Day 5 (Thursday), I've lost track!

As we move towards Friday I realize just how difficult this week has been.
Today is "Show and Tell" in the dining room, we put out our work for all to see, it's a wonderful sharing experience.
I also realize I won't be putting much out, just par for the course in this class I guess.

We began making prong crowns, this is Jim's, what we all aspire too...

So here's how I've been doing...

My stone is not sitting correctly, obviously I am struggling but I hope to have this one ready for this afternoon! Sigh.

As I try to remember, "This is class, we are here to learn, perfection will come in week 4!"

Ta-Da!

I finally have a piece completed!
Yesterday was a half day so after we got our "Stone-in-Stone" pieces completed we were pretty much done for the day.

 I spent the rest of the day wandering around town and enjoying dinner with my neighbors. Wine and visiting after dinner ended my day.
So now it's off to Day 5, (Day 4 at the bench!) I can't wait to see whats next!

Days 2 & 3

Unless you have taken one of Jim's classes they are kind of hard to explain with the exception of one word, fun. Okay, maybe two, educational...and fun!

So see if you can follow me:
Our first project was to create a small box, more like a box top for a future project.

 Step 1

 Step 2

Next we move onto Project 2...making a SMALL bezel:

Soldering our bezels onto domes.

Another thing you can count on in all of Jim's classes is going home with "new" tools, either one's you have made or ones "new to you", meaning tools purchased from Jim's ever growing stock!

So now we move into tool making!

Filing a piece of brass for a bezel tool, note the action shot!

So here we have the result of day 2...mostly.

Project 2 completed and two bezel tools completed!

Then we moved into Monday evening, yes, Jim is one of the few instructors that will work evening hours...for those of us that have not had enough after 8 hours at the bench!

We all choose 2 stones to combine, it took me an hour to make a decision then an hour this morning to drill a hole through the piece of agate I selected...

You would have thought I would know better but  could not resist the colors!

(This where I will get a little out of sync...try to follow me here.)

Last night, in the midst of students drilling in holes and some of us still deciding...Jim discovered that he had no fine silver 5mm tubing! What does a true Silversmith do? Just watch!

He cuts some fine silver sheet into a strip and begins hammering & forming.

He wraps it around a piece of tool steel and continues hammering.

Then solders the whole darn thing and draws it down to exactly 5mm!

The man is amazing, all in all it took him maybe 30 minutes!

This morning we all came back into class to continue our Stone-in-Stone projects.

There was enough  tubing for the whole class to make at least one pendant. The base is square wire with prongs, spinning in the tumbler as we "speak" and I've already begun a second.

Tomorrow is a half day, I can't wait to see what comes up next! 

Day 1

This week has finally begun, I've been patient, really.
(I only began counting the days in June!)

This is the first time I've done this trip alone and the drive was much easier than I anticipated.

I got into town by 7pm on Saturday evening, which gave me enough time to settle in, go shopping, have dinner and begin painting my new studio sign.
All in all, it was a really good day.

This morning I got up early-ish and went to our favorite park to walk the loop.
The first time around was at a slower pace to take photo's and appreciate the beauty...

The second time around was for my heart!

Tomorrow morning, bright and early I head to the bench, which is for my heart as well!

Night-night little bees!