PJC jewelry school alumnus wins competition
Published or Revised February 06, 2019
PJC Texas Institute of Jewelry Technology alumnus Patrick Dobbs was named 2018 Battle of the Benches Champion after winning two of three competitions. Shown are the winners from the “Parts & Pieces Challenge” (center) assembled from available parts, and the “Finish Line Challenge” (top) a CAD design, as well as Dobbs displaying his trophy (bottom).
Texas jeweler, Patrick Dobbs, has been named the 2018 Battle of the Benches® winner by Stuller, Inc., North America’s largest jewelry manufacturer and distributor headquartered in Lafayette, Louisiana.
For three days during the company’s Bench Jeweler Workshop, Dobbs competed against three other exceptional bench jewelers in the real-time jewelry design competition. Dobbs won two of the three daily competitions, which led to him taking home the overall win.
“I can't stress enough, what an honor it is to win,” said Dobbs. “I grew up in Texas surrounded by the rodeo culture, and this competition is similar to what we would call ‘The All Around Cowboy.’ Every little cowboy dreams of being ‘The All Around Cowboy’ when he grows up, and even though I was never much of a cowboy and I still haven't grown up, this has to be as close to that as I can get!”
Dobbs began working as a jeweler in 1988 while still in high school. He attended the Texas Institute of Technology at Paris Junior College where he received his training to become a professional bench jeweler.
“I want to credit my win to the Texas Institute of Jewelry Technology, because I would not have the fundamentals that are so important to me and my craft without them,” says Dobbs. “Through everything I have learned after leaving Paris, I would always try new things and techniques, but I could always think back to the, why I learned it this way, and use that as a guide when trying to improve on techniques.”
As the overall winner, Dobbs received the finished piece of jewelry he submitted into the competition, a Stuller account credit, and a one-of-a-kind trophy. He will also be returning to Stuller to defend his title in the 2019 Battle of the Benches®.
