More Crafty Days

Earlier this year I wrote about how as a ‘creative’ I view arts classes as a way to engage in professional development. Of course, I only do classes in things that I enjoy (one of the perks of being self-employed) and so this month I spent a lovely morning learning how to make a carved silver pendant.  

The class was run by Birmingham-based jeweller Josefina Flello Martinez, who trades as Atypical Thing and whose ring carving workshop I did back in January. I’ve known Jo for years as part of the local makers circuit and I love her jewellery, so when I saw that she was running a class in a different technique, I signed up and dragged two mates along too.

A quick look at online fashion retailers showed that fish themed jewellery is the summer accessory for 2025, and I resolved to make myself a fishy pendant to rival the expensive ones I was now coveting.

For this class we used a soft red coloured wax which is easy to manipulate and is particularly good for stamping designs into. I decided to shape my wax by hand as I wanted an organic, rustic look for my fish. When I was happy with the shape I stamped my design into the surface – I made the eye using a letter ‘o’ from a set of alphabet stamps. I experimented to find something for the scales and settled on using the end of a biro of all things! To make the fins I simply scored lines using a craft knife.

The whole process took around 45 minutes and I even had enough time to make a second fish pendant. The soft wax is great for creating unfussy textured designs, but would be just as good for pushing into a mould to create something crisper.

When my pendant came back from being cast in the Jewellery Quarter I was pleasantly surprised at how cute and wearable it is. I think this technique is worth trying again and I would definitely do more of Jo’s classes – she’s a great tutor.

I took part in a Pendant Wax Carving class run by Atypical Thing at Lightwoods House in Bearwood, Birmingham. The class was 1 hour 45 minutes and cost around £45, including materials and postage of the finished piece. If you are interested in Jo’s classes take a look at her website here.