Derek is the teacher to the jewellery maker that I interviewed before. In fact, she introduced me to him and, in turn, he introduced me to the world of Art Clay Silver. But, let us focus on the story first.

Derek has been teaching metalworking for about a decade, but his story began even before that. He has been teaching women how to make jewellery and accessories from beads and now precious metals as a business for a long time. I think that is a wild story.

His studio, Fine Metal Studio is located in an unlikely place, Hartamas. Here he teaches all he knows about metalsmithing to his clients, which consists of mostly ex-pats and housewives.

The prices of his classes are fair, and, although they focus on jewellery making, I can see myself taking the class and learning how to make metal figures or components for my hobby.

After the interview, Derek gave me an Art Clay Silver Starter Set. The box contained everything I need to make a silver ring out of this clay-like material that, when fired on a stove, would turn into a pure silver object.

A clay that turns into silver sounds miraculous, but that is what this product from Japan does.
My first ring didn’t turn out well, but it is wearable, and it was a learning experience.

Check out Derek’s Fine Metal Studio for yourself on its website, Facebook, or Instagram page.

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