April is associated with the blooming cherry trees, the green grass and Easter bunny, the blossoming nature. Well, in Helsinki just a few days ago soft snow still fell in the morning two days in a row. Yesterday I made a walk and took some pictures at the nearby park:
Tree branches, no greens on sight. Yet.
Still feels like winter.
The sun was shining, the rocks at the park.
We’ve had sunny days, so I hope the green will come soon! Meanwhile, inside, after days making jewelry, this was how my table looked like:
The smaller the pic, the better :)
I had been making jewelry samples for a stone setting class. The stone cabochon is set using prongs, which is a nice option especially when the stone has interesting pattern all over so it would be a pity to cover the edges with bezel wire. The silver pattern is completely made from scratch, using the stone as inspiration. Although I’ve made this jewelry type many times, preparing for a class need a further planning as there will be a time limit, which is, in this case, one day.
After a series of tryouts, here are the samples of jewelry for the workshop:
Silver and fossilized coral cabochon.
See the pretty pattern along the edges which would have been covered up if a flat wire bezel setting is used.
Silver and synthetic teardrop dark green Aventurine.
I can show more green by exposing the edges this way.
Silver and triangle shaped black stone with brown specks, I think it’s a Jasper.
This stone has a straight edge which makes it a bit tricky if set with flat wire bezel.
Make jewelry with me in Milano
I’m excited to announce that I’ll be teaching again in Legnano, Milano! Four days, July 17-20th 2017 for New Mokume Gane Certification + Silver and Stone Jewelry at Hobbyland Italy. Speaking from my experience teaching there last autumn, I look forward to meeting everyone in a friendly atmosphere, enjoying jewelry making and sharing time, especially over the fantastic lunch served during jewelry classes! Read my blog post about it here.
The classes are fantastic for metal clay artists who always look for new techniques to create extraordinary jewelry:
NEW MOKUME GANE CERTIFICATION
New Mokume Gane (NMG) is an advanced metal clay technique to combine Art Clay silver and copper clay based on traditional Japanese metalsmith techniques Mokume Gane. Back in the 1600s in Japan, this technique is used in the creation of sword fittings, and nowadays mostly used for decorative objects and jewelry.
For metal clay artists who are serious about learning a set of techniques to enrich their skills and set their creations apart.
There is a prerequisite of being an Art Clay Certified Instructor to join, and it’s not a wonder as it’s a demanding program. Of course, in this course, I’ll share the extra tips and tricks I’ve learned myself a long way, or ‘segreto’ as how apparently it was translated into Italian :D And I understood these ‘segreto’ were pretty much favored by everyone :D
The NMG Certification follows the curriculum, guidelines and requirements that have been set by Aida Chemical Industries Co., LTD, the creator and owner of the program. It is a complete developed syllable with official textbook and guide, covering different techniques to produce consistent results. When fired accordingly, the result can be processed with further metalsmithing techniques such as hammering, filing, and mirror finish.
The NMG Certification program isn’t being offered often, at least so at my studio, so if you have been interested in New Mokume Gane and you’re an Art Clay Certified Instructor, you might want to take a look at this opportunity. For me, learning NMG techniques added another dimension to my personal skills and jewelry creations.
With New Mokume Gane, jewelry design can get super exciting.
This is a piece I made for a jewelry exhibition in Japan.
SILVER & STONE JEWELRY – ONE DAY WORKSHOP
During the one-day workshop, participants would create a pendant with a design which highlights the beauty of a stone cabochon. I’ll show how to get inspiration from the stone’s shape, pattern and character, and explain the steps to create a unique base from silver clay. As I mentioned above, the prong setting exposes the stone’s surface almost entirely; it is a similar way to the stone setting in my piece “Coral” which won a Grand Prix at the Silver Accessories Contest.
Learn the steps starting from designing and planning, shaping clay and creating exciting textures, setting the stone and more. This one day workshop is packed with techniques, tips and tricks. After this workshop, you can continue creating exciting jewelry using stone cabochons.This workshop is suitable for anyone with previous experience of working with metal clay.
I’ll show how to get inspirations from the stone to create the silver pattern and texture.
Let’s have some jewelry learning & sharing time!
If you’re a metal clay artist and interested in learning New Mokume Gane and Silver & Stone Jewelry techniques, come and join my classes this summer July 17-20 2017, at Hobbyland, in Legnano, Milan, Italy. Please contact the workshop host, or contact me by using the contact form or leaving a comment below if you have questions about the workshops.
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