Are the trends changing at last... ?

After 14 yrs of working with precious metals and dedicating time and effort into producing truly handcrafted items in Silver and Gold I think peoples mind set are beginning to change. The courses and workshops held are becoming recognised more and more as times go by. I'm hoping that the general public are beginning to actualy look at what they are buying. For a long time people, not everyone, have purchased items especially from jewellery outlets that are little more than massed produced items that in the main look the part but can hardly be classed as precious. That's one of the reasons , since the late 90's infact, that I have always described the pieces I produce to be "As Individual As You".

I was fortunate this weekend to be included in The Weekend Supplement of the Daily Telegraph - they ran a feature on top UK weekend courses, I was honoured to be included in this article, I was even more pleased when reading this over breakfast this morning to discover I was the only Silversmith and Jeweller to be featured in this article. The opening paragraphs on the front page predict that courses are certainly the way to go and that winter holidays and the like are a thing of the past as is buying products when there are some skills out in the big wide world that in we are not careful are going to be lost, so it was suggested that to actually "go on a course and make your own " is a fast rising favourite. Who can argue with that.

To view this article please look at :-

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/7093829/Top-weekend-courses-for-the-arty-crafty.html

Some of the people who have attended my courses and workshops, 6 have now been with me for the past 6 months, are producing some really fine and elegant pieces of jewellery.It makes me very proud of them as they put their heart and soul into making items that they are so proud of and when finished it almost brings a lump to your throat.

Next week see's the move to the new studio. I'm pretty excited about that may even figure out one day how to post some pictures up of the new studio, some students at work and the items they produce.

Thanks for Reading..

Carl