Most pieces come from a design "borrowed from Nature", lovingly crafted by hand to arrive at a one-of-a-kind item. While some pieces come from the same moulds as others, each has its own uniqueness - "no two leaves are ever the same - even though they are from the same tree".

 

I will also sculpt an original piece from Polymer Clay, to then create a mold, so that I can cast it into bronze to make a finished piece.

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The primary material used is Precious Metal Clay (PMC), a finely ground powder to which a binder is added. Water is used to mix a "clay" and is molded then left to dry. Then the piece is carefully shaped & filed ready for firing. There is no wastage involved with just enough of clay used for a piece & all shavings/trimmings being reused.  A range of different colours of bronze or brass will be used. 

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Bronze

Brilliant Bronze

Rose Bronze

Roman Bronze

Lemon Brass

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Only the simplest tools & materials are used. Leaves & other Nature's findings are collected by foraging and used to create molds.

Once molds are completed, the PMC is mixed to a workable clay form, of which I can mold, reshape, cut and even add to. I will use wooden shapers,  hand drill, and sharp knives. 

The 'clay' must then be left to dry which can take one to two days. Once dry, it is sanded and filed using tiny files, to eliminate sharp edges and to shape around tiny fern fronds.  This work is quite tedious, and the 'clay' can be quite fragile if not handled correctly.  Many hours goes into this step, to make sure I am happy with the final shape.

 

Once completed pieces are fired in the on-site kiln, at temperatures of 950 degrees celcius (to sintering levels), and only the solid metal remains - the binder is completely fired out. Quite often it will be a two stage firing process depending on the metal. 

Pieces are then cleaned with metal files, wire brushes and a dremel tool and then tumbled in a tumbler until everything is shining before final polishing & made ready for wear using macrame techniques and natural stone beads.

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Your piece is then finally ready for purchase!

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