Customer Reviews

Picture Yourself Creating Metal Clay Jewelry

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Tammy Powley, the resident jewelry making expert at About.com, is an incredibly bright and talented woman. She's very well respected in the jewelry and craft industries and she's a college professor with a strong command of language and excellent technical writing skills. It's no surprise that her new book Picture Yourself Creating Metal Clay Jewelry is phenomenal. If you've been standing on the edge of diving into the world of metal clay, wait no longer. Ms. Powley will take your hand and guide you step by step in this extensive guide to absolutely everything you need to know to get started.

From tools, techniques, materials and sound advice, this book is in my opinion the ultimate guide for the metal clay novice and has plenty to offer for those who already dabble in this fascinating medium. Not only are the instructions clear, well written and easy to follow, the photographs guide you effortlessly through the basics so that you can be well on your way to mastering this medium. There's a DVD included with bonus projects and video footage that solidifies the information in the book beautifully.

Tammy Powley is someone whom I, as a fellow jewelry making book author, respect immensely. She's proven time and time again that she is a force with whom to be reckoned and here she does it again. She's got that rare gift of knowing how to articulate things in a way that everyone can understand and her subtle humor makes reading this book a joy.

I particularly enjoyed the wonderful photographs of artist's studios, what a treat! The fabulous projects shared by Ms. Powley along with several metal clay masters were truly inspirational. Many craft books skirt across the surface of a discipline or they are so advanced they can be daunting to the neophyte. Ms. Powley has taken all of the mystery and frustration out of learning something new and made it a true pleasure.

I highly recommend this title become an addition to your craft library. This is one you'll read from cover to cover and reference endlessly. Kudos to Ms. Powley for making the definitive beginners Metal Clay book!

Margot Potter
The Impatient Crafter(tm)
Author The Impatient Beader series

I really like the positive title of this book, written by Tammy Powley: Picture Yourself Creating Metal Clay Jewelry.
When I read the title, I felt as if the daunting aspects and the confusion people might experience when confronted by metal clay were immediately whisked away and replaced with the reassurance of a voice which said "You CAN do this!"

This "Can-Do!" sort of attitude is a wonderful one which the author conveys. It runs all the way through the book!

The cover shows some of the many aspects of working with metal clay, and some finished jewelry pieces as well. Indeed, Tammy has made sure to take the reader right from the very beginning of learning what tools and equipment and safety concerns will be required, to the final aspects of super fun created pieces in a wonderfully cohesive manner. She is an experienced jewelry designer, a well known author of numerous jewelry design books, and a member of the PMC Guild. Who better to write this almost encyclopedic, yet always interesting, metal clay book?
It is fascinating as well to learn through viewing other artist's studios, and other artist's work, the incredible variety you too will be able to accomplish, once you get the basics down.

I want to stress that this book is basically a "low fire" metal clay book. This means that the projects in the book (and also in the fantastic bonus DVD, which I loved!) which are demonstrated by Tammy, use ways of firing metal clay which usually do not involve a kiln. For example, a hot pot and a butane torch are two of the ways which are utilized in the book. Both are used outdoors for proper ventilation and for safety!
If you low fire metal clay, there is a limit to the thickness of the jewelry piece you can create. A kiln is required for weightier pieces. You will discover, by reading this book, information like this. It will be presented to you in a very clear manner. Why not buy this book and see how you like metal clay before sinking a ton of money into a kiln? It is really logical to try this method first. By the way, you will LOVE metal clay! It is SO FUN!

I think Picture Yourself Creating Metal Clay Jewelry, by Tammy Powley, with its inspiring photo gallery from many artists who were kind enough to display their metal clay creations and their studios, its "down to earth manner" of how to make your own pieces, its great list of tools, tips and techniques, the inclusion of some fantastic findings you can teach yourself to make (Tammy does it all!), and finally some wonderful, accessible and very lovely low fire projects, such as "ID ME" and "Y-You are a Star", AS WELL AS (I am getting out of breath here!) gallery projects with instructions by guest artists, for those of you who do have a kiln to use in some cases, is a terrific starter book, reference book, reminder (if you already use metal clay) book, inspiration book, and get it all going on book! Yes! You can DO it with this great book, Picture Yourself Creating Metal Clay Jewelry!

Teacher and jewelry crafter Tammy Powley presents Creating Metal Clay Jewelry, a step-by-step guide to creating one's own unique jewelry designs from metal clay components. Chapters discuss how to create original metal clay necklaces, bracelets, earrings, and more. Readers will learn how to roll, cut, fire and finish metal clay into beads and charms; 14 projects with variations will help novices get their feet wet in the joy of three-dimensional art. Full color photographs illustrate the methodical instructions, and a bonus DVD with two additional projects rounds out this great guide for jewelry hobbyists of all backgrounds and experience levels.

I wish I had had this book when I started working with metal clay. The author is a very good teacher. The sections from start-up to completed projects are very clearly written, providing a huge amount of information on pretty much every aspect of getting started in this medium. If you are thinking of trying out metal clay, or have already started but have questions about working with the clay, this book will be a terrific investment for you.

I was particularly impressed with the amount of time the author devotes to tools and set-up. I have not seen this level of detail in any other metal clay book, and I have read quite a few of them. Much of what I have had to learn over time is set out here.

The projects themselves are all suitable for the beginner, while at the same time providing instructions to create attractive pieces. My favorite is probably "Star Attraction", a charm bracelet with plenty of simple, light-hearted star charms. This is a five-finger exercise in working with metal clay, a project that will allow a beginner to practice basic skills and get a feel for working with the clay and some of the tools (here, the star-shaped punch, for example). At the same time, the design of the bracelet is solid - a cute summery piece of jewelry that I would certainly be happy to wear out.

For the sake of full disclosure, I need to say that I do have two necklaces in the Gallery section of this book (as well as a photo of my messy garage, where my kiln is located). However, I had no information on the actual projects or chapters in the book prior to buying my copy from Amazon. I have been incredibly pleased with its high quality. I consider it a valuable addition to my craft library, and I know I will be referring to it and recommending it for years to come.

If you've been thinking that Precious Metal Clay might be too difficult for you to attempt, then this is definitely the book for you.
I've known Tammy for a few years now having worked with her. She is, in fact, the reason I started jewelrymaking. When I would admire a certain pair of earrings she would be wearing or maybe a necklace she had just finished, she would always say "You can do that". So I bought all of her books and because they are always so well written, directions so easy to follow, and jewelry so beautifully illustrated she's made it possible for everyone to design and create their own jewelry. So when she asked me to submit a few of my pieces for her new book on metal clay I eagerly did so knowing I would be pleased with the final results. The book, however, far exceeds my expectations.
Tammy's book helps take the fear and guesswork out of what to do with that ugly little lump of clay and she shows you that you can turn out a beautiful piece of jewelry the first time out. I've been doing metal clay for over a year, own three books on the subject, but I wish I had this one starting out. Others have left me feeling I "missed" something in the directions. It is so easy to follow, directions so clear and detailed that I firmly believe that this will be the new Metal Clay Jewelry bible. And the added DVD is really a plus! I think this is Tammy's best book yet.

Tammy Powley, respected author of several how-to jewelry making books has done an outstanding job of demystifying Metal Clay in Picture Yourself Creating Metal Clay Jewelry.
Both beginner and experienced metal clay artisans will benefit from the step-by-step photos and the clever tips and tricks contained within this book. The book is a valuable and comprehensive guide for anyone interested in creating their own fine silver jewelry components right at home, since it covers inexpensive, readily available tools and firing methods using low fire metal clay. It also covers jewelry techniques to help the reader put finished jewelry pieces together, like stringing beads and adding findings. Included is a bonus DVD, a chapter on how several metal clay artists set-up their studios, a gallery section showcasing the work of metal clay artists (including me) and a valuable resource section. Bravo-well done!-Alice Alper-Rein

When the author, Tammy Powley, approached me about creating a project for this book, I was very excited, but also a bit scared! I've been involved with a couple other projects with Tammy, and I already knew how much detail and effort she puts into everything that she does. I knew that this was going to be an amazing and very complete book for beginners. And I wasn't the slightest bit disappointed when I received my copy of Picture Yourself Creating Metal Clay Jewelry. Tammy's instructions are excellent and very thorough, and the DVD is just the icing on the cake!

This very comprehensive book is an excellent starting place for crafters wanting to learn how to work with metal clay. We have started making jewelry for my wife's small business and wanted to investigate this very versatile medium.

The book is geared to the beginner, with a lot of attention in the first six chapters given to clay types, required tools, work areas, and important basic clay working techniques. This was exactly the type of information I was looking for, especially the firing techniques and creating patinas sections.

Chapter 7 includes fourteen projects that utilize the techniques shown in the earlier chapters. The project instructions include the materials needed, good directions, and fairly good pictures. Most of the projects are well within our abilities since we have been working with polymer clays for a few years and the techniques are very similar.

The included DVD is helpful to see a piece being created from start to finish and it contains a good amount of useful tips. Unfortunately the camera work (often handheld) and editing are clearly amateurish, which detracts a bit from the lesson and actually caused me to watch it twice.

The gallery section is a very nice addition as it show the work of several artists and highlights the capabilities of metal clay. I also like that a section on suppliers and on-line resources is included as well.

Recommended!

CFH

I purchased this book because I am featured in the gallery section. I would say for a beginner this is a fairly good book. If you would like to make metal clay jewelry at home with few tools this will give you what you need. It doesn't offer as much inspiration as I would like to see in a jewelry book but if you are just starting out this will do.