I've been having lots of fun with a technique called fold forming. It's a process of hammering, folding, annealing and hammering some more to create 3-D designs and textures from sheet metal. You can see an example to the left in this fun cuff style bracelet. 

I was excited to have a few of my pieces recently featured in the June edition of Bay Magazine, an upscale magazine published quarterly as a Sunday supplement to the St. Petersburg Times newpaper. The necklace was purchased by a local Tampa Bay resident and the earrings went to Moscow, Russia.

I'll be launching a new jewelry collection available in September at the Dunedin Fine Art Center and currently have several pieces for sale at the Syd Entel Galleries in Safety Harbor, Florida.

Purchase any jewelry item from hodgepodgerie through August 31st and get 10% off plus free shipping. Just purchase the item as normal, then let me know after purchasing that you're a newsletter subscriber and I'll refund the difference back to your PayPal account. If you like an item that's been sold, please ask if I can create something similar for you. Some items are one-of-a-kind and others can be closely duplicated.

Lots of great new workshops and classes coming up! Check out my class schedule for details.

For those of you just getting your feet wet in the wire jewelry world, there's my standard 6 week Basic Wire classes where you'll learn the basic wire jewelry techniques needed to design and create your own beautiful wire jewelry! You'll become familiar with the "tools of the trade" and their proper uses, and gain a solid foundation of basic wire skills to build on. Not only will you learn jewelry making techniques, but you'll apply those techniques while making jewelry in the class. Check out my Student Gallery for examples of what you'll learn to do.

For those who can't make a 6 week commitment you're going to love my new Basic Wire Boot Camps! These intense classes are held over a full weekend and will give you a great foundation to get you well on your way with basic wire working. I'm currently offering them at Fire Bug Designs in Venice, FL and in 2010 at the Dunedin Fine Art Center. If you're interested in holding a Basic Wire Boot Camp in your area, just contact me.

I've great a selection of tools and jewelry making supplies in my Etsy store hodgepodgerie Necessities. Through the end of August, mention that you're a newsletter subscriber and receive 20% off supplies including my unique handmade items such as large hole bead caps and toggles. Get 10% off any tools. Just convo me after purchasing and I'll credit the difference back to your PayPal account.

Tool Tip:  A question I'm often asked is, "What gauge wire do I need and how do I tell the size?" Click the link below for an article I've written that takes the guesswork out of wire sizes. It shows both Imperial (US) and metric measurements for the most commonly used wire gauges. It also includes a description of their typical uses. A handy tip: Print out the article and tape a small piece of the actual wire described next to its description for quick visual reference. I don't know about you but the little black dots often seen in books as wire gauge references don't tell me a lot. Seeing an actual piece of the wire that's being described will help you learn your wire gauges fast!

What size wire is that?

I hope you enjoyed the inaugural addition of "On The Wire." If you have specific interests that you'd like to see in the newsletter, please let me know. All comments and feedback are greatly appreciated. Happy Wiring!

Stacy
hodgepodgerie