Sand casting class

For all you jewelry makers out there- or interested parties:

I have been obsessed with jewelry making lately- and ever since I found Jane Frank, a goldsmith in Burlington, I have been creating new and different things classes with her.

This past weekend I took a class on sand casting at Alchemy Studio in Burlington . It is an ancient method of casting where you make an impression in very fine sand and then pour molten silver into the mold. VERY cool.

I made a number of things, including this: (unfinished)

and these (soon to be) pendants.

I really enjoyed the technique, and plan on using it again! I began to think about

casting wherever I looked- could this be cast? Could that be cast?

Lately I have been looking into materials I would need to continue using this technique. you need aluminum molds, and a casting sand, as well as some way to heat your metal till it turns to liquid.

I look forward to even expanding by casting experience and trying out different types of casting: silicone casting and ultimately I would like to learn the lost wax casting technique.

I know that Jane is planning on teaching this class again at her studio (Alchemy in Burlington), and she is a fantastic teacher I would definitely recommend it!