Wax Carving Intensive Programme
Develop the precision, confidence and creative judgement to design and carve original jewellery in wax.
From foundational exercises to sculptural forms and gemstone settings, this intensive programme gives you focused bench time, expert guidance and a clear path for progressing your skills.
40–160 hours · London · Maximum 4 students
Find Your Starting Point
Whether you’re picking up a wax carving tool for the first time or adding new skills to your jewellery-making practice, there’s a place to begin.
Our Wax Carving Intensive Programme allows you to choose the module that matches your experience and the direction you want to take your work.
The programme unfolds across 4 progressive 40-hour modules.
There are many possibilities: start with the foundations, or step into a later module if you already have the relevant skills. Take one module on its own, or combine them into an 80-, 120- or 160-hour programme.
With each module, you’ll explore new techniques, tackle fresh exercises and build the confidence, control and understanding needed to create more complex work.
More details and entry requirements can be found below.
Discover What You Can Learn
The Wax Carving Intensive is structured across four progressive 40-hour modules.
Each module develops a different area of wax carving while continuing to build control, technical understanding and practical bench skills.
Module 1
Wax Carving Foundations
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Build a reliable foundation for working in wax.
Across 40 hours, this module introduces the essential techniques, tools and habits needed for accurate wax carving. Through a series of practical exercises, you’ll build the confidence working with wax while developing control, proportion, symmetry and accuracy.
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Explore different types of jewellery wax and how their properties affect the way they are worked
Select the appropriate wax according to the technique, design and intended outcome
Use wax carving tools including files, burs, saws, scrapers, knives and abrasives
Measure and transfer dimensions accurately
Ring sizing and shrinkage allowances
Establish centre lines, proportion and symmetry
Controlled and efficient material removal
Pierce and create negative space
Develop concave and convex forms
Create flat planes, clean edges and geometric forms
Additive wax construction, joining and blending
Consider thicknesses, weight, durability and wearability
Prepare wax models for casting
Post-casting refinement and finishing, where appropriate
Module 2
Sculptural Wax Carving, Forming & Tool Making
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Use wax to explore volume, movement and three-dimensional form.
Across 40 hours, you’ll explore a sculptural and forming approach to wax through practical exercises, working with three-dimensional form, volume, movement and surface while developing greater control over how wax can be carved, shaped and manipulated.
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Build, shape and remove volume
Work from photographs and physical references
Develop proportion and three-dimensional form
Carve sculptural, figurative and natural forms
Create depth, relief and undercuts
Develop organic textures and surface detail
Explore flowing forms, movement and volume
Work with natural asymmetry and complex multi-plane forms
Hollow larger forms and controlling wall thickness
Understand how sculptural decisions affect weight, wearability and function
Consider casting and production requirements throughout the making process
Make and modify specialised wax carving tools
Explore forming and flowing forms through Mitsuro Hikime
Post-casting refinement and finishing, where appropriate
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Module 1 is strongly recommended but not obligatory.
Module 2 builds on fundamental wax-carving skills, and the foundations covered in Module 1 are not repeated.
Students joining Module 2 directly should therefore have previous knowledge and experience in basic wax-carving techniques.
Module 3
Stone Setting in Wax: Brilliant & Oval Cuts
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Learn how to design and carve wax settings for a range of classic stone shapes.
Across 40 hours, you will develop the fundamentals of designing and creating stone settings in wax for brilliant-cut and oval-cut gemstones, alongside round and oval cabochon gemstones.
Through practice, you’ll explore different combinations of gemstones, settings and jewellery designs, learning how the accommodation and setting need to respond to the intended final piece while developing the skills to identify and troubleshoot problems along the way.
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Measure brilliant-cut and oval-cut gemstones, alongside round and oval cabochon gemstones
Understand the different requirements of faceted and cabochon gemstones
Plan the gemstone and its accommodation in relation to the jewellery design
Carve accurate stone seats and controlling depth
Control wall thickness and the material surrounding the gemstone
Understand allowances for casting and final stone setting
Explore cast-in-place principles and suitable applications
Create bezel and claw/prong settings in wax
Develop open-back setting construction
Control gemstone position, spacing, alignment and proportion
Apply different gemstone accommodations across different jewellery designs
Consider structural integrity, wearability and production when developing a setting
Refine gemstone accommodations directly in metal
Set and secure gemstones in prepared silver rings and pendants
Troubleshoot different combinations of gemstones, settings and jewellery designs
Develop control, accuracy and technical judgement through practice and repetition
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Previous knowledge and experience in the relevant skills covered within Module 1 and/or Module 2 is required.
Module 4
Stone Setting in Wax: Multiple Gemstone Shapes
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Develop greater confidence with complex stone-to-setting relationships.
Across 40 hours, you’ll build on the skills established in Module 3 by working with a wider range of faceted and cabochon gemstone shapes across different jewellery designs.
Through continued practice, you’ll explore how different gemstone shapes, proportions, settings and designs work together, encountering and troubleshooting a wider range of technical challenges while developing greater control, accuracy and judgement.
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Work with a wider range of faceted and cabochon gemstones, including pear, heart, marquise and rectangular cuts
Understand the different technical requirements presented by different gemstone shapes and proportions
Develop the gemstone accommodation and setting in relation to the jewellery design and intended final outcome
Carve accurate seats for curved, pointed, geometric and irregular gemstone shapes
Control depth, wall thickness and material allowances
Manage points, curves, straight walls, corners, orientation and alignment
Adapt accommodations and setting construction to different jewellery designs
Understand how different combinations of gemstone, setting and design require different technical approaches
Refine stone seats, walls and setting components in preparation for casting
Consider casting and final-setting requirements while developing the wax
Evaluate structural integrity, wearability and production requirements
Refine gemstone accommodations directly in metal
Set and secure different gemstone shapes in prepared silver rings and pendants
Troubleshoot different gemstone, setting and design combinations
Develop greater control, accuracy and technical judgement through practice, repetition and different applications
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Previous knowledge and experience in the relevant skills covered within Module 3, together with Module 1 and/or Module 2, is required.
What You’ll Develop Across the Programme
Across the programme, you’ll learn how to:
Handle and shape jeweller’s wax with greater control
Build accurate, balanced and wearable forms
Understand proportion, symmetry and construction
Carve sculptural and three-dimensional designs
Create and adapt tools for specific tasks
Design wax settings for faceted and cabochon gemstones
Anticipate casting, finishing and structural requirements
Make more informed decisions about jewellery design
Choose Your Training Format
Each 40-hour module can be completed in either of two formats:
Intensive Format
Monday–Friday, 10am–6pm, for 1 week.
Extended Format
One 8-hour training day per week for five weeks, where appropriate.
Module vs. full programme: Study 40, 80, 120 or 160 hours – the choice is yours.
Further practice: Additional 40-hour blocks may be arranged after completing the full programme, making it 200 hours total.
The curriculum, training hours and standards remain the same.
Not sure where to begin? We’ll help you choose the most suitable starting module and schedule when you enquire.
How You Will Learn
With Individual Feedback & Guidance
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With a maximum of four students, you receive individual attention throughout your training. You’ll have the space, attention and bench time needed to learn, practise, repeat, correct and refine your work as your skills progress.
With Practice and Progression
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Practice is at the centre of the programme. You’ll work from physical samples and progressively challenging exercises, each developed to introduce a technique or strengthen a particular skill.
Each module follows a structured curriculum. The number of exercises you complete depends on your progress at the bench: you may work through the full range or spend longer on a selection, taking the time needed to practise, correct and refine your work before moving forward.
By Developing Professional Judgement
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Alongside technique, you’ll learn to consider how your design and construction decisions affect weight, wearability, function and production.
The aim is to support your creative choices with the judgement needed to understand how a piece will function as jewellery and how it can be successfully cast, finished and worn.
Why Learn With Us
Hands-on, progressive approach
Shaped by a professional, focused approach, our teaching combines technical knowledge with a practical understanding of how jewellery is made.
Focus on tradition & craft
Rooted in tradition, you’ll learn to work with greater precision, understand the decisions behind each technique and develop the judgement to carry those skills into your own designs.
Small group. Individual attention
With no more than four students per class, there’s always time for your questions and guidance focused on your progress.
Flexible training for your needs
The modular approach to the programme means you can take one module or combine several, in a format that suits you.
Invest in Your Skills
Choose your training by the number of hours, with the flexibility to study one module or combine modules into a longer programme.
PROGRAMME FEES
Each module is 40 hours and can be extended with a further week of practice and development.
The additional 40-hour rate applies only after completing 160 hours of training.
WHAT'S INCLUDED
Waxes, cubic zirconia gemstones and the tools required during training are included in the programme fee.
Castings and gemstones other than cubic zirconia are not included.
For Module 2 — Tool Making, students bring their own tools to modify and adapt during training.
Plan Your Training
Tell us what you’re interested in and when you would like to start. After receiving your enquiry, we’ll arrange a call to discuss your previous experience, training goals and preferred schedule, and help determine the most appropriate starting point for your training.
After receiving your enquiry, we’ll arrange a call to discuss your previous experience, training goals and preferred schedule, and help determine the most appropriate starting point for your training.
Have a question about the programme?
