For many years, I was an artist-blacksmith and the editor for The Hammer’s Blow by ABANA. While I enjoyed the work very much, blacksmithing takes a toll on the body. The coal smoke was starting to exacerbate my childhood asthma, and making enough money to support a family was always elusive. But I also did a little jewelry on the side.

Jump ahead fifteen years, and we all find ourselves sheltering in place from the COVID pandemic. I’ve finally found time to address that big case of unfinished jewelry materials. While I have a small collection of semi-precious gemstones and quite a bit of low-grade opal rough, setting stones takes a lot of time. The resulting jewelry is a LOT more expensive than, say, a pair of pure silver forged earrings.

These are comparatively fast to create and a lot of fun. I use my blacksmithing experience to forge different surface treatments on simple geometric shapes. I like squares, triangles, and something I call “wings,” which are like triangles with a curved edge. Rectangles are usually reserved for necklaces, but that’s a shape that I like too.

In addition to pure silver, I also like to work in sterling and nickel on copper. Nickel gives a very durable, high-luster finish, sometimes almost a “dark and shiny” look. Sterling is useful for strength and light weight, but of course it will need to be cleaned occasionally.

If you see something that you like, feel free to contact me… most of these are for sale, though some are already sold. Prices for earrings are in the $30-$45 range, necklaces start at about $45 (with no chain) and go up from there. Plan on spending at least $120 for a solid natural opal, but of course, prices can go significantly higher depending on the stone.