Bette Barnett

"As an artist I am lured by steel into exploring a grittier aspect of jewelry creation"

Bette Barnett is a leading voice in contemporary steel jewelry, recognized for innovative techniques that redefine the role of steel in adornment. After a successful career in the corporate world, she learned basic metalworking techniques and launched her jewelry career in 2010. Her artistic journey took a pivotal turn in 2013 when she studied under Chris Nelson, who pioneered fusing gold to steel in the United States. Since then, she has explored the aesthetic and technical possibilities of steel, focusing on the fusion of industrial and precious materials.

Her deep dive into steel and gold fusion evolved into a distinctive body of work marked by groundbreaking methods. She perfected the adaptation of Keum Boo to steel, developed techniques to fuse powdered and alternative metals to steel, and created work with unconventional formats such as perforated sheet and woven mesh. Her radical etching techniques add further dimensionality through layered and stepped processes.

Bette’s work has been featured in Lapidary Journal Jewelry Artist, MJSA Journal, and on the MJSA podcast. She was a 2022 Santa Fe Symposium speaker, and her Juggernaut Brooch graced the cover of SNAG’s 2024 Anthology.

Her book, Creating Steel Jewelry (Artisan Ideas, 2024), is the first comprehensive guide to steel jewelry making. Written for jewelers, bladesmiths, and blacksmiths, it offers an expansive new path for metalsmiths. The book received critical acclaim from Art Jewelry Forum, Findings Magazine (UK), and ABANA (Artist Blacksmithing Association of North America).

As an educator, Bette teaches workshops and online classes at leading studios across the United States. Through her teaching, studio practice, and writing, she continues to expand steel’s expressive potential in contemporary jewelry.