Silver & Gold



Chunky silver rings featuring:
Sapphire gemstone,
Opal in gold setting,
Trio of balls made from reclaimed rose gold



About a year ago I went on a jewellery course at Flux 'n' Flame - and when I say jewellery, I mean full on silversmithing.  It was AMAZING!  The weekend course was paid for courtesy of school as part of my CPD.  Teacher's don't get many perks (although I'm sure the word holiday's has sprung to your mind by now?!) but as I said in this post, going on courses is my favourite part of the job - I'm all for 'lifelong learning' me...

On the weekend course I made a chunky silver ring featuring an Opal in a gold setting.  I can't deny it was a challenge - especially setting the stone - but I enjoyed every minute of it.

So then I booked myself onto one of their evening courses (no longer funded by school unfortunately).  My boyfriend joined me and every Thursday night we would spend 3 hours totally engrossed in our work.  It was such a valuable experience on so many levels - obviously learning new skills, but also a great way to de-stress and forget about the woes of the day.

Below is a pendant I made for my Mum. It is based on some sketches of the groins at Sandbanks beach and the designs were originally for a brooch, but when my work began to take shape I decided it would be better as a pendant.  This piece was a really big test for me as I was totally out of my comfort zone - I felt for it to truly reflect the inspiration it should have lots of textures and be slightly uneven - normally I am all about straight lines and symmetry so I found it quite a challenge to be more organic with this piece.  That said, I love it!  It features both gold and silver - I adore working with a mix of precious metals and I hope one day it will be a trademark of mine.

In one of my next posts you will find out about two of my favourite jewellery designers - Alex Monroe and Monica Vinader.  At the time of embarking on my new hobby I was totally lusting after the Ava cuff by MV, but at £360 I couldn't exactly justify the spend.  So, I decided to make my own (actually I can't take all the credit - it was a joint effort with the boyf!).  It has a textured finish and features sapphire gemstones in high settings.

I finished the course last Christmas and since then the shcool has purchased some basic equipment as I have started teaching students some of the easier techniques - using copper and pewter as cheaper alternatives! 

Yr 10 Jewellery project based on 'cultures'
Processes include enamelling, laser cutting and delf clay casting

Having the equipment at work also means I can continue to practise.  This is something I really love doing - I only hope it can come to something more in the future...