Amulets and Talismans: Simple Techniques for Creating Meaningful Jewelry

Making Jewelry with Meaning

The things you collect - the ticket stubs, the coins, the pieces of shell from a beach - hold meaning and significance, reminding you not only where you've been, but also where you're capable of going. Making these items into wearable pieces of art - amplifying their power to become amulets and talismans - is a rewarding experience that's easy to do.

Working with the most basic of tools, you will learn cold-connection jewelry techniques to expand your creative process. In addition to basics like creating jump rings and using a file, you will also:

• Make your own hook and latch clasps
• Cut windows from sheets of metal
• Inlay designs into polymer clay
• Incorporate concrete into your work
• Achieve patinas with heat
• Journal your thoughts onto faux bone
• Turn paper pulp into realistic rocks
• Create "time capsule" beads from Plexiglas
• And much, much more!

Discover the rewards of making your own amulets and talismans by learning new techniques to drive your creativity in an entirely new direction.

Robert Dancik holds a master's degree in sculpture and a bachelor's degree in fine art. He has formally taught art to students of all ages, from kindergarten to graduate school, for more than 30 years. He currently exhibits his jewelry and sculptures in museums and galleries across the United States, Europe and Japan, and teaches workshops at art centers and event venues across the country and abroad. In addition, Robert has contributed work to a number of other jewelry books.