Here is a book that I can whole-heartedly recommend to beginners who want to make great looking jewelry, and want it FAST!
Chain Style
by Jane Dickerson
There’s nothing like adding chain to your design, or even designing an entire piece around chain, to make the design work up quickly. Chain is an excellent material for both beginners and those with advanced skills, because the complexity of your projects is only limited by experience and imagination.
The techniques and materials section is minimal but sufficient.  Largely this is because the projects are all so accessible.  There are 50 designs to inspire you, many …read more

Contemporary Copper Jewelry
by Sharilyn Miller
I love Sharilyn Miller’s work. Primarily known as a wire jewelry artist, Sharilyn also works in many other media. She was the original editor of Belle Armoire magazine, which I adore. This new book contains a great techniques section, followed by page after page of Sharilyn’s one-of-a-kind designs. The best feature of this book is the photography. There are a gazillion photos, one for each major step in the process of creating your own wire and metal pieces.
Several other designers have contributed projects to this book. I love many of them, a few I’m not so …read more

Tara P, lucky number 50, is the winner of the new book  101 Wire Earrings!  Tara wrote:
Ooh!  I am a beginner and would love to learn more about wire-working and earrings are perfect chances to practice!

Make Art Monday!
This necklace combines several things that I love in equal measure: off-loom woven seed beads, lampwork beads that I made, and sterling silver wire to bring it all together.
Tomorrow for Technique Tuesday, I’ll be sharing how to make one of these yourself.  This necklace is named Sophia, the Greek word for wisdom.