Are you already browsing for holiday gifts just to avoid the madness of the holiday rush at Christmas time? Or, are you dreading it because some of your loved ones are hard to shop for? Maybe some combination of these? Harold Studio can help you reduce your pre-holiday stress! We offer classes throughout the year. We have options for every skill level. From beginner, to intermediate and seasoned jewelry designer.   We also sell jewelry design supplies and tools at our studio in Phoenix, AZ.  All of these make great gifts! Here’s a list of gift ideas for the creative soul in your life. For the Beginner Jewelry Artist: Jewelry 1 Class --This class covers all the basics a metalsmith jewelry artist needs to know to develop their craft. Hand sawing earrings, soldering to make a ring, to creating patinas textures and more. This 8-week class will help your novice loved one become proficient at the art of metal jewelry design.   For the Mid-level to...

Gem Resources , International is a valued supplier for Harold Jewelry. We recommend them to you, because whether you are just starting out in your jewelry design education or, you’re a seasoned artisan, you’ll find a stone that’s perfect for your design idea.  The Minnesota-based company offers a wide selection of faceted natural and lab-created gems that come in styles such as rose-cut, checkerboard and bullet. Rough-cut gems are an option in stones like citrine, aquamarine, white topaz, a few kinds of garnet and peridot to name some examples. Plus, they have natural and lab-created stone cabochons (also called ‘cabs’), which are known to be easier to set than faceted or rough gems. They also have a choice of drilled stones or drops. Some of these drilled stones come in novel shapes – like boots! Are you in search of details about certain jewelry making processes for your latest design? Gem Resources International’s website has a nice section of ‘How-to Guides...

Everyone melts their jewelry piece when in the middle of creating their design idea from time to time. Everyone. Those with years of experience do it, too.  However, we all want to do better, be more efficient in our work -  wasting less time and material. Here are some tips to help you melt your creations less often: • Always focus on heating the metal, not the solder. Look to achieve a muted orange-red glow vs. a bright orange color of your metal. The latter could quickly turn your bezel or other smaller elements into a metal puddle. • Heat the metal evenly, using the outer-most part of your flame, moving your torch slowly in circular motions over your piece. • Concentrate the heat of the torch on the larger parts of your piece – the base, a band, for example, instead of the bezel or other smaller delicate decorations. Keep in mind that metal is conductive. Heat will travel throughout your piece from the larger elements to the smaller ones. • As you heat your pi...

After weeks of productivity and finishing jewelry pieces that make you proud, your river of creative ideas seems to freeze over. You look at your stones, stamped designs and metal patina samples in hope that they may somehow trigger a spark of an idea, or magically convey a concept because you’re making intense eye contact with them. Yet, still nothing comes to mind. Not to worry! The following are just some ways that can help you get your creative mojo back: • Schedule time for you and Inspiration to meet. Don’t panic. This won’t necessarily take more time from your packed schedule. You can get inspiration while on a morning walk/run/jog in nature, listening to your playlist of favorite tunes, doodling or sketching, and going to your local art museum or gallery with a friend. Inspiration is happiest to meet you when you are  in relaxed, fun situations. • Socialize/network with other jewelry designers. This has a few different benefits to socializing with othe...

You saw a pair of earrings a friend made at a local design studio and felt inspired to try your hand at it, too. However, you’d like to do it first at home because you want to mess up a few times without any curious onlookers and to see if you like the process in general. You can find supplies online, in specific tool-focused groups on social media, thrift stores, and flea markets at reasonable and or discounted prices. Your shopping list for tools needed to make metal jewelry is as follows (most of the items on this list, minus the Dremel® drill and flex shaft and can be found for $25 or less). Jewelry Tools for Cutting, Piercing, Rough Finishing  • A jeweler’s saw frame. • Saw blades #03, 02, 01, 0, and 1. • A wooden bench pin. Or you if you’re particularly handy, you can cut a piece of 1” board with a “V” cut into it to clamp onto a table with a C-clamp. • A set of needle files.  • Sandpapers with a variety of fine and medium grits.   • A r...

We have some great classes scheduled to start in the next couple weeks!  Click on the class to register or for more information. Also, the studio will be closed this Wednesday, January 21 and will be open on Thursday from 12-3pm. Spinner Ring - Saturday January 17th 1-4pm Stone Setting - Tuesday 6-9pm - Begins January 20th Jewelry 1 - Friday's 12-3pm - Begins January 23rd Cloisonne - Saturday and Sunday January 24 and 25,  9-5pm ...

We debuted the treasure box class at Harold Studio this month.  It was a huge hit!  The students were given a list of ingredients that they would use to create their piece of jewelry.  They were able to eliminate one of the ingredients and to add one ingredient of their choice.  The class lasted three weeks and started off with each participant creating their design.  The class concluded this past Tuesday and none of the students finished their design so we decided to add an additional week to future treasure box classes.  The students in this first class will be given a few studio hours to complete their projects.  Here are some pictures from all the fun!  Stay tuned for another post about their finished projects and their comments about the class! Treasure Box supplies and rules!  The supplies will change with each class.   A visual look at the supplies. Louise is looking at a book for inspiration for her design.  I wonder what she will make!   ...