame. This makes it possible for students to precision sand and polish internal edges and surfaces.

Newest Earring Designs

| Andrea Watson O'Dell

Here are some of the most recent designs I’ve been working on. I’ve really been enjoying experimenting with forming the wire into various spiral shapes and finding ways to include those shapes  in my jewelry. Several of the new designs may not be permanent, but it’s always interesting seeing what people are most attracted to. So many times I am surprised with how often people enjoy even the simplest of designs. Feel free to leave any thoughts or comments you might have… I love feedback!

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A Morning in the Studio

| Andrea Watson O'Dell

The shells are clean and ready to be sorted. This is always one of my favorite parts of the process. It’s very relaxing and almost meditative, although I find almost all of my jewelry work to be that way. Tommy always joins me in the office and is constantly attempting to “help”. He is also very odd and likes to knock small objects onto the floor, so he knows he’s not usually allowed on my desk. He eventually settles into a spot in the room and I’m happy to have the company while I work. Although I did not make any jewelry this morning, sorting the shells and organizing the desk will make my next day in the studio much more productive.

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Studio Revamp

| Andrea Watson O'Dell

Over the last two Saturdays I’ve spent a good amount of time re-organizing the office/studio and I’m happy to say that my studio is finally ready to go again! My studio had temporarily moved into our bedroom to make room for our good friend Joe who decided to move to Wilmington in November. He moved into his own apartment at the beginning of January and it gave me the motivation to get my studio revamped and ready for production.

I’ve had a studio ever since we moved to North Carolina, but its been a work in progress. Originally I had only a marble counter-top workstation that my Dad made for me the Christmas before we moved. I still use that now, but I also have a beautiful solid-cherry desk (with the workstation on top), a large tool organizer with see-through drawers, several tool boxes, and a bookshelf that is the perfect extension to my workspace. Needless to say, I’m thrilled with the setup and the basic tools I have now.

The most exciting part of my new setup though is my torch. For Christmas, Danny bought me the acetylene I needed to actually use the torch that I bought over 9 months ago. The torch itself was $215 and the tank of acetylene not far from that. So I’m incredibly thankful to have such a wonderful fiancé and now a working torch for my studio! It’s by far the most expensive (and most useful) tool I’ll need for a while…

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Shell Earrings

| Andrea Watson O'Dell

These earrings are made from the shells I’ve collected while walking along along the beaches of eastern North Carolina. After forming the hooks and jump rings from sterling silver or copper wire, I choose a matching pair of shells from my collection. I very carefully saw off any rough edges from the shells and then thread the shells onto the wire so that they hang as evenly as possible. It sometimes takes a few tries, but I eventually come up with a beautiful and unique set of earrings.  I absolutely love making each pair and I hope that whoever wears them will enjoy them just as much!

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Metalwork

| Andrea Watson O'Dell

Below you will find several examples of the work I completed during my jewelry courses at Bowling Green State University. Each piece is a studio piece and was made to fulfill the specific requirements of an assignment.

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