Jewellery making travel essentials

This blog post was originally written for the London Jewellery School blog

I often find that inspiration can come when I am away from home and without my jewellery making equipment! When we travel we see new places, people and things that can inspire us. We may also stumble upon a beautiful bead shop as I did recently when we made a trip to Murano, Venice.

So, to capitalise on this inspiration I take a small sketchbook and pencil as well as taking lots of photos! I also have a little travel kit of jewellery making tools and supplies that I take if I want to make while I’m away from home.

It consists of

Tools

Pliers

Chain nosed pliers

Round nosed pliers

Cutters

I tend just to take these pliers. If I have space I also take flat nosed pliers as they are really best for opening jump rings. The little case I put everything in is the smallest sized packing square from travelon, you can find a link to it here.

I only work with full sized tools. I know you can get some really cute mini travel plier sets but don’t be tempted, the full sized pliers are designed for your hands. The mini pliers are awkward to use as they are too small to be comfortable.

Also, if you are travelling by air you may not be able to take your tools in your hand luggage so check with your airline before you travel, I really don’t want yours to be confiscated!

Materials

I tend to take materials for beading when I am away, silver clay tools tend to be a bit too bulky!

This kit of materials covers most eventualities.

jewellery making supplies

split jump rings
open jump rings (various sizes and shapes)
crimps
stringing material e.g. tiger tail
clasps
earring wires
head pins

Beach holidays

If you fancy stringing shells into your jewellery you can also take a small hand drill. Drilling shells can be a bit hit and miss depending on the hardness of the shell but persistence can pay off and a handmade necklace can be a lovely souvenir from your holiday.

What have I missed? What jewellery making equipment do you take when you are travelling? Let me know in the comments

Let's stay in touch! Follow me on instagram, twitter, facebook and pinterest

Comments

Silver clay on the BBC

If you are reading this blog then you probably already know that I make jewellery with a material called metal clay. It's not a well known material so I was really pleased to see it featuring on a programme on BBC1. The programme is called Countryfile and a metal clay artist called Emma Mitchell was featured, interviewed by Anita Rani. Emma talked about the mental health benefits of getting out into the countryside and getting inspiration from nature and natural surroundings. They picked leaves and other natural materials and used them to make moulds and silver jewellery. It's fantastic that silver clay was featured on TV as it raises awareness of the material. The metal clay world is quite small but I haven't met Emma yet although she is also teaching at the Y ou Can Make It metal clay conference in March so I am looking forward to meeting her there. You can watch the programme here on the BBC iplayer until 6th March 2018 (but only if you're in the UK unfortun

Ring a month theme for February 2019

I've been overwhelmed by the number of people being inspired by the Ring A Month challenge. At the time of writing, we have 351 members in the Facebook group and 300 followers on Instagram. If you'd like to join in there's still time! Facebook group https://www.facebook.com/groups/makearingamonth/ Instagram https://www.instagram.com/ringamonth/ I have decided to announce the theme for the coming month a week before the start of the month. This is to give people time to think about their designs, particularly those that are busy and have a lot to fit in. The theme for February 2019 is .... music and lyrics Here are some ideas to get you thinking about how to interpret the theme Be inspired by A song/piece of music you love A specific lyric from a song A style of music e.g. classical, metal, rap, funk etc A musical An instrument/s Music artwork (CD/LP sleeve or music video) A concert you went to (or wish you went to!) A music festival Choose a

Business matters article for Making Jewellery magazine

As part of my role for the London Jewellery School I've been writing the Business Matters column in Making Jewellery magazine for six months now. We've been doing an interview series with jewellers on different aspects of jewellery business. However, this month I am actually featured! I wrote an article on getting press coverage which would be relevant for all small businesses. The magazine is available from Smiths and larger supermarkets so do check it out! It's issue 116, March 2018. This image is shared with permission, copyright GMC publications

Edinburgh jeweller

Search This Blog