Double Trouble with the Polishing Guru September 24

As many of my students will know I regularly host Stephen Goldsmith (yes that’s his actual name!) to give masterclasses in polishing. It’s a two day course with Stephen at the helm. It’s messy, my own work comes to a hault but for good reason. We both believe that traditional methods must continue with in the industry with good, knowledgeable tutoring. We haven’t read books on this, in fact Stephen has written one himself and is a great introduction to what to expect on the two days. Polishing Finishing for Jewellers and Silversmiths

Polishing is an art in itself and something that a lot of jewellers are frightened of, I know myself that before this course I would be filled with anxiety at the thought of potentially ruining weeks of work by a poor finish. There are specific stages that are complex with a mixture of compounds, mops and a good eye. I initially asked Stephen if he would come to my studio firstly because I wanted to learn, and I couldn’t find anyone near London doing polishing classes. I’m so glad I found him. I wanted to do a class for a very long time as the jewellery academies seem to skip one of the most important parts of manufacturing and that’s the finish. I work on my own so I couldn’t ask a colleague. Everywhere else was a distance to visit and complicated with hotel booking and balancing my children. Anyway after a lot of pleading with the Boss (Ali his wife) he agreed to come and teach here in Essex. Between the pair of us we decided to make my venue one with a difference. It’s a relaxed environment, on a farm with a resident cat and a couple of dogs. I organise everything from station pick ups, hotel accommodation, dinner, breakfast and lunches for all dietary requirements. I want you to relax and have the best learning opportunity possible.

The party tricks will come. The mess from these fills me with fear every time! They put everyone at ease and make a pretty dirty job fun and utterly rewarding at the end.

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I’ve titled this blog double trouble after a week of back to back classes. Steve managed to teach a large number of students who had traveled far and wide to come. From Antwerp, Belfast, Brussels and nearby Hornchurch! I managed to cater for everyone with lunch in the onsite pub and my friends at Top Meadow made sure breakfast and dinner was excellent. It’s not often Stephen is overwhelmed but the group managed to pick his brain to bits. Top work students! The work everyone did was impressive. The shine and work at the end was impressive.

Steve is 70 in a few weeks and keeps threatening to retire completely. We have a masterclass booked in for March 2025. While I hope it’s not his last he keeps threatening. We need him back just for his stories of the trade when things were very different. Let’s hope the Boss doesn’t put her foot down and makes him slow down! This blog isn’t a sales pitch, but by all means book while you have the chance! It’s really to say my students love this course which you can see in my google reviews. It’s a big thank you to Stephen for coming to Essex.

Don’t forget if you haven’t got the book, buy it. Published by Crowdpress and available at Amazon, Cooksons Gold and Waterstones