I teamed up with Emma Leonard Jewellery to deliver a day calls in wax carving for beginners. This was the first class, I ran it as a day course on the weekend with a small class of students to start with. 

The skill level was mixed from those who have experience in silversmithing to absolute beginners. The course is perfectly suited to beginners to waxwork and anyone who has jewellery design experience but has never worked with this material before. 

I explained the process of carving to casting, master cast and moulds. I had some fantastic training with Freddie Grove at The Bricks in London but it was short and there were so many things I then discovered through trial and error. It felt great to share these tips with the class. 

We explored the different kinds of Ferris wax and the properties of each colour. Emma provided plenty of wax for the class to sample each. 

We used tools such as rotary drills, heat pens, files and wax saws to shape jewellery from the wax. I spent a couple of hours of learning and then honed my skill by experimenting with different tools and techniques. 

There is no "right" way to carve wax, even playing with sharp tools can create the most beautiful textures which, with a good cast, can come alive in the silver. 

Wax is so forgiving, if you make a mistake then you can melt and add the wax to reform the item. 

Unfortunately, due to COVID-19 we have rescheduled the lessons for the 4th of April. Hoping to run these in early July but this depends on the Government restrictions. 

Watch this space!