After teaching French for nineteen years, I spent five years in graduate school studying English, followed by thirteen years of teaching college English.  During those years of college teaching, I spent my spare time learning about semi-precious and precious stones.

Because a friend helped me with identifying stones and recognizing quality stones, I learned much faster--enough to know I knew nothing.  The friend had grown up in Oregon, hunting jaspers, agates, geodes, and petrified wood.  She had also lived in Japan where she became familiar with carved stones, various jades, pearls, and ancient beads.  We spent our time haunting Central Oregon rock shows; Dallas, Texas jewelry shows; and the Oregon coast where we looked for jaspers, agates, and agatized myrtlewood.  We searched rock shops in Oregon, Utah, and New Mexico.  I learned that, in her words, "the best stone is rare, unusual, beautiful, and cheap."  We rarely found such a stone; they were always expensive!

We bought beads and created some necklaces for ourselves.  When we had too many necklaces to wear, art galleries in Oregon sold them for us.  During this time, I started creating wirework bracelets and adding handmade chains to our necklaces.

When I retired from teaching, I began taking courses that would help me in creating jewelry.  First, I took lapidary and art metals courses.  Then I studied at Texas Institute of Jewelry Technology.  In these courses, I learned to shape stones, create designs on metal, form metal, and add patinas to metals.  I also became more proficient in soldering with gold and silver, and I learned various methods of setting stones.

I consider designing jewelry as my third career.  I have been designing jewelry for ten years.