National Glass Centre- Silversmithing

The photo shows three views from the National Glass Centre in Sunderland. It is a building on the banks of the river Wear right opposite the docks where a ship can be seen unloading. The other two photos are up and down the river.
This week on the course was silver clay. This is a new material developed in Japan I believe. It is a mixture of microscopic grains of silver mixed with a matrix that burns away in the kiln leaving 99% pure silver. It can be rolled and moulded like clay. Here I have made some earrings with the clay- the grey stuff and started to 'paint' leaves with it. The leaves burn away in the kiln leaving a perfect silver leaf shape. 7 grams cost 14 pounds- ouch, luckily this was in with the price of the course.