Class Descriptions
Begining Classes:
Class Name |
Description |
Picture |
| Introduction Class for Silver Clay |
In this class students learn how to use metal clay to make two pairs of earrings. The first pair teaches the techniques of pressing the clay into a mold, cleaning the dry clay, firing with a torch and soldering sterling silver posts onto the back of the finished metal clay earrings. The second pair teaches students how to roll out the clay to an even thickness while adding texture, working with the metal clay in the wet stage, working with leatherhard and dry metal clay, and several ways to add a hole for ear wires. This is a special class for students who have not yet worked with metal clay. The only expense for this class is the silver clay, sterling silver earwires and sterling silver posts. Each pair of earrings can be made with a 7-gram lump of silver clay. There is no fee for this class. You may bring your silver clay, posts and earwires with you or purchase them from me. |
Coming Soon |
| Learn the Basics of Metal Clay |
This is a 12 hour class. This class is taught in several ways. In some shops, this class is taught in one weekend or on 2 Saturdays. It is also taught in 2 hour evening sessions for 6 weeks. This class teaches students the techniques below in bullets. The price for this class varies depending on where it is taught. For more information about this class, please email me at sallie@salliebly.com.
- Create a light weight silver bead using a ceramic bead and silver clay paste.
- Make a silver bead with syringe by creating the form with a product called cork clay.
- Create and use a 2-part molding compound mold.
- Make and use several other molds with the lump clay including polymer clay and Oyumaru.
- Work with wire tools so that you can embed fine silver wire into the metal clay.
- Set lab grown gemstones into the metal clay using two different techniques.
- Create a rubber stamp-like item using linoleum cutters and an eraser.
- Create a simple but beautiful pair of earrings using polymer clay and scrapbook brads.
- Use veneer sheets.
- Fire metal clay in a kiln and with a torch.
- Create a shiny finish with a rotary tool.
- Finish off all of your projects using jewelry techniques.
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Coming Soon |
All of the following classes are either 3-hour classes or 6-hour classes. The 3-hour class fee is $35.00 and the 6-hour class fee is $60.00. There is a supply list for each class and you are welcome to bring your own supplies to class. If you want to purchase the supplies from me, let me know and I will send you the prices prior to class because prices are changing too often to post here.
Currently, we making students a special offer. Two students can take the class together for the class price of one (and four students can take the class for the price of two) excluding the price of supplies.
| Making Molds |
In this class students learn how to make molds using polymer clay (including tear a-way), 2-part molding compound, photopolymer, oyumaru and linoleum cutting on rubber sheets. This class is a 3-hour class only taught on Saturday mornings from 9 am to noon. |
Coming soon |
| Using Molds with Metal Clay |
In this class students learn how to use several types of molds to make fine silver items. Quilters might want to make buttons for their art quilts. Jewelry artists might want to take this class to learn how to make links for their jewelry items. The number of items that students make in this class is only limited to the amount of clay that they want to use. This class is a 3-hour class only taught on Saturday afternoons from 1 pm to 4pm. It is often scheduled on the same day as Making Molds. Students are welcome to take both classes at the 6-hour class price. |
Coming soon |
Advanced Classes:
The following are advanced classes for students who already know how to use metal clay. To take these classes, students must already know how to roll out clay to an even thickness, add texture to clay in the wet stage, as well as clean metal clay in the wet, leatherhard and dry stage. Students must also know how to use the metal clay syringe and paste. These classes are technique classes and students are encouraged to bring their own designs and ideas to class. There will be several samples of each class for students to study. Students are welcome to copy any of these samples if they do not have a project of their own that they want to make. We are currently working on getting these samples on the website. Each class will state if it is a 3-hour class or a 6-hour class.
| Rolling Metal Clay Into a Rope |
Learn how to roll the metal clay into a rope, cut the rope and create a project from one or more pieces of rope. This project works well with syringe embellishment and adding small components. If you have scraps left over from a previous projects, bring them with you and learn how to use these components in this class. There are several ways to add a bail to this project and they will be covered in this class. This is a 3-hour class.
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Coming soon |
| Setting Stones |
This class will teach you how to set lab grown gemstones in several ways. This class covers syringe bezels, lump clay bezels, channel settings, using fine silver settings and creating settings from the extruder. This is a 6-hour class.
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Coming soon |
| Lentel Bead |
Learn how to make a fine silver lentel bead with pen plated gold accents. This is a 3-hour class. |
Coming soon |
| Wire Armature Bead |
In this class, students will learn how to make a special draped bead using a wire form. This is a 6-hour class. |
Coming soon |
| Bezels |
This class covers how to make and set a fine silver wire bezel in the metal clay prior to firing and how to solder the bezel to the finished fired metal clay. This is a 6-hour class. |
Coming soon |
| Wax Resist (also known as Water Etching) |
Wax Resist is a product created for the ceramic industry that allows you to create designs by washing away clay with a sponge. I teach this class with ceramic clay. The process is the same for ceramic or metal clay and students can practice without wasting their metal clay. There is no supply list for this class. This is a 3-hour class. |
Coming soon |
| Painting with Slip |
When metal clay slip is used as a painting media, the result is unique and interesting. This class will teach students how to get the paste to the perfect consistency for 'painting'. This is a 3-hour class. |
Coming soon |
| Cake Decorating with Metal Clay Syringes |
Learn how to create flowers and leaves with the metal clay syringe and tips that have been shaped like cake decorating tips. In this class, students will use tips that we make but students will also learn how to cut their own tips. Students practice using the tips with a syringe filled with a special toothpaste so there is no metal clay expense for this class. Our set of 7 tips sell for $20. This is a 3-hour class.
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Coming soon |
| Metal Clay Flowers |
This is a fun class that Connie Bailes developed for metal clay artist. This class is taught using ceramic clay. After you have made several flowers and leaves in the ceramic clay, the finished projects will be fired and mailed to you. You can then save them to remind you of the flowers you made. You could also paint these projects and refire them. Clay is the same whether you are using the ceramic clay or metal clay. Once you have mastered the flowers and leaves in ceramic clay, you will have no problem doing the same thing in metal clay. This is a 3-hour class. |
Coming soon |
| Getting a Mirror Finish with Silver Clay |
Galleries and a lot of traditional metalsmiths complain that silver clay is not capable of being finished to a mirror finish like 'other' metals. This is not true. Metal clay, when fired is fine silver and it can be finished just like any fine silver project. The problem is that most metal clay artists have not been taught how to get a great mirror finish. Learn how to get the finish you want in this class. This class also covers liver of sulphur and black max. This is a 3-hour class. |
Coming soon |
| Working with Metal Clay and Screens |
Silver clay works well with brass mesh screens. Rio also sells fine silver mesh. In this class, students will be working with the brass mesh screen but working with the silver mesh is the same. This is a 3-hour class. |
Coming soon |
| Working with Gold |
This class covers Keum Boo, Electro Plating with Gold and Accent Gold. |
Coming soon |
| Silver Clay Rings |
In this class students learn how to make a flat band ring and a round band ring. This is a 6-hour class.
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Coming soon |
| Ring Blanks Embellished with Silver Clay |
In this class, students will learn how to make 2 types of ring blanks and embellish them with metal clay. This is a 6-hour class. |
Coming soon |
| Bails |
Students will learn several types of bails to finish their projects. This is a 6-hour class. |
Coming soon |
| End Caps |
Using brass tubing, students will learn how to make end caps that fit their projects with ease. This is a 3-hour class. |
Coming soon |
| Silver Clay and Fine Silver Wire |
Learn how to turn round fine silver wire into square silver wire. Then embed the wire into a silver clay project and use wire wrapping techniques to finish the project. |
Coming soon |
| Veneer |
Check out Veneer Information for more information about this class. This is a 6-hour class. |
Coming soon |
The following classes do not require students to know anything about metal clay. These classes are traditional metal-smithing classes but they will enhance the metal clay artists with their projects.
Project Classes:
| Etching Metal |
This class covers how to etch metal with copper etching solutions as well as how to etch metal with an electronic metal etching machine that was created for the home artist. This is a 6-hour class.
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Coming soon |
| Enameling |
Wet packing and dry sifting are covered in this beginner class. Students need to bring their projects that are to be enameled to this class. These projects need to be fine silver. In this class, enameling on copper will be covered and demonstrated but there is not enough time to pickle and clean the copper projects in this class. If you are taking this class but do not work with metal clay, bring your projects that have been made from fine silver sheet. This is a 3-hour class. |
Coming soon |
| Learn to Love your Rotary Drill |
This class covers how to drill a hole, polish, and use burs. Burs will be used for stone setting and cutting. This is a 3-hour class. |
Coming soon |
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