A few weeks ago, I was fortunate enough to be able to take some Fabrication classes at the Revere Academy of Jewelry Arts in San Francisco.

If you’re not familiar with the Revere Academy, it’s one of the premier jewelry schools in the country. I have always wanted to attend classes at Revere, but when we lived in California, I didn’t have the time to attend. An expiring credit on Southwest airlines, the timing of the classes I wanted to take, and some VERY generous friends (thanks Mary!) with a couch to spare all came together and I found myself in San Francisco.

People have asked me what I made during the classes. Well, the purpose of the classes was not to ‘make stuff’ per se, but to fine-tune skills and to learn new techniques that will lead me to improve my technical/practical jewelry skills. And during the six very full days of classes, I was able to bump up my skill level as well as lament the fact that I have a LOT to learn. After melting some expensive silver on my first go-round with a new propane/oxygen torch, I knew I was in for some rocky days. I did well with some items, not so well with others. But in the end, I walked away with some very useful knowledge…knowledge that I’ve already put into practice in my daily work at the bench.

So, for those of you who asked, here are a few of the items that I made. Other pieces were more for technique building and did not result in finished pieces.

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