Continue reading »]]> I would like to invite you a special jewellery exhibition that I am taking part in and will be attending, the Opening this Friday from 7.30pm at the Tayberry Gallery in Perth.

The exhibition will run from the 26th August – 25th September and will start off with a ‘Jewellery Party’ evening on Friday evening 26th. Drinks and canopies will be served while guests can try on pieces and talk to the designer/makers. Timings for the jewellery party will be doors open at 7pm, party starts at 7.30, ends at 9pm.

It is a special exhibition as it only has jewellery from members of the ACJ Scotland (Association for Contemporary Jewellery) The designers will be there on the Opening night so it will be your exclusive chance to meet the makers, find out more about their work, try on and treat yourself to a gorgeous handmade piece of contemporary jewellery and support the local makers.

I have included a selection of my perspex and silver collection, my frame 22ct gold leaf collection, some one off pieces and a selection of men’s rings and cufflinks. So if you can make it on Friday night it would be great to see you and enjoy a drink.

The next event after this is a charity ladies night at G casino, Dundee – Be Gorgeous Event, on Wednesday 31st August from 7pm. I’ve donated a piece for the raffle and there will be other prizes to win. It’s also free entry and everyone gets a free glass of bubbly. There will also be a chance to pamper yourself as there will be a variety of businesses set up during the night. For more info visit the facebook event page

For the first time I will be exhibiting at The Dundee Flower and Food Festival during Friday 2nd-Sunday 4th September at Camperdown Park. I will be in the lifestyle marquee which is adjacent to the craft marquee. Hope you can make it for a fun day out with the family.

Remember to check out my online shop as I will be updating this with new pieces and images in the next few weeks. And get in touch if you would like to organise a jewellery party.

Continue reading »]]> Most people who study jewellery don’t go on to work in the industry. To keep going you need:

• Enough money to set up and buy the tools and materials for making jewellery
• Information from other jewellers on what to do and what not to do
• Original ideas to produce
• Customers to buy the work

Any gap in this and the whole thing crumbles down.

In this post I will detail some of the ways of getting the second – Information from other jewellers on what to do and what not to do.

Professional Jewellery Associations

First and foremost you will want to meet other jewellers near you. There are a number of jewellers organisations you can join to meet other professionals.

First and foremost would be the ACJ

The ACJ are an organisation dedicated to contemporary jewellery. If this is the style of jewellery you are interested in then they should be top of your list to join. They are also open to membership of those interested in jewellery so members also include galleries, curators and collectors.

They do everything from publish books on jewellers to holding annual conferences. There may even be a local group near you. With Islay Spalding I helped set up monthly meetings in Dundee and then in Edinburgh with occasional Scotland wide ones.

The BJA

The British Jewellers’ Association is an industry body which alongside jewellers contains bullion suppliers, galleries and equipment suppliers.

Jewellery Industry Publications

There are loads of newsletters and magazines for the jewellery trade. I’ll detail a couple which I find most useful.

Benchpeg

Benchpeg is a weekly e-mail newsletter which has been running for a few years. It contains information on craft fairs, awards, galleries and a buy/sell section for jewellers equipment.

Findings

Findings is the bi-yearly magazine of the ACJ. It has detailed articles, book reviews, regional round-ups (some of which I wrote for ACJ Scotland) and much more. Subscribe to the ACJ to receive it.

Jewellery Books

There are a huge variety of books on jewellery from beginners guides to showcases of individual jewellers work.

Some which I find myself looking at most are:

1000 Rings, Martha Le Van showcases 1000 different rings by jewellers in a variety of styles. If you think a ring is just a plain circular band this will show you the error of your ways!

Masters: Gemstones, this has some amazing jewellery in it and it’s where I first saw work by Daphne Krinos.

Contemporary Japanese Jewellery, this is really inspirational and I couldn’t help but see similarities to the winning V&A design in some of the work.

Messengers of Modernism is a history of American jewellery design. It has one of my favourite designers – Art Smith as well as Peter Macchiarini. The work is surprisingly contemporary for being made in the 1940s-1960s.

Visit Craft Fairs

There should be craft fairs near you on a semi-regular basis no matter where you are. Take the time to visit these and get a feel for them. See the quality and range of work. Find out which ones have judged entry and which are a first come first serve basis. Once you have decided which fairs you wish to attend you can contact the organisers to see when they take place and how much it costs. I have been to fairs which cost £10/day and others which are £100+ per day.

For your first fairs you will need some extra outlay – tablecloths, lights, display, jewellery busts etc. When you go round the fairs pay extra attention to what each jeweller is using to exhibit. Chat to some of them, most of them should be happy to talk about doing fairs. Also bear in mind how you would get to the fair – if by car you can take more, and heavier things, than if by bus etc. Most important things to bring after jewellery are business cards and packaging!

Continue reading »]]> I am Scottish joint-co-ordinator of the ACJ – Association for Contemporary Jewellery

Dundee Meeting

The next Dundee meeting is on Monday 15th February – contact me for details if you are a member and would like to attend.

Join the ACJ:

We welcome as members practising jewellers, associated designers and crafts people, educators, students, gallery owners and retailers, museum curators, critics and collectors – indeed, anyone with an interest in contemporary jewellery.

Student and Graduate memberships start at only £20 per year.

A new Edinburgh based group is starting up soon so contact me if you would like to get involved.

Update: After helping co-ordinate for a couple of years, I stood down to let someone else take it on.

Continue reading »]]> With Christmas just around the corner, it’s never too early to start looking for that exclusive gift. Myself and Islay Spalding with the members of  The Association for Contemporary Jewellery (ACJ) Scotland are organising a fabulous Christmas Exhibition.

It’s our first exhibition as a group in Dundee and will be held at WASPS Artists Studios, Meadow Mill, West Hendersons Wynd, DD1 5BY. The show is open on Saturday 28th November from 11 until 5, and Sunday 29 November from 12 until 5.  As well as jewellers from the ACJ we will be joined by artists and designers from the WASPS studios, Paola McClure, Jennifer Robson and Kirby Textiles plus many more.

It will be fantastic opportunity to purchase a diverse range of unique gifts including painting, sculpture, textiles and jewellery. So come along to the show. Prices start from £10.

Check out our blog for more info….