The Classic Goldsmith

I purchased this not knowing anything at all about this author but what a wonderful treasure of information on jewelry making projects and techniques. While the book appears to be self-published, it includes very clear step by step photography. Perfect for varying levels of expertise. The projects include a variety of interesting rings and ring shanks, different stone setting techniques, and many other projects including a locket, catches and more. My biggest compliment is how the book is organized and the really clear photography. This may be one of my top five reference books. Highly recommend.

Following Revere's book and doesn't add much.Nice attempt and the author has promise but simply does not offer what can be found in numerous other books.To the author; there is a huge gap in books about simple tasks like polishing techniques, finishing bezels, problem solving etc...Go more simple!

The gauge of metals is in mm and the directions are a little vague. If you are an accomplished goldsmith no problem.

This is a great book for the intermediate to advanced bench jeweler. So many "how to" jewelry books out there spend half the book or more on basic tools and knowledge for the beginner that I'm sure jewelers like myself get annoyed at and a bit bored through most of those books. Mark throws you right in and walks you through a bunch of different projects, detailing each step along with great close up pictures. I look forward to trying out many of them on my own bench! I'm very honored to say that Mark was one of my teachers while I attended GIA's Graduate Jeweler program, he is a true master at what he does and very talented. I hope he continues with more bench books in the future! DON'T PASS THIS BOOK UP!

A wide variety of beautiful projects in this book. Definitely not for the beginner. I liked the pictures and the project descriptions. Great inside info on exactly how pieces are built and put together and in what order the parts are added. I liked that he described the tools he used as well as the materials. I deducted one star for the typos. There were a few that made it hard to understand what the author was trying to say.

I was pleased with the book and have already started a second project from it. It was pretty much what I hoped for and I have learned some useful things from reading it.There is a cheerful randomness to the chapters and I wondered if it had been worked up from a series of trade magazine articles.It needs proof reading so think through the projects before you cut anything.The occasional advice to tack difficult bits with a laser made me grind my teeth a bit.

Absolutely excellent, For pro or beginner, a great overview of technique and terminology.This book is on the list of books everyone in the jewelry "Making" world should have.It's very enlightening for the collector or retail buyer as well. It gives a great sense of the complexities of making jewelry.

Fantastic book

This is a terrible & overpriced book. The photos are poor. The how to make steps are missing steps. The designs are in many other Great Jewelrymaking books that have many more designs to make or learn from in them.No idea why he thought this "book" was a good idea.I am returning my copy.