Pretty silver locket

Posted on May 25, 2012 | Leave a comment

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Last week I was lucky to be able to attend a class with the very talented PMC artist Terry Kovalcik. He taught a class making pretty little silver clay lockets with hinges and clasps using PMC paper clay. It was a three day workshop and we made complex little boxes with very accurate hinges and learned techniques for creating patterns using silver paste. Terry is an inspiring teacher and although I didn’t quite get my locket finished within the three days I have now had a chance to finish it off and am very happy with my first attempt at these techniques. I have created tiny moth patterns on the surface of the silver and patinated the silver locket and chain to highlight its design. The most fiddly bit was soldering the fine wire for the hook fastener onto the little connecting chain.

I am really pleased with the piece and am wearing my pretty locket as I type this. I will be looking for ways to incorporate these techniques into my designs over the next few months.

I am teaching over in the Yorkshire Dales tomorrow so have been finishing off a few rings as examples to inspire my class. All the tools and equipment are packed into the car ready for an early start in the morning.

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The central ring is not quite finished, I intend to enamel it eventually – but it will probably not be for another couple of weeks. Hopefully I will finish it before the start of North Yorkshire Open Studios

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Posted in Art clay silver, courses, Design, drawing, Enamel jewellery, Enamel silver jewellery, make your own silver jewellery, Metal clay, Metal clay classes, PMC, Silver charm jewellery, silver charms, silver jewellery, workshops, Yorkshire

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Delicious glass beads

Posted on May 22, 2012 | 1 Comment

I am in the process of preparing for North Yorkshire Open Studios. I have been working on some pretty new hand made lamp worked glass beads as well as a series of silver rings and pendants. I always enjoy producing new ideas for visitors to look at and meeting lots of new people. Unfortunately this year the road near Beggars Bridge in Glaisdale will be closed for three weeks – including the whole of the Open Studios event. To reach my studio visitors will have to travel via Lealholm to Glaisdale or approach from the Rosedale end of the dale. The journey into and around the dale is beautiful though so I hope this won’t put visitors off – and there will be plenty of new things to see when they get here.

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Posted in silver jewellery, Lampwork glass beads, Metal clay, workshops, courses, Yorkshire, Design, Metal clay classes, PMC, Enamel jewellery, Silver and enamel jewellery, Enamel silver jewellery, handmade glass beads, silver charms, Silver charm jewellery, make your own silver jewellery

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Wedding rings

Posted on May 7, 2012 | Leave a comment

What a perfect day! Today I have been helping a couple to make each other a silver wedding ring. We began the day by looking at examples and talking about preferred finishes, as this has an impact on the size of the ring band. Then they had a bit of practice with a jewellers piercing saw and making hammer marks before measuring fingers and carefully calculating the length of silver strip required allowing for the different widths and thicknesses they had chosen. After filing the ends of their silver strips they bent them to meet precisely before soldering them. Then came the fun and noisy part – creating the hammered textures.

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After much hammering, sanding and polishing here they are

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two perfectly fitting weddings rings!

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I know they had a lot of fun making these for each other and it gives them another happy shared memory – best wishes to them both for a lovely wedding and long and happy future!

This kind of workshop is always really rewarding – I love to see the pleasure clients get from making their own special piece of jewellery.

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Posted in courses, Design, Make each other a wedding ring, make your own silver jewellery, Silver and enamel jewellery, silver jewellery, Wedding rings, workshops, Yorkshire

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Studio heaven

Posted on May 6, 2012 | 3 Comments

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I love my studio, it is the perfect place and a dream come true. I haven’t done very much work today but it is a bank holiday weekend! I did pop into the studio and make a hammered ring in sterling silver.

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It was really just to check that I could remember how to calculate length, thickness and width of the silver shank and make it to a particular size, allowing for the hammering of the texture. I will be teaching silver ring making tomorrow. I have made many rings of this type over the years but always like to check and refresh my techniques as part of my lesson planning. The studio is all set up ready for tomorrow’s workshop so I will have a relaxing evening. I hope the weather is as fine as this tomorrow as it really shows the landscape to its best advantage, always nicer for visitors to see the dale basking in sunshine.

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Posted in silver jewellery, workshops, courses, Yorkshire, Design, Silver and enamel jewellery, Silver charm jewellery

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Another perspective

Posted on May 2, 2012 | 2 Comments

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Here are my first four little buildings. I am calling them places for dreams. These four are made using traditional silver smithing techniques – texturing the silver sheet, cutting out shapes and soldering them together before altering textures and polishing them. I have had a lot of pleasure constructing these little silver charms and will continue to make more work in this collection through the summer. If you would like to learn to make your own piece of jewellery, using traditional methods or metal clay, then please contact me. I will be taking part in North Yorkshire Open Studios from the 9th June 2012, when these pieces and other work will be for sale. Let me know if you would like a leaflet or more information.

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Posted in courses, Design, drawing, Dream houses, enamel on silver, Enamel silver jewellery, introduction to enamelling, Metal clay classes, PMC, Silver charm jewellery, silver charms, silver jewellery, workshops, Yorkshire

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Altered perspective

Posted on May 1, 2012 | Leave a comment

Another little building for dreaming, this is the corner of a cottage. I decided to try playing around with perspective drawing so took one of my tiny sketches and did a quick perspective sketch. I then traced out the pieces to make a paper template and transferred the outlines onto textured sterling silver sheet. After sawing out the pieces I soldered on a panel for the roof and a base before cleaning them up and giving the piece a polish. I haven’t polished it too much as some of the textures I have used are quite fine and it would be easy to polish them away.

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This was an interesting experiment and something I think I will return to. I am enjoying making work from sterling silver sheet using traditional silver smithing techniques. It is something I enjoy teaching so if you would like learn to make you own silver pendant or ring then please check out my class schedule or email me for further information.

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Posted in Design, drawing, Dream houses, Enamel silver jewellery, Metal clay classes, Silver and enamel jewellery, Silver charm jewellery, silver charms, workshops, Yorkshire

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Secret places

Posted on April 30, 2012 | 2 Comments

I love teaching silver clay but it is also good to get a bit of studio time to work on designs for a new range of silver charm jewellery. These are the first two of a series of tiny buildings in a series called Houses for dreams.

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They are constructed from sterling silver sheet using traditional jewellery making techniques. I have roll printed some of the textures and hammered and ground others direct into the surfaces of the silver. They are pieces that have been lingering in my sketchbook for a considerable period and my interest in buildings dates back to my time as a University tutor lecturing in the history of architecture and design. I also wanted to go back to using traditional silver smithing techniques for a series of pieces – it is always important to keep up these skills too, alongside the metal clay and lamp-working. I hope to make a few more pieces in this range before the beginning of North Yorkshire Open Studios. This year I will be open on 9th and 10th June, 16th and 17th June 2012. I will also be open by appointment during the week in between these dates. There are still plenty of opportunities for classes though and for further information please see my class schedule on the website or email me

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Posted in Design, drawing, Dream houses, Enamel silver jewellery, Metal clay, Metal clay classes, Silver and enamel jewellery, Silver charm jewellery, silver charms, workshops, Yorkshire

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Back at the torch

Posted on April 23, 2012 | Leave a comment

Fresh from the kiln is this little batch of hand made lamp work glass beads, fully annealed. Some of them are large holed charm style beads and when I have cleaned them up they will have silver cores added. The others are perhaps a bit unusual in colour choice but I am excited about these and planning another large scale necklace, combining glass beads with enamel and art clay silver. The plan is to make something a bit more architectural in inspiration.

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I have been looking through my many old photographs of buildings, taken mostly during the period I taught history of architecture, when I used to drag my long-suffering partner off to photograph buildings during the University holidays. I have a few ideas sketched out and need to do a bit more design work before I actually begin to make them. I still photograph details of building whenever we go out, so old habits die hard.

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This fabulous creature is the door knocker at Durham Cathedral, which we visited last Friday and I am sure it will be inspiring something in the future.

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Posted in Art clay silver, courses, Design, Enamel jewellery, Enamel silver jewellery, handmade glass beads, Lampwork glass beads, Metal clay classes, Silver and enamel jewellery, Yorkshire

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Guild of Enamellers annual conference

Posted on April 15, 2012 | Leave a comment

I have just turned home from an exciting weekend at the Guild of Enamellers annual conference which this year was held at Reaseheath College near Nantwich in Cheshire. This is always a fantastic event but this year was particularly enjoyable. There were quite a few members attending for the first time and it is encouraging to see new faces and share their enthusiasm. The venue was great and staff very helpful and there was a huge range of very skilfully made work. I wish I had remembered to photograph the display earlier, as by the time I thought about it some of the work had been packed away!

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Saturday was taken up by workshops and as one of the scheduled tutors had been taken I’ll shortly before conference I acted as stand in for a small group who did some cells and textures in art clay silver. Although we didn’t get to enamel I hope they were pleased and interested enough to try metal clay again.

20120415-182718.jpg Here are their pieces in the end of day display. I am still a bit sorry to have missed Dale Devereux Barkers class but thanks to my group for their enthusiasm, I was honoured to share some of my techniques with you all.

One of my personal highlights was when David Bainbridge of Milton Bridge Ceramic Colours Ltd was awarded Honorary Membership of the Guild, recognising his hard work in the EU consultation process relating to the restriction of lead in jewellery. He was completely surprised! As always we had wonderful speakers; inspiring workshops and shared loads of ideas and it is great to catch up with old friends and to make new ones. Good luck to the new Chair, Jane Ball and I am already looking forward to the next event.

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Posted in cloisonne enamel, enamel, Enamel jewellery, enamel on silver, Enamel silver jewellery, introduction to enamelling, Riso Screen printing, Silver and enamel jewellery, workshops

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More enamelled wildlife

Posted on April 12, 2012 | 3 Comments

I am looking forward to the Guild of Enamellers annual conference which begins tomorrow at Reaseheath College near Nantwich. There is a fantastic programme of events organised by the current Chair of the Guild, Tilly Wilkinson (who will herself be teaching in my studio here in Glaisdale in July). I was going to be in a workshop run by Dale Devereux Barker but, due to unforeseen circumstances, will probably run a small class in art clay silver for enamel. I had offered to be a ‘reserve’ so wasn’t too worried about having to pull my kit together at the last minute but a bit concerned about examples so have had to get my self into gear and finish off a couple of things that have been on my workbench for ages.

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I finished off the enamelling on some of these bobbin style beads and gave them a quick polish. They needed finishing as they are samples for a class I am running later in the year. The toggle and clasp on this bracelet are also art clay silver and are constructed hollow forms.

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Then I enamelled this bead. It has two different sized koi carp on it and is also constructed in silver clay. The ripples in the watery background were carved into the cylinder of the bead and the fish were then made in low relief using art clay silver paste type. Fine silver wires were added after the first firing using a technique developed by my good friend Joy Funnell and the bead was fired again. I will probably wear this myself as it is the first focal bead I have made like this (although I am not sure about the yellow)!

Anyway, samples are packed, tools and class kits, clothes, all crammed into my suitcase, a slightly larger one than I anticipated taking. I am looking forward to relaxing on the train and to meeting everyone tomorrow around 4pm and seeing all the exciting pieces of work that I have produced for the members and themed exhibitions. I am also looking forward to meeting David Bainbridge of Milton Bridge Ceramic Colours Ltd who is giving a talk on Friday evening. I had a lot of telephone conversations and correspondence with him last year on behalf of the Guild, as part of an EU consultation on the restriction of lead in jewellery. He did a huge amount of work answering questions raised by the EU relating to enamels, so it will be good to be able to meet up at last.

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Here is the stuff I am taking for the class, although I eventually decided to leave the hairdryer out!
It packed up quite neatly but I guess I probably won’t get it all back into the box again at the end of class.

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Posted in Art clay silver, cloisonne enamel, Design, enamel, Enamel jewellery, enamel on silver, Enamel silver jewellery, Metal clay classes, PMC, Silver and enamel jewellery, silver jewellery, workshops, Yorkshire

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