BellaOnline Forums Hobbies and Crafts Jewelry Making Good Quality Sterling Silver Supplies

Hi I have just got interested in the art of jewelry making. Though I have been a creative person all my life I did not get a chance to pursue this hobby up until now. I have a couple (actually lots !!!) of questions as a beginner. I have tried making few jeweleries watching online videos and they have turned out decent. I made them out of cheap wires and beads from the craft store as I did not want to spend a lot money for trying something out. Now I want to move to the next step and make some quality jewelry that I want to gift to family and friends during the holiday season and sell some in the near future. I did lot of research and decided to buy supplies from eBay. Is that a wise choice? Also I have looked up some stuff being sold by other artist and their metal quality seems to be really good (thick) as compared to the ones on ebay. Can someone please tell me where I can buy good quality supplies. IS there any site where I can specify what I want and they will make it for me in terms of clasps, findings, charms etc. Thanks PS: I am so glad I found this forum :)

Try asking at local lapidary suppliers and hobby shops, they usually know the local metal wholesalers.

Thanks for your response.. Will try that ... I have another question .. My wire jewelry always looks clumsy and not polished ... It is not straight and there are too many twists and bends in the wire that are visible .. How to get a smooth look .. Even before I start working the wire gets all bent (even with thick 18-20 GA wire)

Hmm...I only did some basic jewellery making at night classes 20 years ago. If I remember correctly we used to polish the metal bits with a polishing wheel and rosin after finishing the article, then give it a wash to get the powder off. With the wire jewellery you might try straightening it with pliers etc as you go and then finish off sorting it after a polish. It should look hand made, but not too handmade.

I highly recommend Pasternak Findings for high quality jewelry findings. I buy there since 2004 and I am very happy with the quality, pricing and service.
You might be interested in their silver findings section.
Good luck!
Sarit Designs - Unique handcrafted jewelry

There are many excellent silversmithing and silver wire sites online. You will get a better deal online. Fire Mountain Gems is a good site, plenty of free catalouges sent out monthly and awesome deals on bead and findings of all kinds. There is also a plethora of sites on Jewelry making with metal that would have suggestions for straightening your wire, there isn't enough room to go into it here. www.ganoksin.com is an amazing site. Another jewelry supply site is Rio Grande though they may have a more wholesale policy, like you have to spend $50, but I'm not sure, check it out. If you type in something like Silver wire jewelry, so many sites will pop up you will never wonder again. Good luck.

Rio Grand, Monsterslayer, Artbeads and Fire Mountain are all great sources for premade findings. They have large selections to chose from. Try straightening and prepping your wire prior to working with it by pulling it through your fingers with a polishing cloth a few times. This will help to work harden it slaightly so that it isn't as apt to kink. You will find it much easier to work with sterling silver or copper wire than craft wire. You can pick up copper very inexpensively at your local hardware store for practice.

You are going well. If you want to polish your talent, it's better to join a reputed jewelry making institute as you will learn more and correct.

Well said sagi, agree with you,
If you go the way sagi told you, you will definitely get more talented in your work!! Coz you will be under expertize jewelers, who have been in the market for years!!

Well done edi you have great ability and best of luck for your bright future