Attended a silversmith workshop at Sisu Studio with a friend during an almost-full Friday night class (9 people). We had a great time!! The class ran about three hours and was mostly sitting, crafting our chosen piece. You can make either a silver ring, pendant, bracelet, or bolo tie. My friend and I both picked rings and it seemed like almost everyone else did too, although a few people made bracelets and a pendant.
Class began with everyone picking their gemstones in the main room of the studio. They offered an assortment in all shapes, sizes, and colors -- the hardest part of class was selecting just one stone! Once we had our pick, we chose seats in the room where the magic happens (where we make the jewelry) and remained there until the end of class.
You have the option to customize basically everything about your piece, with some customizations included and others costing an additional ~$5-$25. The overall price is around $140-$215 before tip depending on your chosen gemstone and details. We chose the band, bezel, and finishing touches like twisted metal or silver beads around the gem, shadowbox, or patina.
The class was split into two, with everyone on my side being led by Bailey. She was super fun to work with and made sure all our creations were stunning. The workshop participants do the easier parts of the process like shaping the metal band, painting on flux, hammering down the metal piece for the backing, and placing silver solder. The instructors do about 70% of the process -- sanding the pieces down, guiding everyone through heating the metal, adding the silver backing to the gemstone, and finishing the piece.
At the end of class, we were both very impressed by the quality of the pieces that we created and how much fun we had making them. I'd recommend this workshop to anyone who enjoys jewelry and hands-on crafting. Are we jewelry artists now?? (kidding). read more