30 Nov 2015

Jewellery Classes in High Wycombe

Classes will be starting again at the end of January:

Jewellery Making Classes in High Wycombe at Studio E174
Thursday 28 January - Thursday 31 March 2016
1:30pm - 4:00pm
£230 for 10 weeks

Be guided through a series of projects progressing to designing and making your own individual jewellery.
No experience or artistic skills are necessary. Classes are for both beginners and those with experience.

Classes are small, up to 6 students. Due to small numbers you are guaranteed one-to-one tuition and all
the support you need to translate your ideas into finished pieces.

All our courses provide a range of hand tools and access to equipment. You will be introduced to
the workshop and given full instruction in the use of tools & equipment as the course progresses.
Students can choose to work either in silver or they can work in copper or brass. Silver is not
included in the course cost.

To book or for more information, please email machidewaard@gmail.com

I also offer private lessons at my studio in Reading. Last week I had two students for a day class on how to make silver rings. It was a lovely day and they succesfully finished three silver rings each:



13 Nov 2015

collaboration

My cousin does woodworking (you can see his blog here: handguitar.wordpress.com) and we decided to do a collaboration combining his woodworking and my metalwork. So, he made this jewellery box:


And I've made these two hinges and one clasp. They are all round, of course, given my propensity for making circles. They all have tiny countersunk holes for nails which I have yet to make, but will be forthcoming at some point. We think we're going to have to also glue (with epoxy) the hinges and clasps on for added strength. He's also going to add a chain on the inside of the box to reduce strain on the hinges. Since we're in different countries, it's going to take a while to get a photo of the finished project! Especially as initially, we thought he'd be able to put the hinge on but now I think it's going to have to be done with a riveting hammer and I'll need to clean up any accidental marks on the flat part of the hinge. Also, I'm pretty sure we'll need pilot holes for the silver nails, which will require some of my 0.5mm drill bits. Anyway, luckily, I'm seeing my cousin tonight so we can discuss the details! Fun to do something together and any excuse to talk about tools and maybe needing more tools....





8 Oct 2015

A difficult question to answer

There's a question that I think most makers of art or craft get asked quite often, which is "How long did it take you to make?". I always find myself at a bit of a loss as how to answer, because it's not as straight-forward a question as some might think. For me, some pieces that I've been making for a while can be made in several hours. But that's not really the answer to the question. There are the hours, and sometimes months (or longer!), of turning over a design idea in my head, working out how it would work. That's usually the beginning of every design - lots of thinking about the details of making, what order the pieces would need to be soldered in, what thickness the wire/sheet/chain would need to be, what metals or plating would be involved, what tools would be needed, etc. I like to think it through before starting. Then for a piece that's being made for the first time, there are the mistakes - sheet too thin, sheet too thick, need more of some material that I don't have, problems with the order of soldering, etc. When the piece is finally made, then the small adjustments can continue for months or longer. They may not be visible on the end piece, but they will be small improvements that make it quicker or easier or less costly to make the piece. Then, after perfecting the process and the finish, only then can I say "now I can make this piece in X hours".

To illustrate, I made a series of oval pendants (now at Jam Eton) and I knew what I wanted them to look like and I also knew that I wanted them to work as a series. Not because they need to stay together, they don't and they are separate entities, but I wanted a certain cohesion between the pieces. I like to have an aesthetic continuity that makes it feel like a collection. Anyway, first I made this pendant:

Then I knew I wanted to make another one that also had a hole, but this time a hole with tapered edges. But I really wanted the hole to be the same diameter: 11mm. And I wanted the taper to be clear, not so shallow that it looked too similar to this pendant. So I worked my way through various techniques to try to get the exactly slope that I wanted with the exact diameter. It was a long slow process that had many failed attempts with lots of thinking about what to try next to get to the result I wanted. I made tools, borrowed tools, looked up techniques in books and searched the internet.


Here is a photo of just some of the attempts, including too thin, too thick, too big, too small, too hard (working out how many times and when to anneal) and so on.


Eventually, I did work it out and got exactly the result I was after, which concluded in the finished piece with a shiny tapered center:

That kind of process makes it so hard to answer the seemingly simple question of "How long does it take to make it?".

2 Oct 2015

Flavour of the Month at Jam Eton Gallery

I have been hard at work and now have 15 new pieces of jewellery over at Jam Eton this month - live on the Jam website as well (http://jam-eton.co.uk/makers/machi-de-waard.html). There is a new series of oval pendants with matching oval clasps, two other new necklaces (one flat, one concave), two new pairs of cufflinks, new brooches and new pairs of earrings. Below are some photos of the oval necklaces.You can see everything if you come visit Jam, or visit the Jam website. The fifteen new pieces are with fifteen pieces I already had at the gallery, so 30 lovely bits of jewellery to look at!!






17 Sept 2015

Peridot earrings

I made some earrings with large-ish peridots (around 5mm) for a friend of mine. Here's one of the earrings during the setting process, followed by photos of the finished earrings.




19 Aug 2015

New Classes in Central Reading at the Rising Sun Arts Centre

I'm starting new classes in central Reading - details below! Learn how to make your very own jewellery! You could make something like these earrings, which I made for a friend several months ago:

Or perhaps something like this bangle, which a student of mine at South Hill Park made:



Jewellery Making Classes at the Rising Sun Arts Centre in central Reading in Autumn 2015

Wednesday 23 September - Wednesday 25 November 2015
1:00 - 3:00pm
£190 for 10 weeks

Held in the large upstairs room at the Rising Sun Arts Centre in Reading, learn to make jewellery!
Be guided through a series of projects progressing to designing and making your own individual jewellery.
No experience or artistic skills are necessary. Classes are for both beginners and those with experience.

Classes are small, up to 8 students. You will be introduced to and given full instruction in
tools & equipment as the course progresses. Students can choose to work either in silver or they
can work in copper or brass. Silver is not included in the course cost.

To book or for more information, please email machidewaard@gmail.com.

17 Aug 2015

Autumn 2015 Classes in High Wycombe

My classes in High Wycombe are running from September 24th to November 26th. They will be from 1:30pm - 4pm.

Classes are at Studio E174 in High Wycombe.

Jewellery Making Classes

Be guided through a series of projects progressing to designing and making your own individual
jewellery. No experience or artistic skills are necessary. These classes are for both beginners and those with
some experience.

Classes are small, up to 6 students. Due to small numbers you are guaranteed one-to-one tuition and all
the support you need to translate your ideas into finished pieces.

The class will provide a range of hand tools and access to equipment. You will be introduced to
the workshop and given full instruction in the use of tools & equipment as the course progresses.
Students can choose to work either in silver or they can work in copper or brass. Silver is not
included in the course cost.

Autumn 2015: (minimum 4 students, maximum 6 students)

Thursday 24 September - Thursday 26 November 2015
1:30pm - 4:00pm
£230 for 10 weeks

To book or for more information, please email machidewaard@gmail.com

12 Jun 2015

Make a copper ring or pendant 5 July 2015


Click on the poster above for a larger view to read details.

27 May 2015

Creative Day at the Rising Sun in Reading

I'm participating in a Creative Skills Day at the Rising Sun in Reading this July!

Make a Copper Pendant or Ring
Sunday 5 July 2-4pm

Make a copper ring or pendant. Get a taster of basic jewellery and metalwork techniques like hammering, texturing, stamping, forming, measuring, filing and polishing. No previous artistic or metalwork experience required. Walk away with your very own handmade unique copper ring or pendant! 


I will be starting jewellery making classes at the Rising Sun starting in September, so watch this space for more information!! 

Click on the poster below to see closer:



6 May 2015

Henley Arts Trail - great weekend!

The Henley Arts Trail is over for another year. It was a busy weekend, with about 200+ people coming through our venue per day! Talked to lots of people, had many interesting conversations with visitors as well as my co-exhibitors at venue #12. Here's a photo of our venue - Shiplake church hall:

Many thanks to Maria Meerstadt (painting), Kate Findlay (textile), Jill Chadwick (glass), Inge du Plessis (painting), Pelin Pratt (ceramics) and Paul Baden (wood) for making it a pleasant, fun weekend!

1 May 2015

Henley Arts Trail on this weekend!

Come see me at venue 12 in Shiplake at the Henley Arts Trail this weekend.Download the flyer here: www.henleyartstrail.com




25 Mar 2015

New Classes leaflets

New Classes at High Wycombe, in lovely leaflet form: Click on image for better view!



11 Mar 2015

New Classes!

New class times are available! I am teaching at Studio E174 throughout April, May and July. Please see below for details or Studio E174's website: http://www.studio-e174.co.uk/index.php?page=day-classes

A class with an emphasis on jewellery making techniques. Students will be guided through a series of projects or can work on their own projects. Suitable for beginners and those with more experience. No experience or artistic skills are necessary. Due to small numbers you are guaranteed one-to-one tuition and all the support you need to translate your ideas into finished pieces. Students can choose to work either in silver or they can work in copper or brass.



Course code: THmSU(1)15
Tutor: Machi de Waard
Number of sessions: 5
Start date: 30th April 2015
Finish date: 28th May 2015
Thursday 10:00 - 12:30
Number of places: 6
Level: Beginners/intermediate/advanced
Cost: £115.00

Course code: THaSU(1)15
Tutor: Machi de Waard
Number of sessions: 5
Start date: 30th April 2015
Finish date: 28th May 2015
Thursday 1:30 - 4:00
Number of places: 6
Level: Beginners/intermediate/advanced
Cost: £115.00

Course code: THmSU(2)15
Tutor: Machi de Waard
Number of sessions: 5
Start date: 2nd July 2015
Finish date: 30th July 2015
Thursday 10:00 - 12:30
Number of places: 6
Level: Beginners/intermediate/advanced
Cost: £115.00

Course code: THa(2)SU15
Tutor: Machi de Waard
Number of sessions: 5
Start date: 2nd July 2015
Finish date: 30th July 2015
Thursday 1:30 - 4:00
Number of places: 6
Level: Beginners/intermediate/advanced
Cost: £115.00

4 Mar 2015

silver garnet ring

A friend of mine received a garnet as a gift, which is very lovely but you can't do much with a garnet on its own. Hence, a ring was requested. The garnet is quite sparkly and oval. I didn't want to hide it in a heavy setting, so I went back to a setting I haven't done in a while - a basket setting. This one is made with 0.8 wire with two oval rings and 6 claws. The shank is made from 1.5mm round wire with the top flattened and tapered, attached to the side of the basket setting. I think it looks more delicate in real life than on the photos, but in any case, here are some photos to show how it turned out!



23 Jan 2015

Off to California

I had a couple of turquoise stones which were not quite right for earrings - no matching set. I wanted to make something for my sister, who loves turquoise, so I made this fun bangle. It was easier to set the turquoise than I expected. The bangle part is 1.5mm round wire with a clasp at the back. It's now making its way to California to my sister. You could learn how to make one of these yourself by taking one of my classes!



21 Jan 2015

champagne chairs

There is a company called Design Within Reach and they, in their own words "give customers access to the best in modern design – including iconic works that have been in production since the mid-20th century as well as innovative items designed today – and made design within reach." Now, that is all lovely and stuff, but the interesting thing is that they have an annual competition where people are challenged to make a mini chair from a champagne cork. The rules are basically this:

Use any or all of the materials (except glass) from no more than two (2) champagne bottles. Glue is the only permitted adhesive. You are not permitted to use any additional materials – including tape and/or paint.

Of course this kind of thing is like catnip to me and my mom..... mini? creative? challenge? and so.....

These are our chairs: mine is a mini chesterfield chair, with a sort of beat-up look, probably due to scratches from a mini cat. I was most pleased with the tiny 'wheels' on the front legs. (My chair is about 2cm high.)
My mom's is a mini baby high chair, complete with bonus bubbly baby. Here are the photos:

(and here is where you can see all the amazingly creative and fun chairs made for this year's competition - just scroll down on that page.)


12 Jan 2015

Classes at Studio E174 in High Wycombe!

I'm going to be teaching again!!!!!!!!!!!!! 

Classes at Studio E174 in High Wycombe.

Jewellery Making Classes

Be guided through a series of projects progressing to designing and making your own individual silver
jewellery. No experience or artistic skills are necessary. These classes are for both beginners and those with
some experience.

Our classes are small, up to 6 students. Due to small numbers you are guaranteed one-to-one tuition and all
the support you need to translate your ideas into finished pieces.

All our courses provide a range of hand tools and access to equipment. You will be introduced to
the workshop and given full instruction in the use of tools & equipment as the course progresses.

Two ten week courses are available:(minimum 4 students, maximum 6 students)

Thursday 29 January - Thursday 2 April 2015
10:00am - 12:30pm
£230 for 10 weeks

Thursday 29 January - Thursday 2 April 2015
1:30pm - 4:00pm
£230 for 10 weeks

To book, please email machidewaard@gmail.com.