Allison Ullmer

I'm Allison Ullmer, and I speak metal. (I also speak dork, if you can’t tell already.) Seriously though — after 20 years of working as a Portland, Oregon jewelry maker, I’ve come to realize that metal has its own language. It’s a language of colors that communicate when the metal is just hot enough to mold or cool enough to touch. It’s a language of feeling, revealing by touch when the metal needs to be oiled or heated. It’s a language of sounds like the high-pitched, hammered ping that says “I’m complete.” I know this language so intently, it’s part of how my body feels things now, as I sit down at my bench to make handcrafted jewelry.

There are only a few things I love more in this world than metalsmithing. They include:

Laughing — especially at myself. I’m part klutz and part goofball, so apologies if you witness me drop a tool on the studio floor and crack myself up as a result. I promise we’ll have loads of fun together!
My family. The students who come to an in-person Portland workshop may even catch a glimpse of my husband and daughter, as my studio is in the backyard of our family home.
Playing hostess! Whether I’m making duck prosciutto for a dinner party with friends or welcoming you to my studio with a couple of hot coffees and buttery pretzel croissants, I love to entertain and make my guests feel at home.
Learning. Despite having a BFA in metalsmithing from the University of Oregon and a MFA in metals from State University of New York, New Paltz, and teaching jewelry making at the college level for SUNY New Paltz and the Oregon College of Art and Craft, I still don’t know all there is to know about handcrafted jewelry making. But I’ll be damned if I ever stop trying.

Prefer to work with us on one of Allison's signature custom designs? Email us to request an in-person or phone appointment.