Policies: Before registering for classes & workshops, please review our registration policies in full. For questions, contact us at the front desk.
Description: Bring your ideas to life in the metal studio! This intermediate-level open studio is designed for practitioners who want to develop self-directed projects, perfect their technical skills, or finally cross the finish line on those meaningful unfinished pieces.
This guided environment is ideal for makers who value the real-time insight and troubleshooting of a professional jeweler. Whether you are perfecting a stone setting, mastering a complex solder joint, experimenting with surface textures, or looking for constructive feedback on a design layout, Teaching Artist Sarah Ednie will be there to offer tailored guidance to help you succeed in your creative journey.
Prerequisites & Skill Level: Open to Intermediate Students, Ages 16+. Participants must be comfortable working independently. Complete proficiency in the skills taught in Introduction to Metalsmithing: Foundations and Techniques (at the Donkey Mill Art Center or elsewhere) is highly recommended.
- Self-Assessment: To help decide if this is the right course for you, please review our Skill Assessment Worksheet before registering. Questions? Please contact us.
Schedule: Thursdays, August 13, 20, 27, September 17, 24, and October 1 from 10:00am – 1:00pm (*Note: No class on September 3 or 10)
Please note: Registration for this class will close on Saturday, August 8 at midnight.
Supplies Needed:
- Tuition: Your tuition covers 18 hours of guided, professional instruction and troubleshooting as well as use and maintenance of jewelry tools, hammers, torches, solder, pickle, flex shafts, and polishing wheels.
- Supplies: An optional foundational kit of consumable materials is available for purchase (e.g., specific gauge copper/bronze sheet, wire, and a set number of saw blades). If you choose not to purchase the kit, please bring your own materials.
Student Preparation & Requirements
- First Day Preparation: Please arrive at the first session with a sketch of your design ideas, any ongoing projects you wish to finish, a list of your needed materials, and/or any supplies you already own.
- Safety Protocol: For your safety, closed-toe shoes are strictly required in the metals studio. Participants must be prepared to demonstrate an understanding of studio safety protocols during the first session.
- Skill Alignment: If you do not yet possess the intermediate skills required for this specific class, but have projects in mind that match your current skillset, please contact the Donkey Mill Art Center before registering so we can help guide you to the perfect fit.
About the Artist: Sarah Ednie’s relationship with making started with dirty hands as a child playing in the mud, eventually finding a true refuge in her high school art rooms. Growing up watching her father craft furniture, she was raised in an environment that treated art as an essential component of life and breath.
Her early career began in the worlds of monumental bronze sculpture and detailed interior design, learning the delicate arts of collaboration and heartfelt curation—a perfect foundation for jewelry design. Active in the jewelry world since 2006, Sarah spent over a decade immersed in the craft after moving to Hawaiʻi. Through a peaceful, steady, and meditative apprenticeship under her uncle, she was gifted with generational knowledge every day.
Sarah later backed her deep, hands-on experience with formal credentials from the Gemological Institute of America (GIA) and the Jewellers Academy. This rich journey fuels Sarah's drive to step into the community and share her knowledge. She looks forward to helping you connect with our studio tools, hone your craft, and shape unique pieces that tell your own story.
About Our Programs: As a place of convergence, the Mill serves as both a community and a physical place–celebrating the power of the arts, bringing people, ideas and perspectives together. We are proud to offer adult and youth programs that focus on awareness of one’s individuality in the contexts of family, community and the natural world. Our exhibitions provide a space to reflect, share perspectives and grow as a community. Our classes & workshops are designed to inspire creativity, foster connections, and provide enriching experiences for all participants. We invite you to join us in the studio.
