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Gold Reclaimed: A Hands-On Workshop in Recycling Precious Metal
With gold prices soaring and sustainability more important than ever, there’s never been a better time to learn how to reclaim and reuse precious metal. In this immersive 2-day workshop, students will learn how to turn old, forgotten jewelry into usable gold for future projects—saving money, reducing waste, and gaining invaluable metalsmithing skills along the way.
We’ll start by testing mystery metal to determine whether it’s plated or solid, and what karat gold you’re working with using simple acid tests. Then, you'll learn how to safely remove stones, melt the metal, and pour your own ingot. From there, we’ll walk through the process of milling that ingot into usable sheet and wire using a rolling mill and drawplate. We’ll also cover how to raise or lower the karat of gold to suit your design needs. Diamond testing will also be discussed.
This workshop is perfect for anyone looking to stretch their material budget and reduce their environmental footprint. With an estimated 85% of the world’s gold already in circulation—often sitting in drawers and forgotten boxes—recycling gold is both a smart and sustainable solution for modern jewelers. Come ready to transform the old into something new and truly valuable.
For more information about virtual courses, visit our Virtual Course FAQ page.
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.
Consumables/Raw Materials:
- Any of your gold found jewelry and/or scrap
- Professional Gold, Silver, Platinum Jewelry Testing Kit with Stone Instructions and Box with 30X Eye Loupe Magnifier Precious Metals 10K 14K 18K 24K 999 925 (amazon)
- 1 x 5-in-1 Graphite Casting Ingot Mold, 72x57x12mm (amazon)
- 1 x Nitrile Gloves (amazon)
- 1 x Casting Torch (RioGrande) - Would need acetylene & oxygen tanks, as well as regulators OR Smith Silversmith with #4 Tip (OttoFrei) with acetalene torch
- 1 x The WHIP Fused Silica Crucible and Pinch Tongs Set (RioGrande)
- 1 x HDE Diamond Tester (amazon)
Basic Home Studio:
Basic Soldering/Torch Set-Up:
- 1 x fireproof area - steel sheet, tiles, etc. (Amazon or Home Depot)
- 1 x torch - Smith mini, Silversmith, or butane (RioGrande or RioGrande)
- 1 x striker or lighter - Silversmith system has one (RioGrande)
- 1 x copper tongs - for pickle (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 liquid hand soap - for cleaning metal
Basic Casting Set-Up (with Torch):