Learning a new skill

Learning a new skill is vital to inspire and keep the mojo flowing. I have just spent the last two days taking a silversmithing class taught by the silversmithing wizard Don Norris. He came to my local bead store and let me just say how happy I am that I was able to take his beginning silversmithing class. After two days of instruction and hands on tips about how to do it right, I am super happy to show you my class creation. 🙂

This ring showcases all of the techniques we were taught. The flowers and leaf are called “castings”. They are silver cast into molds of various images. They similar to a charm type of piece that doesn’t have a loop on it. The balls were created by me, as was the swirl and the bezel itself. The bezel is the part that holds the stone in place. All of these pieces were soldered onto a sheet of silver and then trimmed and filed. The rings themselves were also created by me using three pieces of half round silver wire.

All in all, this class was OVER THE TOP AMAZING and I feel very refreshed and inspired. I feel like taking the time to educate myself is just what I needed to feel challenged and inspired a fresh! I hope that you too find a time to invest in your own knowledge base and find something new to experience! Enjoy!