Book Review: 30-Minute Earrings by Marthe Le Van
// November 1st, 2011 // Art Jewelry, Beads, & Glass, Book Reviews
Book Review: 30-Minute Earrings by Marthe Le Van
Published by Lark Books, Sterling Publishing Co., Inc. 2010
ISBN 978-1-60059-487-8
Pros: Great photos, inspiring projects, easy-to-follow directions, inexpensive book
Cons: Requires moderately advanced skill level and/or tools
I am a big fan of Lark books. They are usually laid out nicely and have the most exquisite photos and this book is no exception.
There’s a short introduction, then two lists of items needed to complete the projects in the book. One list is the “Bench Tool Kit” with 31 listed items. The other is a “Soldering Kit” with 18 items listed. Seriously, I found these lists to be a little daunting.
This got me to wondering what kind of jewelry maker would get the most out of this book. But in truth, it’s probably someone like me… a person with a fairly decent-sized collection of jewelry-making tools, but someone who’s still new enough to the game that they would have fun trying out other people’s projects.
The 60 projects are by 46 different artists, which is good. It means you see a variety of not only designs, but skill levels and techniques.
At the start of the book is a visual index showing thumbnail photos of each pair of earrings. Great idea!
At the back of the book are a couple of pages with information about each of the contributing artists. Nice touch.
The projects are in order based on what appears to be the skill level, complexity of the project, and number of tools required. Each open book situation (a left page and a right page) is one complete project, with fabulous and large photos of the
finished product, a mention of the techniques needed for that project, a list of the tools needed, the finished size measurements, and step by step text instructions (no photos of the “how to” part). There are also occasionally short designers’ notes.
I went through the book cover to cover just ogling and getting an idea of how this book could most benefit me. Truthfully, as the designs progressed, I started feeling a little out of my comfort zone, particularly without any of those “how to” photos along the way. There seem to be a lot of techniques and skill levels that are over my head, but I decided to start at the beginning and do a few to see how easy or time-consuming they are.
One thing I learned about recipes (as in food) is that the time they say it takes to make a dish is NEVER the same amount of time it takes ME to make that same dish. If you watch those cooking shows, you’ll see the chef say, “Now just add 1 cup of minced onions, 3 tablespoons of grated ginger, 1 teaspoon of turmeric, and ½ cup of olive oil.” Okay, that’s 5 seconds for her because someone already chopped her onions, peeled and grated her ginger, found and measured her turmeric, and poured out her olive oil. For me to do all that is more like 10-15 minutes. So just as I know that the “time to make this meal” in any given recipe is a fallacy, I am going on the same premise here.
Project 1
Techniques: wirework, filing
Materials: 40” of 16g wire, earwires
Tools: flush cutters, small file, round-nose pliers, dowel, two pair flat-nose pliers
Okay, here we go!
That’s the finished product.
Took me 40 minutes. I daresay that if I went into production mode, I could get it down to 30 minutes no problem. I like this design and see potential for even adding a few bead embellishments.
The directions were clear and easy, but it helped massively to have a large photo of the finished product that I could refer to for comparison.
I skipped Project 2 because the design doesn’t appeal to me. That’s okay. I should hope that in a book of 60 different pair of earrings, there’ll be some I like and some I don’t like. ‘Cause if they were all earring designs I
liked, the book might not appeal to someone with taste different from mine. I think there’s something for everyone here.
On to Project 3
Techniques: cutting, wirework, patina (optional)
Materials: chain, headpins, earwires, dangles, stone rondelles
Tools: It is merely stated “bench tool kit”, fine steel wool, liver of sulfur (optional)
Straight off the bat, I see a problem with this one. The actual material for the “dangles” listed above is: vintage brass dangles 4.5×1.4 cm. And in the photo, they are a graduating paddle shape with a loop at the top. Okay, this isn’t something I just happen to have laying around. I will, however, see what I can fashion that’s similar by using fat brass wire and a hammer.
So using 14g brass wire (the thickest I have), I cut, file, hammer, and hole punch something that looks as close to the project photo as possible.
Here are the earrings.
And they are a good example of how you can use this book without being EXACT in everything. Not only did I not happen to have the same vintage findings as the original designer (who would?!), but the only ball headpins I had were 20 gauge, way too fat to fit through my Ruby rondelles (as in the project)… so I used Garnet instead.
When using this book, I think it’s good to have a balance between trying to follow the directions as closely as possible (so you can learn new skills), while staying open-minded enough about substituting creatively when necessary.
Time to make these earrings, including patinizing the silver and creating the brass dangles: 24 minutes. The “bench tool kit” for this project was merely my standard three tools (round nose pliers, flat nose pliers, cutters), but since I had to make my own dangles I also used my hammer, bench block, and hole punch.
Project 4
Techniques: wirework, bead stringing
Materials: wire, beads, earwires
Tools: “bench tool kit”
There earrings took 28 minutes from start to finish. The “bench tool kit” consisted of my same three standard tools listed Project 3.
The next few project designs, although relatively simple in skill level, required items I didn’t have on hand.
I will probably eventually do most of the projects in the book (the ones that appeal to me, anyway), but there will be some shopping trips for things like: wooden cubes, half-drilled pearls, wood stain, resin, acrylic paint, rubber tubing, silver foil, etc.
By Project 10, we’re up to sawing, drilling, and riveting.
I was so intrigued by Project 11 that I had to try it. I didn’t have sterling silver sheet in 18 gauge, though, so I substituted copper. These earrings took me 2 hours to make from start to finish.
And truthfully, as I peruse the majority of projects after Project 10, I can tell I’m looking at well more than 30 minutes. We’re talking drilling, sawing, soldering, using a rolling mill, annealing, filing, forming, and on and on.
The subtitle of the book is: 60 Quick & Creative Projects for Jewelers.
I suppose there may be a lot riding on the word “jewelers” here.
In a perfect world, where all those tools are set up and never have to be taken out and put away and where I can saw or file in a few minutes rather than half an hour, then yeah maybe most of these earrings could be made in 30 minutes or less, particularly once you already know what you’re doing and get into some sort of production mode.
If, however, you’re not using metalsmithing tools on a daily basis, these projects may not be so “quick” for you.
But I see this book as less of a way to make fast earrings and more of a way to be inspired by varying designs and techniques and a good way to push yourself to try new things.
This book is absolutely NOT about bead stringing designs or crafty types of designs. I would say it’s about metal-working designs. If you have no interest in soldering, filing, sawing, annealing or drilling, you will most likely not do the majority of projects in this book.
With some of the projects, I could have used gold or silver, but instead opted for copper and bronze because I didn’t want to “experiment” on the spendy stuff. As my skill and confidence progresses, I can switch to the more expensive components for these same designs.
Although I have listed and will sell the designs I created from the projects in this book, as with any good learning experience (tutorials, classes, books, etc), my advice is: do the project once or twice, learn from it, alter it, change things, take bits from it… and move on. Don’t go into production mode on someone else’s designs.
This book is perfect for igniting my passion, my creativity, and my skill set. I will learn a lot of new techniques that I can incorporate into my jewelry-making repertoire.
With my above-listed caveats, the bottom line as I review this book is: Would I buy it for myself? Do I consider it a worthy purchase?
I can easily say yes on both counts. It’s a good book to have in my collection and I look forward to continuing with the projects.
Who is it best suited for? In my opinion, someone who wants to stretch their jewelry-making talents into the world of metalwork. You won’t find information on the basic use of tools and techniques, but you will find inspiration.
Thanks!
Laura
About the Author:
I have been creating my whole life but the medium I am most passionate about is polymer clay. I love to share my passion through video tutorials and DVD's.
Ilysa – who has written 266 posts on Things Crafty crafting videos tutorials reviews books products demos and Podcast.
I love how you have a time listed fro how long the projects took you as well as the substitutions you made. Especailly in earring 3. I dont have vintage brass dangles laying around but i can hammer out wire. Super review thanks so much.
I really enjoyed reading your review of this book……your experience and knowledge in jewelry making is very important here….I would like to make some of the projects but truly without all the tools and the skills that you have collected over the years, I think for a beginner, the projects would be overwhelming. Your descriptions of the different projects and your overall review was excellent in my opinion!
Wonderful review ! Nothing better than the actual experience of doing the project and letting others know the end result.
Good review of the book! Made me want to buy it!!!
*crosses fingers for bracelet*
Wonderful book review, and your earrings turned out beautiful!! I especially love the last pair.
Great book review.Thank you for being so informative.If you are going to spend money on books it is essential to find ones you can actually use.Thanks for the heads up.
Thanks for doing an honest review.
I am looking for a book which is way more than a beading book so I think this may be for me. Although now I know to be prepared for them to take longer than 30 minutes
Cool book and neat earrings. I see lots of ways to change them and make them “your own”.
I have say that you wrote the most honest review of a “howto” book I’ve EVER read. I have never read a review that gave an honest amount of time that each project took; nor what substitutions you allowed yourself to make the project doable without trips to about 3 stores to “pick up a few things” (and dropping at least $50+++ in the process – lol).
Would I buy the book? You betcha. (Especially if I could find it on BOMC2 where there’s no “minimum purchase $ or required min. quantity to buy/year” & 99% of their books are priced at $9.99 even when they’re hot off the press!) I love my jewelry book collection…and keep a “wish list” online
(Amazon has a nice one!)
What a wonderful review !! Its so nice to have someone explain what is involved in most of the projects, from a real perspective !!
Thank you for sharing your experience.
All of your finished creations turned out beautifully.
Loved this review. Have the book and wholeheartedly agree with your assessment of the projects. Great inspiration.
This sounds like one of the best books for learning techniques in Jewelry design and making.
What a wonderful book to have and read. Learing is one of the things that I love to do. So this would be treasured.
Your book looks fantastic and the pieces are the best I have ever seen concerning to jewelry, specially earrings and bracelets. I have already bout some and liked them very very much.
What a great review! Now I will buy the book because it sounds like it is for me. I honestly would not have if not for this review. Thank you Laura.
That was a nice review. I like the way you describe the projects and are willing to make substitutions. I almost never end up with the exact same finished product as in the project. I’ll use the project as inspiration and for learning new skills, but I won’t go out and buy supplies just for one project.
I’m always looking for new ideas for earring styles. This book looks like a great resource.
Great review, I had bypassed this book thinking it was not going to be very useful, but you have pointed out some wonderful thoughts about it. I particularly like seeing someone else’s take on projects. Thanks so much for doing this!
Great review! I love how honest that you were about the projects. And your earrings turned out wonderful!
Excellent review that goes into specific detail about what’s in this book. Since I’m a new metal worker the ‘how to’ photo steps would have been a great addition. However the book sounds like it is great for inspirational ideas. Thanks for the super review.
Useful and well written review! Assessment of the projects was accurate and helpful.
Excellent, very thorough review. It is nice to see the pictures of *your* versions of the projects. Now I have to go put this book on my wish list!
Thank you for such an indepth book review! This sounds like a really nice book, I would like to try it. The pictures of your projects are wonderful, it’s really nice to see what you came up with. I hope to read a lot more reviews like this Laura!
I’ve recently been branching out into more fabrication, making findings and soldering, so this book is something I’d love to look into… and you’ve done a lot of it for me! I’m sure I’d have a long learning curve, more than yours, but I have to say those earrings you’ve shown here have a very fine jewelry look. Your work is impeccable, and your photography is really top notch! Definitely having an interest in this book now, thank you for bringing it to my attention!
After reading the review, I am very intrigued by this book. I love project books for learning new techniques and for inspiration. This is definitely going on my “to buy” list.
Great info in the review….will be very helpful to folks wanting to know more ..Thanks!
What a comprehensive review! Seems like you covered all the areas of concern that would help the reader choose to buy the book. And the layout of the book itself sounds very well-planned.
(The ‘lucky’ bracelet is quite lovely! I especially like the delicate leaf-motif on the closure!)
Good job all around, Laura!
Thanks for the thoughtful and helpful review.
Good thorough review. I like the fact that you actually made some of the projects. I’ll have to tlook for the book this weekend at Barnes & Noble.
Thanks for the review, Laura. I always need ideas for earrings, since I don’t have pierced ears. I would love to know if basic tips/ instructions are included for skills required in the later earrings (ie soldering, my nemesis!) I guess I’ll have to buy the book to find out…
Great review. I think I NEED this book I need some challenges and I have been wanting to hammer lately.
Great book review. My daughters
have been asking for earrings
for a while. Some great challenges
in this book. Off to buy!!
Wonderful review!!! You are so talented
What a great review. Thank you for taking this, it was very informative. I appreciate your perspective.
Great review Laura! I agree, this book looks like a wonderful source for inspiration with enough instruction to jump start the project. I wasn’t familiar with this book, so thanks for reviewing it. Off to add it to my Christmas list.
This is a great review, Laura. I’ve been away from my jewelry-making tools for far too long and your projects and descriptions here are really sparking my interest!
I really appreciate the time the reviewer took to actually go over the content of the book as well as try some of projects and report on what she thought of them. This is so much more helpful than just giving an opinion on what’s between the covers. I know what to expect, that I’ll need tools and that there is diversity in the patterns, which I like, it means I’m going to learn more than one look and that I can choose how simple or difficult a project I want from the same book.
Loved the projects and the photos. Great to have a review from someone who knows what they are doing and actually tried out the projects. I am going to look into this book when I hit the bookstore.
Thank you for your comprehensive review. It was thorough and honest and gave me a clear picture of what is involved with the projects. It looks like something that will help me develop my skill level.
Love the review of the book and how you used the instructions and “made them your own”. Makes me want to go buy the book…! Thanks!
Barbara
Fantastic review!
Really, really great review! And I think you might have helped with my Christmas shopping – so thank you!
Great review!
It certainly helps that you have the skill level to make the projects and the creativeness to make them your own by substituting various materials. Thanks for trying some of the projects and advising of the projected time and actual time for finishing the projects.
Also, it is good that you commented on the tools kits – everyone doesn’t have a full jewelry studio, but it is designed for those with a moderately advanced skill level.
Laura the review was well put together I couldn’t have done it any better, great ideas and tips. I especially love that it can be done in very little time…
Thank you! This is a very practical review of what looks to be an inspiring book. Congratulations and continued success.
Thank you Laura, wanting to branch out into metal work, but living in the middle of nowhere, I have been unlucky in book choices, This review has allowed me to be confident that my next purchase will be a good one.
Lauri Hansberger
What a fantastic book! Very inspiring, just what I needed to get some Christmas gifts made!!!
Thank you so much for such a wonderful and informative book.
Thank you for writing such a comprehensive review.
I love the review and it made me go out to look for the book. I want to add it to my collection. I really feel that reviews like this make me more confident in purchasing a new book. Thank you
I can hardly wait to get this book now!!
This is a wonderful review with the great detail regarding the projects. It’s been added to my wish list.
My review of your review is that it’s excellent! You are honest, yet not condescending. Adding this book to my wish list!
Most excellent review/discussion. If Laura is pleased with the book, I am going to trust that I would be also. I too often take longer than a ‘recipe’ suggests that it would take … I think we are all on the same page here, and that makes me feel Good in a seemingly progressively discordant world … I am wanting to immerse myself more and more in the Art ~ and reviews and books such as this are good trail companions.
I found this to be a very honest and detailed review of what could be gained by purchasing this jewelry making book. Enough information is give to decide if this book would be of benefit and worth purchasing. Kudos!
Well done. And the level of improvisation is very much in your favour, and probably exactly what one of the book’s aims is.
Great review, thorough and I like that you actually did some of the projects…. Love the pictures with a review of each project!
I will seriously consider purchasing this book
Very cool. I like the idea of learning new techniques making small projects rather than huge elaborate pieces. Great Job! Beautiful earrings.
Inspirational review….
Loved the photos and projects. Thank you~