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, which I opted to have cast in gold plated silver for an additional fee. 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 pendants came back from being cast in the Jewellery Quarter I was pleasantly surprised at how cute and wearable they are. 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. I paid an additional fee for the metal for the second pendant. If you are interested in Jo’s classes take a look at her website here.