Become a Metal Master at B&B
The Bead & Button Show has announced some of the master jewelry classes that will be offered at the next show, and one of them includes a class with the metal master himself, Tim McCreight:
Direct Casting: Ancient Methods for Contemporary Work
This energetic and unusual workshop will explore ancient casting techniques as a way to develop skills in thinking three dimensionally. Working with pewter, you will focus on low-tech approaches including charcoal, cuttlefish, and sand casting, all of which allow almost immediate gratification. Participants will have time to experiment with a range of techniques, with time enough to revisit the process that interests them most.
Who Should Take This Class?
This class requires no prior casting experience, but familiarity with files and a torch will be useful. You will touch on modern methods, but the intention of the class is to strip technical barriers that can squelch the immediacy of working in the round and in the moment. It is not the goal of this workshop to convert jewelers to pewter. Instead, you will work with an inexpensive low melting alloy that permits terrific freedom and ease.
It's great to see a class like this being offered because one past criticism of shows like this is that most of the classes are geared toward bead weaving. Not that there is anything wrong with that, but not everyone wants to learn how to make a flower from tiny seed beads which will take them about a 100 hours to complete.
metal, casting, tim+mccreight, pewter
Is it possible to dip a stone into recently molten silver...
without having to stone explode?
And if not, what would be the ideal way to get a stone to look like pure silver was drizzled or poured over it?
(example: A Chocolate Dipped Strawberry)