Memories of Summer Workshop

Here are a few photos from the workshop I taught over this past weekend. You can see all of the photos on my Facebook page. The workshop is called "Memories of Summer" and it teaches basic wire wrapping of found objects. Some students brought their own items to wrap and some used items from my supply box. Either way all the finished pieces came out great! I teach this workshop at Creative Genius Art Gallery and Studio in Medford, NJ. You can see more info on all my workshops and info on when the next "Memories of Summer" workshop will be offered here.

jewelry class

My students come up with some of the greatest ideas for their projects! Here are some photos of a handful of the pieces my jewelry students have created so far this session. The session is not over yet (it ends Dec 21) so I will post more photos as their projects are completed. There should be plenty more photos to come since most of the women in my class are making Christmas gifts for family and friends!

Vicky's copper earrings

Vicky's tree necklace

Jen's black onyx cuff bracelet

Jen's matching black onyx choker

The class hard at work...a few people were absent the day this photo was taken..sorry to those of you that I missed but I will get you next time!

jewelry class

The next session of jewelry making classes starts today. I am excited to see what my students will come up with! Here are some photos of a few of the students working diligently in the last class I taught....

For more info on classes and workshops check out my website http://www.michelegrady.com/

New Jewelry Making Workshops

Sabina's "girls night out" was such a hit with all the women that participated that I thought others might enjoy it too. That's how I came up with the new "Memories of Summer" workshop that I added to my 2009 workshop schedule. Not only can sea glass, river rocks or sea shells be used for this project, but any found object from a summer vacation can be turned into a piece of jewelry!

samples of sea glass jewelry that can be made in the new workshop

I also added a few new PMC workshops. PMC (or Precious Metal Clay) is a clay like material made of silver particles, water and a binder that holds everything together. It works like clay until it is fired in a kiln. After firing, it then is worked like metal. During the firing process the binder burns away and you are left with a piece of fine silver. I have had a few requests for different kinds of PMC workshops so I am adding a PMC Rings and PMC Beads workshop to the schedule.

Some rings made from PMC

Hollow beads made from PMC

The other thing I thought would be fun is to teach a workshop that would be perfect for people who like to work with metal but might be a little intimidated by using a torch. This is how I came up with a cold connections workshop. Cold connections is a term used to describe any way of connecting metal without the use of fire. Rivets, nuts & bolts, jump rings, etc are all examples of cold connections. My small reversible heart necklace is a piece that I made and attached together using cold connections. It's also a way to add more detail and decoration to a piece. My friend (and previous student) Holly Priester from Blue Fish Moon Studio uses cold connections for a lot of her work. Below is one of her "Peace Key" necklaces. Check out her website to see more of her work. It's really great!

Peace Key necklace by Holly Priester of Blue Fish Moon Studio