WEEK 3: Woodland Chic Design Explorations

Featured Artist: Lisa Cain

Titles:
Maker of Things
Founding Director, Mid Cornwall School of Jewellery, UK
Hedge-Witch
Punster
Prankster
‘Ooomah’ to grandsons Alfie and Quinlan
The Luckiest of all the Lucky Ducks
Q.F.U
Materials of choice: 
I have serious magpie tendencies and will use whatever works best at the time to say whatever needs to be said.  Often I’ll be utilising silver, gold, gemstones, bird parts and provocative jumble.
My Work
Most of my work centres on real or imaginary folklore and can appear to be telling a story.  Hopefully, it invites the viewer into other realms ; hinting at myths, legends, strange rituals and unknown creatures.

Website address:
www.mcsj.co.uk
www.lisacain.co.uk
www.make-your-own-wedding-rings.co.uk

Blog Address:  http://lisa-cain.blogspot.com

What social media are you on?  Find me on Facebook

Favorite quote:
It will be all right in the end.
If it’s not all right, it’s not the end.

WEEK 3: Woodland Chic Design Explorations –
Materials :  Metal Clay

Hot technique or tip:  
I love sawing dried (but not fired) metal clay with my jeweller’s piercing saw.
I can use my fine saw blades to cut really intricate shapes without the ‘drag’ of working in wet clay.
The dried silver clay cuts so beautifully and easily!

Plus, I catch all my off-cuts on a well-placed piece of paper so I can turn it all back into useable clay again.

Favorite tool:  
A small, steel, leather-working tool I found in a junk shop.
It has a tiny curved and rounded end, making it the perfect burnisher for getting into tight places.
It’s very old and I love the way the handle feels in my hand when I use it.

Biographical info
I’ve been a jeweller and teacher for more that 20 years and began working with metal clay in 1997 after I stumbled into the ‘wrong’ classroom at summer school.

I don’t have any formal art training but I was able to attend part-time classes in metalwork around my commitments as a single parent.

I spent many years learning traditional silver working skills followed by three years studying as an apprentice to a master goldsmith.
In 2005 I founded the Mid Cornwall School of Jewellery (MCSJ) to address the need for professional non-academic classes in the UK.

MCSJ was the first independent school in the UK to offer metal clay classes and has become a centre with a reputation for delivering high quality learning experiences.

I love to teach and my natural habitat is the classroom.
A few of my career highlights include-
Establishing the first independent brand-neutral metal clay qualification in the world. The MCSJ Diploma is widely regarded as the most thorough training available in metal clay.
Working for 6 years as Director of the U.K. PMC Guild Launching the first ever distance-learning jewellery course.  Students can now take all 4 grades of the metal clay Diploma as a Home Study option from anywhere in the world by following our tuition on DVD.

Spending over 18 months on the Advisory Board which devised, tested and developed projects in preparation for the launch of what is now the prestigious Metal Clay Master’s Registry.
Developing Sterling Silver clay and sharing the recipe with the metal clay community when manufacturers had said it couldn’t be done.   I’m particularly proud to have made the first Hallmarked Sterling Silver clay pieces of jewellery in the world. The jewellery I produced from my homemade sterling silver clay was purity-tested and stamped 925 by the London Assay Office in February 2011.

Best of all, throughout my career, I have been privileged to work with some of the best artists in the field and I have found them to be a truly wonderful bunch of lovely human beans. I count Patrik Kusek as one of these fab comrades and am chuffed to be asked be part of the Woodland Chic Design Team.