Home Studio Tour

Hello and welcome to the studio tour. Below are photos of my home and studio, along with images that explain the construction aspect of my design process. You’ll also find photos of several people who have helped me immensely throughout my career as a jeweler. There are many others who aren’t pictured here, and I give my deepest and heartfelt thanks to all of you.

Below is my family home, I love my stripy chairs.

The book shelves are full of ideas and inspirations that help me daily to create my pieces.

The only extensive drawing class I’ve ever taken is mechanical drafting for furniture design. As a result I design and construct many of my pieces like a piece of furniture and I begin with a line drawn sketch. I formulate ideas by beginning with a concept of what I want to relay, or simply by challenging myself to experiment with different forms, techniques, and design principles. The image to the left is a page from my sketchbook.

The similarity between my work as a jeweler and furniture maker is that each piece, most notably the one-of-a-kinds, is a technical challenge and requires a lot of thought and planning. The difference is that I don’t have the machines to cut precise angles and I cannot simply glue and clamp the parts together. All of the joints and angles are created by hand with a file, and mostly by eye for precision. Each joint is soldered by hand, and with every soldering operation the piece must be reheated, running the risk of melting any previously soldered joint.

For the more technically challenging pieces I often follow my drawing to every detail, but there are many times that I alter the design as it comes to life. New ideas have a way of presenting themselves as a piece begins to reach its full form. Changes sometimes require a trip back to the sketchbook to ensure that balance and proportion are in check. When my jewelry making wishes come true everything falls into place and the result is a piece that is both visually and emotionally satisfying.

Another source of inspiration for my design process comes from playing and experimenting with objects in my ‘parts bin’, shown at left. These parts consist of found objects, left over parts from other pieces, rejects, and for lack of a better word…doodles. Designing in this manner can be a lot of fun, as it is more spontaneous. The downside is that it doesn’t always work out for the best and I end up with another piece to throw into the bin. Not to worry though, the bin has a way of recycling itself and proves to be a constant source of inspiration.