Lost wax technique scoops win for Erica
A jewellery maker from Maidenhead has proved she is a cut above the rest after being recognised at a national awards event.
Erica Sharp, 43, won silver at the Goldsmiths’ Crafts & Design Council (GCDC) Craftsmanship & Design Awards for her sunflower wax carving.
The Goldsmiths’ council has existed since 1902 and its annual awards bring together the top jewellery makers in the UK.
The awards are judged by trained experts in goldsmithing, silversmithing and other jewellery crafts.
Erica said: “I’d never submitted any work before and had been working up to it for a few years. I was hoping now I might be a good enough standard.
“The awards are on every year, and I had seen the other entries, so I knew the standards are high.
“It was amazing to find out I’d won and really privileged to be recognised by the industry.”
Erica practises lost wax casting, a technique in which a mould is hand carved from wax and placed inside molten hot silver or gold to cast it in metal. Gemstones and other additions can then be added to the metal cast.
Her sunflower design, just 3.5cm in diameter, took more than 20 hours to create using fine tools, a magnifying glass, and a steady hand.
However, once it is cast in metal, the original wax carving is lost under intense heat.
The technique is one of the oldest known forms of jewellery making and was used by ancient civilisations from Egypt to Japan, where castings were used on kimono clothing.
“My mum’s Japanese so a lot of that culture has inspired me obviously,” said Erica.
“I’m fascinated by those objects that are worn on the kimono.
“I’ve seen some [lost wax carvings] in British Museum and when I lived in Japan in my 20s, so my design draws from that but also from my British culture too with the love of nature.
“I’m really drawn to the symbolism of nature and the people that buy my jewellery are drawn to that as well.
“Quite often they will want to feature a particular flower or plant so that’s nice to be able to bring that into the piece.”
Although Erica studied art at university, she did not take
up silversmithing and wax carving until later in life – ‘around eight or nine years ago’.
She is now an artist-in-residence at South Hill Park in Bracknell, teaching her craft to aspiring jewellers.
“I think it’s good actually,” Erica said.
“A lot of people are doing more creative things especially after COVID. It’s never too late.
“I’m not old, but I’m not young either – I could’ve
started earlier, but hopefully this can inspire others to get into something creative.”
In the future, Erica said she wanted to do more work with sustainable gemstones which can often be difficult to trace to the mine they came from.
She added: “But I would also like to submit some work to the awards again, maybe in a year or two, and aim to get gold.”
To see more of Erica’s pieces, visit ericajewellery.com