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Fire & Bone: Richly Textured Rings from Cuttlefish Castings
Unearth bold textures in this exciting two-day virtual class dedicated to the art of cuttlefish bone casting! This centuries-old technique uses the soft, ridged interior of these marine mollusks as a mold for molten silver, resulting in castings with rich, organic texture that no other method can replicate. No expensive equipment is required, and no two castings are ever alike!
On Day 1, we'll learn how to select and cut cuttlefish bones, prepare and carve molds, glaze and season a new crucible, safely melt and pour silver, and clean up raw castings for later use. We’ll discuss best practices for working with silver scrap—making this a perfect opportunity to recycle precious metal and minimize waste.
On Day 2, we’ll transform those raw castings into one-of-a-kind, wearable rings. Demos will cover sizing, soldering, and finishing techniques. Creative design approaches to help you make the most of your unique forms, including incomplete castings - will also be discussed.
Whether you’re a beginner or an experienced metalsmith looking for a new creative spark, this workshop offers a fiery, hands-on introduction to one of the most satisfying—and sustainable—casting methods in the studio.
Meet the instructor
Kristin Mitsu Shiga (she/they) is a maker, educator and small business owner with more than 30 years of experience currently living and working in rural Oregon.
Throughout her career, Kristin’s desire to balance her individual studio practice and working as part of a larger team allowed her to build an unusual skill set that includes everything from nonprofit arts administration and bookkeeping to armature-building for stop-motion animation studios. From a long line of educators, Kristin is passionate about teaching and has shared her knowledge with students at venues all over the US including Penland, Arrowmont and Haystack Mountain schools of craft, along with programs she established in New York, Oregon and Hawai’i.
Kristin believes that service is a crucial component of any career and has served in a variety of volunteer roles and on numerous nonprofit boards since 2001. She currently serves on the boards of the Hawai'i Artist Collaboration and Frogwood Artist Collaboration, and is in her second term as Secretary of the Board of Directors of the American Craft Council (ACC).
Kristin has shown her work internationally, and is included in several notable collections, including the Kamm Artful Teapot Collection and the Permanent Collection of the White House. You will find her work published in numerous books and magazines, including Art Jewelry Today, The Art of Enameling, Metalsmith’s 2017 Exhibition in Print, and several of Lark’s 500 Series books. Learn more about Kristin’s past work on Oregon Artbeat (segment originally aired in 2010).
Materials & Tools
The following supplies will be used for course demonstrations and objectives. A suggested item and/or vendor has been provided below for reference. Click the vendor name to be redirected to a page where you can view the item. The quantities needed for each item are listed first. If ordering, please be aware that some items may come in larger quantities than needed for this class. We recommend not opening an item's packaging until the day of the workshop. Student participation during or in-between class sessions is not required - observers are welcome.
Raw Materials/Consumables:
- Any of your gold found jewelry and/or scrap
- 1ozt of sterling silver casting grain (RioGrande)
- 1 x XL Cuttlefish Bones (amazon)
- 1 x The WHIP Fused Silica Crucibles and Pinch Tongs (RioGrande)
- 1cup x Borax (RioGrande) - can also be purchased at most grocery stores found in detergent aisle
- 1 x X-Acto Knife Set or carving tools (amazon)
- 1 x 5 1/2" Long-Life Hard Charcoal Soldering Block (RioGrande)
- 1 x Shade 3-5 IR Welding Safety Glasses - or similar (amazon)
- 1 x Paint Brushes Value Pack - or any assortment of small, soft to stiff brushes (amazon)
- 1 x 10ft of Bailing Wire (amazon) or Home Depot
Basic Hand Tools
- 1 x round nose pliers (RioGrande)
- 1 x chain nose pliers (RioGrande)
- 1 x flat nose pliers (RioGrande)
- 1 x snips / flush cutters (RioGrande)
- 1 x jewelers saw (RioGrande)
- 1 x pack saw blades - 2/0 (RioGrande)
- 1 x burlife / bee's wax (RioGrande)
- 1 x bench pin (RioGrande)
- 1 x half round hand file - #2 cut (RioGrande)
Basic Home Studio
- 1 x rotary tool - flex shaft, micro motor, etc. (RioGrande)
- 1 x set of needle files - #2 cut (RioGrande)
- 1 x half round forming pliers (RioGrande)
- 1 x scribe (RioGrande)
- 1 x rawhide / plastic mallet (RioGrande)
- 1 x calipers - optional / nice to have (Amazon)
- 1 x sanding sticks - optional / nice to have (RioGrande)
Basic Forming Tools
- 1 x ring mandrel (RioGrande)
Basic Soldering/Torch Set-Up
- 1 x fireproof area - steel sheet, tiles, etc. (Amazon or Home Depot)
- 1 x Solderite™ pad / pan with pumice (RioGrande or RioGrande)
- 1 x compressed charcoal block - hard (RioGrande)
- 1 x torch - Smith mini, Silversmith, or butane (RioGrande or RioGrande)
- 1 x #0 or #1 torch tip - if getting Silversmith (RioGrande)
- 1 x striker or lighter - Silversmith system has one (RioGrande)
- 1 x soldering tweezers (RioGrande)
- 1 x soldering pick (RioGrande)
- 1 x 3rd arm (RioGrande)
- 1 x cross lock tweezers (RioGrande)
- 1 x paste flux (RioGrande)
- 1 x copper tongs - for pickle (RioGrande)
- 1 x 6” silver solder - hard (RioGrande)
- 1 x 6” silver solder - medium (RioGrande)
- 1 x 6” silver solder - easy (RioGrande)
- 1 x pickle - sodium bisulfate or citric acid (RioGrande or Amazon)
- 1 x brass bristle brush (RioGrande)
- 1 x crock pot or lidded glass container (RioGrande or Amazon)
- 1 x tempered glass container or sink - for quenching and rinsing
- 1 x small brush - for flux
- 1 x liquid hand soap - for cleaning metal
Miscellaneous Items
- safety glasses