The Goldsmiths' Centre

Wholesaling, drops, growing a team, getting your work in front of the right people, these are the conversations most jewellers are having privately, often without anyone who's been through it to talk to.

On 18 June, Susannah King () joins us online for a Creative Links conversation with Liz Olver (). Susannah built her brand from a makeshift bench in her London bedroom to a store in Kensington in four years. The talk covers the decisions she made along the way: when to wholesale and when not to, how she structures drops, what outsourcing looks like in practice, and how she thinks about promotion as the business gets bigger.

There's networking at the start and a Q&A at the end.

✖️ Date: 18 June 2026
✖️ Time: 6 – 8pm
✖️ Price: Pay what you can: £7 or £10
✖️ Venue: Online via Zoom
✖️ Bookings: goldsmiths-centre.org/whats-on

https://www.goldsmiths-centre.org/whats-on/creative-links-susannah-king-in-conversation-with-liz-olver/?utm_name=sked&utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_content=sked_6a1eb1a7376b4d6ad08d6c10

Filigree has been around for 5,000 years. The word itself comes from the Latin for thread and grain. It appears across cultures and centuries, from ancient Mediterranean jewellery to Portuguese goldsmithing traditions, and it's a technique that still produces work unlike anything else.

Filipa Oliveira is one of the few specialists teaching it in the UK. Over two days at the Goldsmiths' Centre, she takes you through the process from the beginning, making and controlling fine wire, building and soldering filigree forms, working up to your own pieces. You'll also make simple tools to support the work back in your own workshop.

Eight places, intermediate level.

✖️ Date: 29 – 30 September 2026
✖️ Time: 9.30am – 4.30pm
✖️ Price: £409
✖️ Venue: The Goldsmiths' Centre, London
✖️ Bookings: goldsmiths-centre.org/whats-on

https://www.goldsmiths-centre.org/whats-on/filigree-technique-with-filipa-oliveira-sep26/?utm_name=sked&utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_content=sked_6a20153443d0999965033e21

Watkins + Ramshaw: A New Vision is the first major publication on two of the most significant figures in 20th-century British jewellery, and on 6 July we're launching it at the Goldsmiths' Centre with four of the people best placed to talk about the work: curators and modern jewellery specialists Rachel Church, Amanda Game, Dr Frances Parton and Dr Dora Thornton.

Tickets are £15 and include a glass of wine or a soft drink. The book is also available to pre-order from our online shop: goldsmiths-shop-talent.org/products/watkins-ramshaw-a-new-vision

✖️ Date: 6 July 2026
✖️ Time: 6 – 8pm
✖️ Price: £15 (includes a glass of wine or soft drink)
✖️ Venue: The Goldsmiths' Centre, London
✖️ Bookings: goldsmiths-centre.org/whats-on

https://www.goldsmiths-centre.org/whats-on/david-watkins-wendy-ramshaw-a-new-vision/?utm_name=sked&utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_content=sked_6a1ef43a5c13e2c570a27866

Most jewellers working with gold have a view on recycled metal. Saskia Shutt (.brussels) has spent 25 years interrogating hers.

Saskia is a Brussels-based designer-goldsmith, Fairmined-certified since 2018, and a member of Fair Luxury and Ethical Metalsmiths, and on 13 July, she's coming to the Goldsmiths' Centre to talk through what responsible metal sourcing actually involves. What does 'recycled' mean in practice? How does it compare to mined? What the research says, and what questions it leaves open.

Networking at the start, Q&A at the end. £15 including a glass of wine or a soft drink.

✖️ Date: 13 July 2026
✖️ Time: 6 – 7.30pm
✖️ Price: £15 (includes a glass of wine or soft drink)
✖️ Venue: The Goldsmiths' Centre, London
✖️ Bookings: goldsmiths-centre.org/whats-on

https://www.goldsmiths-centre.org/whats-on/creative-links-ethical-gold-exploring-sourcing-options-jul26/?utm_name=sked&utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_content=sked_6a1ffda64857a238f6742d6f

Eight early-career jewellers and silversmiths have been selected for our 2026/2027 Spotlighting Getting Started programme, and this autumn, you can meet them.

Spotlighting Getting Started supports emerging makers as they build sustainable creative businesses, combining professional development in areas like photography, writing and public speaking with the experience of exhibiting their work to real audiences.

We're hosting two free online Maker Spotlight talks in September and October, where each maker will share the thinking behind their practice, what drives their work, and where they're headed next. It's a chance to get to know the faces behind the names before they exhibit together in London in 2027.

The first talk features: Alexander Budd (.thirtyfive), Mario Agudelo Guzman (), Kung-Hsuan Chang (.c_jewelry) and Misha McLean ().

The second talk features JiangLing Wang (._wang), Céline Munisso (.munisso), Xiaoyu Li () and Karen Moon (.design).

Tickets are free, see the link in bio to book your place.

✖️ Talk one: 9 September 2026
✖️ Talk two: 14 October 2026
✖️ Price: Free
✖️ Venue: Online via Zoom
✖️ Bookings: goldsmiths-centre.org/whats-on

https://www.goldsmiths-centre.org/whats-on/?utm_name=sked&utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_content=sked_6a29ca42ab32f1b79efb2673

Cutlery advertising has never really been about the product. In the late 19th century, it was about the factory, the machinery, the scale, and the proof of manufacture. By the early 20th century, its focus shifted to the life you might live: the banquet table, the wedding gift, the polished interior. Then came David Mellor in House & Garden, and an Alessi catalogue, and the fork itself became the point.

Erin Sleeper's essay in the Culture of Cutlery catalogue traces a century of cutlery advertising and what each era thought you most needed to be persuaded by.

Free to visit at the Goldsmiths' Centre, Monday to Friday, 9am – 6pm, until 24 June.

If you can't make it in person, the exhibition catalogue is available in our online shop, 50 pages exploring the same ground, with essays by Rachel Church, Emma Paragreen, Erin Sleeper, Dr Frances Parton and Charlotte Dew, plus a conversation with maker Simone ten Hompel.

Purchase it at goldsmiths-shop-talent.org/collections/exhibition-catalogues-and-books/ or via the link in the bio.

https://goldsmiths-shop-talent.org/collections/exhibition-catalogues-and-books/products/the-culture-of-cutlery?utm_name=sked&utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_content=sked_6a27ff4a68660c37584b8046

Adding detail and complexity to a piece usually means adding material cost. Filigree is an exception. Working with fine twisted wire, you can introduce intricate patterns and surface interest into your work without a significant increase in the amount of silver or gold.

This two-day course with filigree specialist Filipa Oliveira covers the full process: preparing and twisting wire, constructing filigree forms, soldering at a small scale, and building up to your own components or pieces. Filipa has won multiple awards for her filigree work, including the New Designers Goldsmiths' Company Award for Jewellery.

Eight places, intermediate level. Bookings close 15 September.

✖️ Date: 29 – 30 September 2026
✖️ Time: 9.30am – 4.30pm
✖️ Price: £409
✖️ Venue: The Goldsmiths' Centre, London
✖️ Bookings: goldsmiths-centre.org/whats-on

https://www.goldsmiths-centre.org/whats-on/filigree-technique-with-filipa-oliveira-sep26/?utm_name=sked&utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_content=sked_6a2014b3d9bf87ec7bf785c2

Business Catalyst (Small) Grant applications are open until 5 July, and we're now halfway through the window, so if you've been meaning to apply, now is the time.

The grant is £2,000 for UK-based jewellers, silversmiths and allied makers who are sole traders or running a small business. It's there to fund a specific project that would move your business forward, such as equipment, a new website, product photography, branding, access to specialist knowledge or mentoring. Ten grants are available this year, funded by the Goldsmiths' Foundation ()

To be eligible, you'll need to have completed a business mentoring, consultancy or diagnostic programme in the last 12 months. Dedicated funding is also set aside for applicants experiencing financial difficulty.

Not sure if your project qualifies? Book a free one-to-one info session with our Grants and Engagement Manager, Julia, before you apply - available dates are listed in the What's On section on our website.

https://www.goldsmiths-centre.org/apply-for-grants/business-catalyst-small-grants/?utm_name=sked&utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_content=sked_6a1ef71e376b4d6ad08ea97e

Jean Scott-Moncrieff () has been exhibiting at Goldsmiths' Fair since 2003, making wire-based jewellery by hand in her Sussex studio. Her work is influenced by ancient Mediterranean cultures, particularly artefacts from the Villa Giulia in Rome and the Heraklion Museum in Crete.

She's also the person behind the GC&DC wire prize, which she helped establish in 2013 and which now has over 50 Freemen working in the trade.

On 14 July she's joining us online for a Techniques in Focus talk covering how jewellers and silversmiths work with wire; the history, the tools, the techniques, and a detailed case study following the making of her Etruscan Necklace. There'll be a selection of award-winning GC&DC wire work featured too, and time for questions at the end.

Programmed in partnership with the GC&DC () and the Worshipful Company of Gold and Silver Wyre Drawers ()

✖️ Date: 14 July 2026
✖️ Time: 6 – 7.15pm
✖️ Price: Pay what you can: £7 or £10
✖️ Venue: Online via Zoom
✖️ Bookings: goldsmiths-centre.org/whats-on

https://www.goldsmiths-centre.org/whats-on/techniques-in-focus-working-with-wire/?utm_name=sked&utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_content=sked_6a1eaa90b9d8f84976c86e03

CAD has changed how most jewellers work, but it hasn't replaced the moment when a client needs to understand what they're commissioning before it's made. A hand-rendered drawing does something a CAD file often doesn't: it shows the warmth of the metal, how a stone catches light, the weight and presence of the finished object on paper.

This two-day course with Silvia Serravalle () covers gouache on grey paper, white, yellow and rose gold finishes, faceted stones and cabochons, working from live demonstrations with all materials provided. No illustration experience needed.
Ten places, bookings close 30 June.

✖️ Date: 16 – 17 July 2026
✖️ Time: 9.30am – 4.30pm
✖️ Price: £489
✖️ Venue: The Goldsmiths' Centre, London
✖️ Bookings: goldsmiths-centre.org/whats-on

https://www.goldsmiths-centre.org/whats-on/jewellery-rendering-metal-gemstones-with-silvia-serravalle/?utm_name=sked&utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_content=sked_6a170bd2ef02404884cbe9a8

David Watkins and Wendy Ramshaw are two of the most significant figures in 20th-century British jewellery. Their work is held in over 70 museums worldwide, and between them they helped reshape what jewellery could be, from Swinging Sixties fashion collections to large-scale works drawing on industrial technology and contemporary art.

On 6 July, four curators and modern jewellery specialists, Rachel Church, Amanda Game, Dr. Frances Parton and Dr. Dora Thornton, come together at the Goldsmiths' Centre to discuss both bodies of work, each bringing a different angle to the same material. The evening launches a new book, Watkins + Ramshaw: A New Vision, published by the Goldsmiths' Company (), which you can buy and have signed on the night.

Tickets are £15 and include a glass of wine or a soft drink. The book is also available to pre-order from our online shop for collection or signing on the evening.

✖️ Date: 6 July 2026
✖️ Time: 6 – 8pm
✖️ Price: £15 (includes a glass of wine or soft drink)
✖️ Venue: The Goldsmiths' Centre, London
✖️ Bookings: goldsmiths-centre.org/whats-on

https://www.goldsmiths-centre.org/whats-on/david-watkins-wendy-ramshaw-a-new-vision/?utm_name=sked&utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_content=sked_6a1d6dc46ebd4ed1bb968dce

As a maker, you already know objects through your hands: weight, surface, temperature, and finish. It's a way of paying attention that doesn't always translate easily into words, but it's exactly what makes writing about craft feel alive when it works.

This workshop uses that as its starting point. Guided by writer and lecturer Dr. Lania Knight, you'll work through a tea tasting, an object handling session with historic teawares from the Chitra Collection (.museum), and creative writing exercises drawing on taste, smell, touch, sight and memory, using sensory experience to find new language for your own practice.

Open to any creative practitioner, with only 10 places available.

✖️ Date: 11 June 2026
✖️ Time: 2 – 4.30pm
✖️ Price: £40
✖️ Venue: Chitra Collection, London
✖️ Bookings: goldsmiths-centre.org/whats-on

https://www.goldsmiths-centre.org/whats-on/creative-inspiration-workshop-using-sensory-experiences-to-unlock-your-creative-writing-potential/?utm_name=sked&utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_content=sked_69d6785f1b91af14e30aa814

Cloisonné enamelling doesn't come up often in jewellery education. It's a technique most makers know by name but have never had the chance to learn properly. Linda Connelly (.linda) has been working with enamel for over 20 years and has won multiple GC&DC Awards for her work. Two days with her covers everything: wire preparation, soldering, wet-laying enamel into cells, firing, grinding, and polishing. You leave with a finished piece and a process you can replicate in your own workshop.

Eight places, beginner and intermediate level. Bookings close 19 June.

✖️ Date: 3 – 4 July 2026
✖️ Time: 9.30am – 4.30pm
✖️ Price: £439
✖️ Venue: The Goldsmiths' Centre, London
✖️ Bookings: goldsmiths-centre.org/whats-on

https://www.goldsmiths-centre.org/whats-on/cloisonne-enamelling-with-linda-connelly/?utm_name=sked&utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_content=sked_6a1d6a2860a892308ed9e2a7

Pearls sit slightly outside the usual territory of a jeweller who works primarily in metal, but they're one of the most consistently in-demand materials a client walks through the door asking about, whether for a new commission, a family heirloom that needs restringing, or a wedding collection.

Understanding how to work with them properly, how to select them, how different strand configurations behave, how to knot and finish to a professional standard, opens up a category of work that most jewellers currently have to decline or outsource.

This one-day course with Anja Moehler () covers all of that through the making of a three-strand necklace, with demonstrations, hands-on practice and 1:1 guidance throughout.

Anja spent six years as the sole pearl stringer for Tiffany & Co. before moving into teaching, so there's a lot of trade knowledge in the room.

Beginner and intermediate, eight places.

✖️ Date: 24 July 2026
✖️ Time: 9.30am – 4.30pm
✖️ Price: £299
✖️ Venue: The Goldsmiths' Centre, London
✖️ Bookings: goldsmiths-centre.org/whats-on

https://www.goldsmiths-centre.org/whats-on/multi-strand-pearl-necklace-stringing-with-anja-moehler-jul26/?utm_name=sked&utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_content=sked_69ea0b5fae78572a7ad38e36

Susannah King () started her jewellery career repairing heirlooms in her father's workshop in Twyford. In 2020, she was making jewellery at a makeshift bench in her London bedroom and posting it online. Her drops sold out in minutes. By 2024, she had a team and a store in Kensington.

On 18 June, she's joining us online for a Creative Links conversation with Liz Olver () and the territory they'll cover is the stuff most jewellers are trying to work out: wholesaling and whether it's right for your business, the mechanics of selling drops, when to bring people in and grow your team, and how to think about promoting your work as the business gets bigger.

There'll be networking at the start and a Q&A at the end. Pay what you can: £7 or £10.

✖️ Date: 18 June 2026
✖️ Time: 6 – 8pm
✖️ Price: Pay what you can: £7 or £10
✖️ Venue: Online via Zoom
✖️ Bookings: goldsmiths-centre.org/whats-on

https://www.goldsmiths-centre.org/whats-on/creative-links-susannah-king-in-conversation-with-liz-olver/?utm_name=sked&utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_content=sked_6a1c70b3a60d2f4c5b322431

Silvia Serravalle () teaches jewellery illustration at L'École School of Jewellery Arts in Dubai, but on 16 and 17 July, she's at the Goldsmiths' Centre for a two-day course in gouache rendering, new to our programme this year.

The course covers metal finishes, white, yellow and rose gold, alongside faceted stones and cabochons, with live demonstrations and guided practice throughout.

All materials provided. Ten places, beginner level, bookings close 30 June.

✖️ Date: 16 – 17 July 2026
✖️ Time: 9.30am – 4.30pm
✖️ Price: £489
✖️ Venue: The Goldsmiths' Centre, London
✖️ Bookings: goldsmiths-centre.org/whats-on

https://www.goldsmiths-centre.org/whats-on/jewellery-rendering-metal-gemstones-with-silvia-serravalle/?utm_name=sked&utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_content=sked_6a170a740839a38883a2ccf3

Cloisonné enamelling is a multi-stage process: wire preparation, forming, wet-packing enamel, firing, grinding, polishing, and getting it right requires patience, precision and an understanding of how heat and colour interact at each stage.

Over two days with Linda Connelly (.linda) a jeweller and enamel artist with over 20 years of teaching experience and multiple GC&DC Award wins, you'll work through the full process on a fine silver disc, with expert demonstrations and 1:1 support throughout.

You'll cover colour control, layering, shading and finishing, and leave with a polished cloisonné piece and a clearer sense of what the technique can do for your work.

Beginner and intermediate level. Eight places, bookings close 19 June.

✖️ Date: 3 – 4 July 2026
✖️ Time: 9.30am – 4.30pm
✖️ Price: £439
✖️ Venue: The Goldsmiths' Centre, London
✖️ Bookings: goldsmiths-centre.org/whats-on

https://www.goldsmiths-centre.org/whats-on/cloisonne-enamelling-with-linda-connelly/?utm_name=sked&utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_content=sked_69ea07be78285be658ff86d3

Sometime before 1377, an unknown craftsperson in Sheffield made a knife good enough that Edward III listed it among his prized possessions. We don't know who made it; we just know it was Sheffield.

Emma Paragreen's essay in the Culture of Cutlery catalogue follows what came after. How a city with the rivers, the stone and iron ore built a global industry, and what changed when the Little Mesters gave way to the stamping shop.

Free to visit at the Goldsmiths' Centre, Monday to Friday, 9am – 6pm, until 24 June.

If you can't make it in person, the exhibition catalogue is available in our online shop, 50 pages exploring the same ground, with essays by Rachel Church, Emma Paragreen, Erin Sleeper, Dr Frances Parton and Charlotte Dew, plus a conversation with maker Simone ten Hompel.

Purchase it at goldsmiths-shop-talent.org/collections/exhibition-catalogues-and-books/ or via the link in the bio.

https://goldsmiths-shop-talent.org/collections/exhibition-catalogues-and-books/products/the-culture-of-cutlery?utm_name=sked&utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_content=sked_6a0c885da5a989ccb8f7eeb6

Spending an afternoon with a collection of historic teawares, handling them, tasting tea, writing from what you notice, might not be the obvious next step for a jeweller or silversmith. But working with objects and materials outside your usual practice has a way of loosening up how you see your own.

This workshop at the Chitra Collection (.museum) combines a curator-led tour, a tea tasting with a sommelier, and a hands-on session with pieces from the collection. Dr. Lania Knight, writer and Open University lecturer, guides the creative writing exercises running through it, to bring something back to how you write and talk about your own work.

Ten places, open to any creative practitioner.

✖️ Date: 11 June 2026
✖️ Time: 2 – 4.30pm
✖️ Price: £40
✖️ Venue: Chitra Collection, London
✖️ Bookings: goldsmiths-centre.org/whats-on

https://www.goldsmiths-centre.org/whats-on/creative-inspiration-workshop-using-sensory-experiences-to-unlock-your-creative-writing-potential/?utm_name=sked&utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_content=sked_69d678ed7265ee3444ae27ec

Liz Olver () has spent forty years in this industry at De Beers, Links of London, and twelve years as Design Director at Annoushka. She now sits on our Business Diagnostic panel, and we interviewed her recently about what she sees when jewellers come through those sessions.

She talks about pricing and why so many makers get it wrong. About range planning, what it actually means and why it matters more than most people realise. And about how rarely jewellers stop to ask themselves what they actually want their business to look like.

Read the full interview at: goldsmiths-centre.org/news

And if it prompts any questions about your own business, that's exactly what the Diagnostic is for. Current dates are sold out, but we're releasing autumn slots soon. In the meantime, join the waitlist via the link in our bio.

Our Business Catalyst (Small) Grants are also open, with £2,000 available for UK-based jewellers and silversmiths to put towards whatever the business needs right now.

https://www.goldsmiths-centre.org/news/liz-olver-helping-emerging-jewellers-navigate-the-hardest-part-knowing-what-to-do-next/?utm_name=sked&utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_content=sked_6a0c7fe3a5a989ccb8f7b464

Silvia Serravalle () teaches jewellery illustration at L'École School of Jewellery Arts in Dubai, established in 2012 with the support of Van Cleef & Arpels and on 16 and 17 July, she's coming to the Goldsmiths' Centre for a one-day rendering course. It's a new addition to our programme, and places are limited to ten.
,
The day covers gouache on grey paper: white, yellow and rose gold finishes, faceted stones and cabochons. Live demonstrations throughout, all materials included. If you've been wanting to get your designs down on paper properly, whether for clients, for manufacturers, or for your own process, this is a good opportunity.

Beginner level, bookings close 30 June.

✖️ Date: 16 and 17 July 2026
✖️ Time: 9.30am – 4.30pm
✖️ Price: £489
✖️ Venue: The Goldsmiths' Centre, London
✖️ Bookings: goldsmiths-centre.org/whats-on

https://www.goldsmiths-centre.org/whats-on/jewellery-rendering-metal-gemstones-with-silvia-serravalle/?utm_name=sked&utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_content=sked_6a01978c468dcfd9f08c8c29

If you work in business, as a consultant, lawyer, marketer, financial advisor, or in operations, you've probably built up expertise that most small creative businesses never get access to. The Goldsmiths' Centre's Business Mentoring Programme is a way to put that to use.

The programme matches senior professionals with 8+ year's experience running a business, or in a position of senior leadership, with early-career UK jewellers and silversmiths for up to 12 months of one-to-one support. Mentees come having already completed a Business Diagnostic session, so they arrive with specific questions and a clear sense of where their business needs attention. You don't need any knowledge of the jewellery trade; the support is on the business side: finance, marketing, sales, operations, planning.

On 20 July we're running a free 30-minute online session where our team will explain how the matching process works, what the time commitment looks like, and answer any questions. If you can't make it but want to find out more, you can register your interest via the link in our bio.

✖️ Date: 20 July 2026
✖️ Time: 6.30 – 7pm
✖️ Price: Free
✖️ Venue: Online via Zoom
✖️ Bookings: goldsmiths-centre.org/whats-on

https://www.goldsmiths-centre.org/whats-on/business-mentoring-what-to-know-before-volunteering-july-2026/?utm_name=sked&utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_content=sked_69fc67d54a1a8466a81d310f