joys of learning/teaching

mary jane dodd

last spring, i got up the courage to ask a bead shop about 30 min from my home if i could propose classes for their schedule... and so i got to teach my first class... 

the fall schedule is getting ready and i wanted to come up with some fun classes that would not be too complex, yet would build on the basics of the etching class i taught this summer...

i wanted to use layering on a cuff, but to somehow do it a bit differently - after all, cuffs are very popular right now and they are the perfect kind of bracelet to use riveting on... resin is one of my favorite materials to work with - but ice resin (my resin of choice) takes a bit too long to work with in the time frame i will have available... 

enter staci's blog post from last week about magic glos... i picked some up... the sun broke through yesterday after a good number of days of rain - and so i was able to try it... this is definitely a resin that leaves you with a more rustic type effect, which is fine with me... and it was very well suited for my idea... 

i also tried it in some rustic bezels that i made and will offer instruction on... 

and then there will be a class on using a butane torch with sterling... making a rustic fused link bracelet along with things like ball end headpins, ear wires, clasps... just a practical class designed to expand one's ability to construct  their own components and save money... even learning how to ball end headpins is such a valuable skill in terms of design and cost... i remember being so excited to be able to do that and not have to buy headpins anymore... to never run out of them because i could always make more...

confidence grows when you learn how to do things, leaving you ripe to take on bigger challenges... it is a beautiful cycle, really.... learning how to do-it-myself has been really important to my growth... and you take it with you in to other parts of your life...

** etching is a really great technique... i first learned from stephanie lee's book 'semi-precious salvage'... but barbara lewis has a great section on it in her new book 'torch-fired enamel jewelry' ... perhaps i should do a tutorial on it...