Saturday, April 8, 2023 
10:00 am - 12:00 pm PDT 

Instructor: Helen Cowart 

All Levels

Zoom link and instructions for joining the call will be emailed 1 day prior to class.

The class supply list is below. It contains links to buy the supplies you need.

This class will be recorded, and the recording will be available for students to access through their Little Metal Foxes accounts for a full month after the live class.

In this class, we will talk about the basics of working with PMC. It’s a fun product that definitely has its place in jewelry making. We’ll also talk about the different types of metal clay and some of the ways they can be used.

We will create a small sample piece and fire it during the class. Having a small mold or texture stamp will be useful, but not necessary.

Supply List for Students

The links below will take you to RioGrande.com or other suppliers. To see prices for precious metal items, you need a free Rio Grande account. Registered Little Metal Foxes students can access the Rio for Schools program for significant savings (discounts and flat-rate shipping). This site may contain Amazon and other affiliate links. If you purchase something through the link, at no cost to you, we may receive a small commission on qualifying purchases.

Recommended Materials and Tools

• PMC (fine silver)
• Teflon sheet or silicone mat
• Roller for PMC or polymer clay
• Thickness gauges or regular playing cards, if not included with the roller
• Tissue cutter (steel strip blade)
• Silicone-tipped clay shaping tools or wax sculpting tools
• Small/fine tip paint brush
• Distilled water
• Small airtight container
• A kiln (see below) or torch 
• Kiln shelf and 1/2" kiln posts or soldering board (torch firing) *
• Pencil and paper for sketching and note-taking
  

Optional Materials and Tools

• Texture stamp or roller
• Small selection of small silicone molds
• Silicone 2-part mold putty
• Cork or wood "clay”
• Bead Firing Kit with vermiculite and/or alumina hydrate powder for 3D pieces
• Fine silver wire, tubing, bezel, and/or sheet - Cool Tools or Rio Grande
• Heat safe gems
• Hair dryer or coffee mug warmer

More information

• A kiln (should come with a shelf and kiln posts as part of the purchase), the list starts with least expensive: 
  • Ultralite Beehive Pro Studio Kiln, Cool Tools. I strongly recommend purchasing the dial controller. I think it's a good piece of equipment to try. It can be used for keum boo, enameling, and simple fused glass. I also strongly recommend getting an infrared thermometer (Amazon) to monitor the kiln's temperature.
  • Skutt FireBox 8 Kiln - (dial/pyrometer), Clay-King
    
  • Rapidfire Standard Pro-L - (digital temperature setting, but not programmable better than a dial-controlled kiln), Tabletop Furnace
    
  • Rapidfire Standard Pro-LP - Tabletop Furnace
    
  • Olympic Hotbox HB64 Kiln w/3 Key Controller - Soul Ceramics
    
  • Olympic Hotbox HB64 Kiln w/3 Key Controller - Sheffield Pottery
    
  • Evenheat Studio Pro STP Kiln - Rio Grande
    
  • Olympic Hotbox Kiln w/3 Key Controller - Sheffield Pottery
  • Olympic Kiln - Hotsie - Soul Ceramics
  • Paragon SC-2 - Delphi Glass 

* Silver should always be fired on its own dedicated shelf when the same kiln is used to fuse glass. Silver fumes will stain glass and penetrate the shelf it is fired on.