This week's episode kicked off with a home studio tour by Meredith. As an ER nurse, Meredith turns to jewelry making as a way to escape and rejuvenate. She showed us her set up and Anne offered feedback (hint, her supportive husband has gifted her with some amazing tools!). We are still getting a lot of questions about home studio set ups in general so we went back to the basics for a lively discussion on just the top 10 (or 11) items needed. Surprisingly, as we were putting the list together the number one thing we realized that's needed is .... space. Having a space to create, concentrate, and de-stress is more important than ever right now as we're sheltering in place at home. We also took a quick look at 7 new makers in our Black Artists Matter segment. Read on for the full lists for both!

We have some great items left including a pickle pot and two steel tables (perfect for soldering). Come by any time between 10am-7pm. For those of you picking up purchases, feel free to come up to browse our remaining goodies or just text us and we'll bring your bleach-wiped purchases downstairs for curbside pick up (they are all packed up and ready to go). Text Anne at (619) 488-7540 upon arrival. Masks are required and we can accept up to 3 shoppers at a time in the Lab OR ... shop safely from home - Tune in live on Facebook at Noon to see what's left and ask questions. We're doing a Facebook Live shopping session at 12pm on - you'll find a link to it on our FU Covid page. See what's left.

In May of 2018, Childish Gambino (Donald Glover) released This is America, his searing music video exposé of racism and gun violence in America. If you haven't seen it, watch it now and, to understand it's subtle meanings, watch this breakdown. It is a gut-wrenching look at our country's disease of racism. And it is mind boggling to think about where we are two years later.

One of the questions Anne gets frequently is how to go about finishing rings. With hundreds of sales in her Etsy store alone, it's safe to say that Anne had some great professional ring finishing tips to share - including recommendations for supplies. Next up, metalsmith Early Bushey walked us through his home studio, stove-top method for creating a durable STUNNING blue steel patina and shared a great book all about tool making. Continuing with our Setting Up Your Home Studio series, we got pickled! Anne described her pickle approach and a crock pot recommendation. After a bit of Q&A we finished by checking out two Works that Wowed us this week - mokume pendants & earrings by Elizabeth McKenna and some striking mokume rings by Debbie Rodriquez. Read on for photos and resource links.

We live in a racist system and changing that will take time. I've heard it said that it's a marathon not a sprint, but I believe it's neither - it's a relay race. When I march I think about how my mom marched in the 60's and 70's for civil rights, against the Vietnam War and for women's reproductive rights. My activism now is a direct line from hers - and I am often amazed at how hopeful she was. She's gone now, so I can't ask her, but I am pretty sure the key was that she didn't see it as a constant fight. Instead she saw it as working toward a better future. We can't afford to get overwhelmed by set backs and negative news. We need hope to keep moving forward. Here are a few recent stories of progress - some big and some small - to help us all keep our eyes on the prize*.

One racial bias we can easily see in our own lives is the lack of black voices in our online communities. For many of us, this is because we have meekly accepted the "recommendations" spoon fed to us by systemically biased algorithms. But the algorithm is us - for better or for worse - so we have been seeking out great BIPOC makers and we'd like to share a few we've found. Check out their work, interact with their content (like, share, follow) and you'll see more of it. Please add your own favorites in the comments below too!

We have moved our classes and community online and are closing our cramped 260 sq. ft. rental. We don't plan to reopen in the near future so rather than store things, we're having a big tool & equipment sale. We're charging fair prices for gently-used tools (all less than 2 years old) in the hopes that we can partially offset the expenses incurred during the mandatory shut down. We also want to see our well-loved equipment go to good homes. It's a great opportunity to dial in your home studio without paying shipping charges! Please do not stop by. Due to social distancing, we cannot offer casual, drop-in browsing and Barracks 15 is still locked. For a detailed list of what's available - including pricing - and how to shop, see our FU COVID Sale page.

The Lab is open - sort of
With all COVID precautions in place, we are opening up some lab hours between June 16th and 26th. We can accommodate two users at a time with masks and social distancing required. We've carefully reorganized the Lab to make this possible, while keeping all of the tools available-soldering station, rolling mill (yes!), shears, tumbler, pickle, etc. Lab users this week will also have first crack at the tools and equipment in our FU Covid Sale (more info on that coming soon). We hope you'll stop by and enjoy a little time at the Lab before we close. 3-hour blocks (sorry, that is the minimum) are available now for booking via our online calendar.

The Lab is Dead, Long Live the Lab! Anneville Jewelry Lab is evolving from a tiny brick & mortar space to an international, online community.
As COVID arrived in San Diego we bleach-wiped our tools and started evaluating contingencies, but with the March 19th closure of all non-essential businesses, everything came to a halt. Initially we thought our only option was to re-open. We priced plywood and looked at other ideas but the most people we would ever be able to safely accommodate in terms of social distancing would be three - a tech and two students. That was not going to pay our costs. We researched small business loans but we didn't qualify for the ones we found - or by the time we did, their funds were gone. While we researched and pondered, the Lab sat quiet. Clearly we would need to innovate to survive.

Over the second week of June, Anne taught her first online class at Anneville Jewelry Lab to an enthusiastic group of 10 students ranging from San Diego to Georgia all the way to Edmonton, Canada. Blazing ahead through the vagaries of technology, Anne guided the students through the creation of a stunning mokume gane bracelet, and the resulting student works were fantastic! Along with the learning we also had a lot of fun seeing each other's home studios and tools. San Diego local Miranda created a gorgeous bracelet using her very basic but ingenious kitchen table set up of masking tape & ballpeen hammer stake proving that you don't need a ton of tools to make cool stuff. Speaking of tools though, check out Mary's uber-cool mandrel! We also got a kick out of guest appearances by Laurie's dog Rusty (great name for a metalsmith's dog-LOL!), Jasper the very fabulous cockatiel and various cats - who unequivocally let us know exactly what they thought of the whole thing. Read on for more photos and Anne's thoughts on the class.

This week we're counting down to Juneteenth (Friday June 19th - African American Emancipation Day) by taking daily actions to fight racism. Here at the Lab we've been thinking a lot about the best ways we can be a part of the Black Lives Matter movement. While the Lab has always been a place to escape worldly cares, that doesn't mean we're exempt from taking action. In non-covid times, we would be out protesting (peacefully), marching and attending rallies but both of us have medical issues that make social distancing a requirement. We have also come to realize that it's time for white folks to stop yammering about themselves being good liberals and actually listen.

In this week's MAAAA Anne takes us to the ancient ruins of Taq Kasra as she tells the story of an enigmatic cigarette case. Next, Earl explained where that water comes from when you're soldering and provided a handy method for getting rid of it. Continuing on with our Home Studio Set Up series, Anne gave us a quick look at setting up a soldering cave and provided recommendations for the various parts (including suppliers). If you missed it live you can still watch the recording. Resources in this episode:
K-23 soft firebrick: clay-king.com
Local San Diego source: Freeform Clay in National City
Solderite board:riogrande.com/product/Solderite-Pad-Hard-12-x-12-x-12/502052
Not cheap - try the fiber board at Clay King

Our first ever online class "Keum Boo Like You Never Knew" was taught by Bette Barnett on June 1st, 3rd and 5th and was very well received. We are really thrilled because Bette, Ame and Anne all put a lot of time and energy into creating the best possible experience for the students. Bette meticulously planned the class and filmed great demos (teaching herself all of the tech along the way!). Anne figured out click & ship for the mailing labels (no small endeavor as it turns out) and Ame set up an online store for Anneville and figured out all of the registration and Zoom details. So, we were extremely gratified for these words of praise from Cary (one of the students) posted to Facebook afterwards: "I just finished a class with Bette Barnett and feel like I have just swallowed the last bite of my chocolate bar. I don’t want it to be over. I want more! It was absolutely wonderful.”  From Bette’s great demos to the extensive student interaction, this class was super fun. I was blown away by the cool things people made. We even succeeded in carrying over our traditional last-day-of-class prize raffle! We have a second session of this class starting soon (also sold out) and Bette’s already busy planning a third so if you’re interested, visit our Classes and Workshops page to join the waiting list.

In this week's MAAAA Anne did a Tip Test to see if Baby Bell cheese rinds really do work as saw lube. Next in the demo portion. we delved into the options for adding a torch to your home studio with a quick look at butane, MAPP gas, acetylene air recommendations. In keeping with the home studio theme, shared her unconventional bracelet mandrel - a sawed off shotgun (to be fair, she lives Montana and it's not a working gun). We also checked back in with Kathe on her MASSC Challenge and ... she did it! "Dogfish in Kelp" was successfully completed and submitted on time, so we're all rooting for her in the Challenge. Resources from this episode:

• Shanks & Mandrels Ring Smackdown by Danaca Designs: danacadesign.com.
• Anne's Home Studio Set Up Presentation: Download the pdf.
• For more info on oxygen concentrators see https://www.riogrande.com/product/re-manufactured-oxygen-concentrator/500140
• Paige brand torch tips (for use with an Oxy/Propane torch): www.paigetools.com
  

If you missed it live, watch it on our YouTube channel and don't be shy about sending in your questions for a future episode.

Send us your Questions
Our next MAAAA is scheduled for Thursday, June 11th from 6-7pm PDT. This is your chance to get FREE feedback from professional metal arts instructors! Send in your questions or submit an item for one of the other segments and we'll follow up as needed on any details. Want help with a tricky soldering job? Ask Anne. Wondering if a tip you saw really works? Send us the link. Want to share a recent piece or give us a tour of your studio? Send us some pix. Care to recommend a special tool or great class (or instructor)? Let us know! You are heartily invited to send us your questions, works-in-progress, new tool finds and more!