.leah meleski.
metalsmith
Stackable Rings
January 31 & February 1
This exciting two-day workshop shows students of any skill level how to make a series of silver, stackable rings. Participants will start with wire, sheet metal, and loose stones and turn them into as many as 6 coordinating rings to wear together or alone. Throughout the class, students will be introduced to basic skills that are essential to metalsmithing; including sawing, soldering, sizing, texturing and polishing metal. We will utilize premade bezel settings for cabochons. Students will leave class confident with their soldering skills and a handful of rings!
Beginning Jewelry: Art of the Ring
Wednesday, March 4
This one-day workshop introduces the basics of creating a sterling silver ring. Students start with a sterling silver sheet and learn how to size, saw, solder, polish, and texture the ring. You’ll leave with a solid foundation of metalsmithing skills and a beautiful new sterling silver ring!
In this class, you will learn essential processes and techniques that create the foundation for good studio practice. Class time will be spent learning a variety of processes that include piercing shapes from metal with a jeweler’s saw, adding texture to metal, soldering, and annealing metal with a torch. You will also learn how to bezel set a cabochon gemstone and create a stunning sterling silver bolo tie. A cabochon is a gemstone that has been shaped and polished, usually with a rounded top and a flat bottom. Jewelers will often use a bezel setting as means to connect a cabochon to a piece of metal. A bezel setting is the most basic and secure setting in jewelry.
Students will leave class with a stunning sterling silver bolo tie.
Silversmithing: Bolo Ties
February 28 & March 1
Intermediate Jewelry: Toolmaking
Satuday, March 28
As a new jeweler, you may have noticed that there are so many tools that you can use. You may have also noticed how expensive tools can be, but did you know that you can modify old worn hammers and make your own chasing & stamping tools?
This class unveils one of the mysteries of texturing metal. Class time will be spent learning several toolmaking techniques to assist them in creating their own signature textures on their metal. These chasing tools can be used for stamping, chasing and repousse, stone setting, riveting, adding texture and more. Students will leave class with a handful of handmade chasing tools and a new signature hammer. Texture tools made in this class can be use for both metal sculpture and jewelry.