Last summer I was working with my friend Jane and using my typical grab-them-out-of-the-garage-needle nose pliers, wire snips and clamps. She looked at me with surprise and set me straight about good jewelry making tools and the difference they can make. Since I was a child I have worked with tools so I was very comfortable (and I thought quite accomplished with) using what ever we had on hand, but after Jane had me use a good (not cheapo) set of round nose pliers and wire snips I was hooked. So little by little I have added to my tool collection.
My newest tool is a set of pliers with one round nose and one flat nose. Mine are made by Eurotool and purchased Ornamentea in Raleigh, NC. They can also be found at Silver Supplies.
When using these to wrap loops I find the flat side is less likely to dent the back side of the wire as I wrap it around, even when I squeeze the pliers a little to tight. Also, I like to use the flat side for a quick measure between one bead and the next bend.
Do you have a favorite new tool to share? - Elaine
2 comments:
My favorite tool is one that I got from Rio Grande. I took a class from Diane Fitzgerald and she showed us a pair of fine tipped tweezers for taking out knots in threads (#3 made by Blue Heron). They are as good as an extra pair of fingers too! Its saved me from having to cut my knots out many times!!
Rosanne
Thanks for the tip Rosanne. I have fairly big "meaty" hands and often have some difficulty with small seed beads. I never thought to have a pair of tweezers in my tool box, I'm going to add one today!
Thanks again,
Elaine
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