Wednesday, May 28, 2008

Studio Jewelers

I am constantly coming up against a conundrum. Do I want to be a studio jeweler or do I want to be a production jeweler ?

My training was in studio jewelry, however most of my work experience has been in production jewelry. These are easily reproduced items made from wax carvings I make myself. Or I reproduce my pieces from a handmade original that I then mold for casting.

So my heart and eye is with studio jewelry, but my mind and wallet are with production pieces. It's definitely an internal struggle but it pushes me to find a way to combine all my skills. I'm taking some time to think about my next steps. I have fleshed out my bubble collection and need to photograph it. Then I will make a focused mailing to boutiques I think my stuff will fit into. I'm really excited about the time I've had to work on my collection this year, no matter what happens I'm proud of my work.