From curious to confident: Your 10 week journey into silversmithing
You’ve either seen people make beautiful handmade jewellery, or made something beautiful at a taster workshop. And now you can't stop thinking about what you could create with your own two hands.
This course is your next step - ten weeks of guided, hands-on learning where you'll build real skills, make stunning pieces, and feel at home at the bench.
What you'll make
Over ten weeks, you'll create up to five pieces of jewellery - each one building on the last, each one genuinely yours. Four projects will be fully guided - the last project is where you get to put all your new skills into action and create something of your own design. For each project, you can usually choose whether you make a ring, pendant, bracelet, earrings or something else while focusing on the key skill being taught.
How it works
Ten weekly sessions, each running 2 to 2.5 hours. Long enough to make real progress. Short enough to fit into your week.
Classes are kept deliberately small just four to six people so you get plenty of attention, learn at a pace that suits you, and actually get to know the people you're making with. Some of my students have become firm friends.
Every tool and piece of equipment you need is provided. Just bring yourself.
Each project builds on the one before, so the skills you learn in week one are still working for you in week ten. If a piece takes you a little longer than expected, that's completely normal - the final session is kept deliberately open so you can finish, refine, or simply make something new with everything you've learned.
And if life gets in the way? If you miss a session for genuine reasons, we can arrange for you to come into the workshop at another time to catch up. It's a commitment, but a human one.
Where and when?
The Cleo Jewellery Workshop is in Odiham, Hampshire
Session length: 2-2.5 hours
Frequency: Once a week
When: From 19:00-21:30 Monday-Thursday - I will try to choose a day of the week that best suits the interested students before the beginning of the course.
Start date: Week commencing 6th September 2026
Meet Wendy
Hi, I’m Wendy Grille Collins. I came to silversmithing the way many of my students do - I saw what other people were making and simply had to learn how to do it myself.
I got properly started during lockdown, when I needed a creative outlet more than ever. Six years later, I’m proud to hold diplomas in silversmithing and fine jewellery, am completing my Advanced Jewellery Diploma, and I’ve turned my passion into a practice - and a place where other people can discover the same thing.
Teaching runs in the family. I spent some years as an English teacher in Prague before opening my workshop (with a 15 year interlude in corporate marketing), and I try to bring my teaching instinct to silversmithing: clear guidance, a relaxed pace, and a genuine investment in every person at my bench. My classes are friendly, honest, and - according to some of my students - quietly addictive.
And, my favourite moment? When someone opens the tumble polisher, holds up their finished piece, and says "I can't believe I made that."
That moment is the whole point.
Is this course for you?
This course is for you if you've ever watched someone make something beautiful with their hands and thought “I want to do that”.
It's for you if you've done a taster workshop and left wanting more. It's for you if you're a complete beginner who's ready to commit to learning something properly. It's for you if you want to understand why techniques work, not just follow instructions. And it's for you if you'd love to own jewellery that you made yourself or give it to someone you love.
You don't need any experience. You don't need your own tools. You don't need to be especially artistic. You just need to show up.
A word of honesty
This isn't a drop-in class. Ten weeks is a real commitment, and the course is designed that way deliberately - because that's what it takes to go from curious to genuinely confident. Each session builds on the last, and the satisfaction at the end comes directly from having seen it through.
If you can make that commitment, I will make sure it's worth every minute.
However… knowing that life has all kinds of bumps along the road - please see the FAQs below that help to deal with un-foreseen circumstances.
A few things people usually ask
Do I need any experience? None at all. The course is designed for complete beginners, and I will guide you through every technique from scratch. If you've done a taster workshop before, you'll find the early sessions a comfortable starting point - and then things will quickly go further than you've been before.
Do I need to bring anything? Just yourself. Every tool, piece of equipment, and material you need is provided. There's nothing to buy before you arrive.
What if I work more slowly than everyone else? Silversmithing takes the time it takes, and different pieces suit different people. The final session is kept deliberately open - it's your time to finish anything that needs it, refine a piece you want to revisit, or simply make something new. If you've missed a session due to something genuinely unforeseen, I can usually arrange a catch-up in the workshop outside of course hours.
What if I miss a session? The course works best when you can commit to all ten weeks. That said, life happens - if circumstances are out of your control, get in touch and I will do my best to help you catch up. If need be, we can simplify a project so it takes less time to complete.
How many people will be in the class? Between four and six. Small enough that you'll get individual attention when you need it, and relaxed enough that you'll get to know everyone in the room.
What's your refund policy? If you need to cancel more than four weeks before the course starts, you'll receive a full refund or the option to transfer to a future course. Between two and four weeks before the start date, you can transfer to a future course or receive a 50% refund. Within two weeks of the start date, we're unable to offer a refund, but we'll always try to transfer your place where possible. If something serious and unexpected happens, get in touch - Wendy considers genuine exceptional circumstances on a case by case basis.
What if I'm not sure the course is right for me? I love a good chinwag. Drop me a message at hello@cleo-jewellery.co.uk and/or arrange a quick call and I’ll answer every question you have, no pressure, no hard sell. If it's not the right fit, I'll tell you honestly.
What does it cost?
The course fee is £300 not including materials (silver/gold/copper/brass) are added on each week depending on the design of your next piece.
Plan for your materials to come to a minimum of £150 during the course. Due to the flexibility of the course to design your pieces yourself, the cost of materials will depend on your design and the weight of materials used. This helps you to work to your own budget too, using less materials if you need to work to the lower end of the budget.
A few weeks before the course starts we will have a meet and greet call and talk about the first two projects. I’ll show you some of my designs and together we’ll brainstorm your own designs. I’ll take note of what you want to make and provide you with a quote for the silver. Half way in to the second project we’ll do the same for the next two projects and so on.
Don’t worry - if you change your mind, there’s always some extra materials
Ready to find out more?
If this sounds like something you'd like to do, Wendy would love to hear from you.
The next course starts in September 2026 and places are limited. If you're curious, don't wait - a quick conversation costs nothing and commits you to nothing.
Not quite ready? Follow CleoJewelleryUK on Instagram to see finished pieces, behind-the-scenes from the workshop, and when new course dates are announced.