Blog

Support your wax

Wax breaks. It's a fact. Luckily there are things you can do to make it less likely for your piece to break. Read through these tips on how to support your wax to reduce the chances of it breaking.

Make a signet ring

Signet rings: love or LOVE? Signet rings come in any shape and size, there’s no other option than to love them! Want to learn how to make them yourself? Here’s how.

Burring wax

Burring is a great way to speed up wax removal. It takes a little time and a lot of concentration to get comfortable with it. Read through these tips to get started with burring.

Make an animal carving

Carving an animal sounds nice, but isn’t that super difficult? Sometimes, but not necessarily. You can make it as difficult or as easy as you like! Here’s how you do it.

Using a set square on wax

The set square is an intimidating tool to use. It has NO MERCY and shows even the smallest inconsistencies. Read through these tips and get to grips with how to use a set square with wax.

Make a solitaire ring and fitted bands to go with it

Love a solitaire ring? Love a fitted band to go with it? Same! (Honestly, who doesn’t?) Can you make them from wax? Of course! How? By following these steps.

Using calipers on wax

Calipers (vernier gauge) are great for measuring of course. But they can do much more than just measure lengths. Read through these tips on how to use calipers for wax carving.

Make a continuous pattern on a ring

Do you love rings that have a continuous pattern all the way around? ME TOO! They might seem complicated to make, but you just have to break it down into small steps. So what are the small steps involved in making a continuous pattern?

Using a Stanley knife on wax

Stanley knife, X-acto knife, utility knife, precision knife. You know, the handle with a super sharp blade! Whichever one of these you use, the sharp blade is perfect for carving wax. Read through these tips on how to use a Stanley knife on wax.

Make bezel settings: faceted

More gemstones? YES PLEASE! Faceted stones look completely different from cabochons and rose cuts, so off course their bezels are completely different as well. Now how do you make a good bezel from wax for these stones?

Using pens on wax

Not all wax carving tools have to be fancy. Some don’t even have to be tools at all! The non-tool I use allll the time are pens. Read through these tips on how to use pens on wax.

Make bezel settings: rosecut and cabochon

Is it mandatory to love gemstones when you make jewellery? No. Do all jewellery makers love gemstones? YES! Now how do you go about making settings for them from wax?

Introduction to marking wax

Marking wax is one of the fastest steps in the entire wax carving process. Fast, but important. Because everything that comes after depends on your markings! Read through these marking basics to improve your marking.

Learn a classic: bombe ring

A bombe ring is not only a classic ring shape, it’s also a classic ring to carve from wax! So what are some of the techniques that go into transforming a flat piece of ring tube into the curved dome of the ring?

Introduction to filing wax

Filing is one of the easier techniques you can learn when it comes to jewellery making. It’s pretty self-explanatory! Easy or not, there’s always room for improvement. Read through these filing basics and make filing easier for yourself.

3D carving beginnings: charms

Wax is the perfect medium to create 3d shapes. And charms are a great place to start and learn how to do it! But starting any shape from a big block of wax can be intimidating. So, how do you begin?

Introduction to piercing wax

Piercing wax is different from piercing metal. So the rules for piercing wax are different as well! Read through these wax piercing basics to get started.

Learn the basics: stacking rings

Don’t know where to begin your wax carving journey? Start by learning these basic and essential techniques. They might not sound exciting, but you’ll use them all the time! Plus you end up with your own set of unique stacking rings!

What wax color should I get?

Ever wondered what color wax you should choose? I tried all the hard wax colors to find out what color goes best with what technique and tools.

As a conclusion to the wax color comparison series, I created this overview with all the colors together!

Orange wax

Ever wondered what color wax you should choose? For this wax color comparison series, I make something with each wax color. You can read what worked well and what didn’t, then you choose the color that goes best with your making style!

Last: orange wax

Blue wax

Ever wondered what color wax you should choose? For this wax color comparison series, I make something with each wax color. You can read what worked well and what didn’t, then you choose the color that goes best with your making style!

Next up: blue wax

Wolf gold wax

Ever wondered what color wax you should choose? For this wax color comparison series, I make something with each wax color. You can read what worked well and what didn’t, then you choose the color that goes best with your making style!

Next up: Wolf gold wax

Gold wax

Ever wondered what color wax you should choose? For this wax color comparison series, I make something with each wax color. You can read what worked well and what didn’t, then you choose the color that goes best with your making style!

Next up: gold wax

Turquoise wax

Ever wondered what color wax you should choose? For this wax color comparison series, I make something with each wax color. You can read what worked well and what didn’t, then you choose the color that goes best with your making style!

Next up: turquoise wax

Purple wax

Ever wondered what color wax you should choose? For this wax color comparison series, I make something with each wax color. You can read what worked well and what didn’t, then you choose the color that goes best with your making style!

Next up: purple wax

Green wax

Ever wondered what color wax you should choose? For this wax color comparison series, I make something with each wax color. You can read what worked well and what didn’t, then you choose the color that goes best with your making style!

First up: green wax

What ring tube should I get?

Ring tubes come in a few different shapes and sizes. Which one is the best to get? Flat-sided is ALWAYS my tube of choice. But the others have their place as well.

Shrinkage in lost wax casting

The most dreaded word in wax carving: shrinkage. How do you deal with it? Here's how I do it.

What tools do I need for wax carving?

Of course we jewellers are always in the market for new tools. But you can start wax carving with only a few. These are the tools I started out with!

How do I make a jewellery bench?

Do you want to make your own jewellery bench?

Here’s how I converted an Ikea desk into a jewellery bench!

How do I set up a jewellery bench at home?

Are you thinking of setting up a jewellery bench at home, but don’t know where to start? Have a look at these bench ideas made from surfaces found in every home. There might be something that can work for you!