[TheForge] jewellery for blacksmiths

[keporter at comcast.net]

-------------- Original message -------------- 

> Justin, it sounds to me like you need a book that covers a bit of a lot 
> of jewelery topics. I'd suggest this one as being very practically oriented: 
> 
> The Complete Metalsmith by Tim McCreight 
> 
> Steve 
Steve
For about ten bucks you can buy a used copy of Metalwork and Enamelling (English spelling) by Herbert Maryon. What you would learn in jewelry classes, or from the books written by their teachers is nothing more than a few of the many methods carefully laid out in this tome. I have both books and consider The Complete Metalsmith to be fluff. Maryon was a master craftsman who restored the most difficult pieces in the British Museum, often reinventing long lost technics in order to do so. He was knighted for his work, and his book was reprinted for about eighty years. So, you can "pan for color" from authors like McCreight or go straight to "the mother load" by learning from Maryon. I would suggest the latter. It's what knowledgeable jewelers have been doing for close on a century (his published articles on jewelry technics preseeded the book).
Mike P.