Wrapping Briolettes

Knowing how to wrap a briolette (or flat pear) with wire is an essential technique of wirewrap that even a jeweler who does NOT work primarily with wire should know how to master. Here are two FREE tutorials which show how to wrap a brio interestingly:

Wire Wrapped Briolette by Marie Cristine


Briolette Wrap by Eni Oken


Both presented by JewelryLessons.com.

Identify Rocks!

A very interesting free tutorial created by Shelby Raymond on how to identify rocks in the wild. This is an unusual tutorial since it is not a step by step, but yet sort of a guide of sorts on the properties of rocks. This is how she describes the tutorial:

Identify Rocks! by Shelby Raymond:
"This tutorial will help you identify rocks "in the wild". I'm constantly on the lookout for cool new rocks and gems to incorporate into my jewelry. I'm also a lapidary and collect rocks and minerals. I enjoy finding, cutting, shaping and polishing my own rocks. Being aware of the properties of different stones will also help you when you buy beads by enabling you to determine whether or not the description is accurate and if they're worth what the seller is charging for them. It's also handy to know about the rocks and minerals in your jewelry when it comes time to sell!"

The tutorial is available for FREE at JewelryLessons.com: Identify Rocks!

Creative journal

Creative journaling is an excellent way to work your creativity. It works as a depository of ideas for those times when you can't think of anything to do! Here is a page of one of my own journals:

In the journal, I draw designs, techniques and just scribble!