One of the important benefits of belonging to an Eastern Federation club is the opportunity to attend the two federation-sponsored Workshops at Wildacres. Imagine being able to spend a week totally immersed in the joys of our hobby - no interruptions from television, news, traffic, or worries.  The setting is an idyllic mountain top retreat where you are well fed and cared for and you can take classes in many aspects of the hobby - lapidary, jewelry making, mineralogy, etc.  There is such a place and it's called Wildacres.  What is Wildacres? Wildacres Retreat is a conference center offering its facilities to nonprofit groups that conduct educational or cultural programs and seminars. It is a true retreat, undisturbed by through traffic or noises of the city. I.D. and Madolyn Blumenthal of Charlotte, NC dedicated Wildacres in 1946, for the improvement of human relations and interfaith dialogue. Since 1972, Wildacres has operated as a public foundation. Wildacres is situated on 1600 acres at an elevation of 3,300 feet atop a mountain called Pompey's Knob, near the Blue Ridge Parkway. It is halfway between Asheville and Blowing Rock in North Carolina's Blue Ridge Mountains. The primary support of Wildacres comes from its own resources and The Blumenthal Foundation. Wildacres receives gifts from individuals, businesses and foundations interested in the philosophy and programs that are held there. The EFMLS sponsors two annual lapidary and jewelry-making workshops at Wildacres each year. Each session lasts for one week during which classes are given in areas such as Mineral Identification, Cabochon Making, Faceting, Soapstone Carving, Chain Making, Wire-wrapping and Wirecraft Jewelry, Precious Metal Clay, Lost Wax Casting, Intarsia, Micromounting, Glass Engraving and Etching, Fused Glass, Lampwork Beads and Pewter Fabrication. We also offer a course in Certified Judging and Exhibiting for those interested in improving their display cases or becoming judges. We are so pleased to be able to have two wonderful sessions planned again this year.  We hope that you and your fellow club members will join us at one of these wonderful sessions held at Wildacres, a special place in the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina. Spring Dates:  April 17 - 23, 2009 Fall Dates:  September 7 - 13, 2009 What are the Requirements and Costs? Workshop attendance is open to any active member of a Club or Society that is a member of the Eastern Federation. Individuals from the other Federations may attend on a space-available basis. All registration forms (except staff) MUST have 4 class choices listed, in the order of preference.  Enrollees will be placed in the classes, as registration forms are received and once a class is full, the next chosen class with openings will be assigned. Fees for the 2009 sessions of Wildacres are $345 per person. This fee includes room, board and classroom instruction. Most classes will also charge a nominal fee to cover materials and supplies. The week at Wildacres is divided into two parts or "semesters". Students take one class lasting either the full week (4-days) or two different classes lasting 2-days each. The day between "semesters" is a day set aside to allow participants to explore the region, participate in an old-fashioned tailgate session and relax. Each Wildacres Workshop also features an expert in residence who gives daily talks about a variety of topics in his field of interest.  The spring session (April) speaker will be   Michael Wise, research mineralogist/curator at the Smithsonian and one of the world's leading authorities on the mineralogy of pegmatites.  For the fall session (September), we're pleased to welcome Brenda Foreman who will talk about the history of jewelry.   These experts live on campus, often attend classes and interact with Workshop participants throughout the session. If you would like to obtain a short CD about the EFMLS Wildacres Workshops, send an e-mail to:  <cscrystals2@verizon.net> giving the name and postal address to which the program is to be sent and the name of your club.  The program is free for the asking and an ideal way of sharing Wildacres with your club members. For a printable copy of the Wildacres registration form, click here. Note: You must have Adobe Acrobat Reader to view the above file. The above requires Acrobat Reader, you may download the current version free of charge at: (click on acrobat button above) Wildacres 2009 Spring Dates: April 17th - 23rd Speaker in Residence will be Mike Wise CLASS INSTRUCTOR DESCRIPTION Faceting Steve Weinberger Students will learn to cut and polish a 57 facet round brilliant gemstone.  In addition, they will learn how to identify well-cut stones, select rough material and see whether or not they enjoy this fascinating aspect of the hobby.  4-day class.  No prior experience necessary. Lost Wax Casting Fred Sias This is not a wax design course.  Students will learn basic techniques for lost-wax jewelry casting.  Using commercial wax models, student will learn proper methods for repairing wax models, attaching sprues, investing, burnout, casting and final finishing of jewelry.  4- day class.  No prior experience necessary. Glass Etching & Engraving B. Jay Bowman Students will learn the basic process of glass engraving and etching and the difference between them.  All students will engrave a rose as their first project, and then select from other available patterns for a second project.  At the end of the class, students will have a projected suitable for framing.  2-day class offered both semesters.  No prior experience necessary. Silversmithing - Basic Pat Baker Have fun learning the basics of working silver sheet and wire to fabricate jewelry. The class will be an introduction to annealing and bending/shaping/texturing metal, soldering, piercing and polishing. 2-day class offered 1st semester. No prior experience necessary. Silversmithing - Intermediate Pat Baker Students will be working with metals by doing more complex projects. Learn to make a bezel and bail in which students will set a cabochon to make a pendant. 2-day class offered 2nd semester. Prerequisite: Basic silversmithing experience including soldering. Cabochons - Basic Bernie Emery Learn to transform a rough piece of rock into a shiny, well-formed cabochon. You will learn the use of the trim saw as well as basics of grinding, sanding and polishing. Slabs will be available or students may use their own with approval of the instructor. 2 day class offered 1st semester. No prior experience necessary. Cabochons - Intermediate Bernie Emery Learn to cut different shapes and the techniques needed to do so. 2-day class offered 2nd semester. Pre-requisite: Students must have prior experience with cabbing and use of the trim saw. Wildacres "Wild" Virginia Meador Students will explore the beauty of Wildacres including its flora and some of its hidden secrets. Good walking shoes or boots with ankle support and rain gear are recommended. 2-day class offered first semester. No prior experience necessary, however this is not a class for those having difficulty walking woodland trails and hills. Micromounting Carolyn Weinberger Micromounting is the art of preparing small mineral specimens so they can best be viewed under a microscope. You will learn the process of making "mounts" and learn to appreciate the beauty of these tiny, often perfect specimens. 2-day class offered 2nd semester. No prior experience necessary. Wirewrapped Jewelry - Basic Jackie Orsini Are you looking for a method to display your beautiful stones that does not require soldering? This class will teach you the skills needed to complete several beautiful projects such as earrings, rings and pendants using sterling silver. 2-day class offered 1st semester. No prior experience necessary. Wirewrapped Jewelry - Intermediate Jackie Orsini Are you looking for a way to use your larger beads (the ones with the big holes)? In this class students will learn to use lots of coils, loops and bends to wrap those beads and make a wonderful bracelet. We will also learn how to make the closure for this bracelet and use a special tool to create wire beads. 2-day class offered 2nd semester. Pre-requisite: Basic wire-wrapping skills. Bead Weaving Off-Loom   Mia Schulman Welcome to the world of bead weaving. Projects woven in the Peyote stitch are smooth and drape as if they were made from fabric. The first project will be a small pendant using needle, bead threat and tiny Delica beads. Two stitches taught can also be used for earrings and bracelets. 2-day class offered 1st semester. No prior experience necessary Picasso Jewelry Mia Schulman Named after the famed painter, the earrings and pendants are created from wire and beads. This is your chance to be creative and come up with pieces that are attractive, different and can be quite "funky". 2-day class offered 2nd semester. No prior experience necessary. Metal Clay Magic (PMC) Nancy Duvall Working with silver and bronze, this class is for the first-time user as well as folks who have had a chance to "dabble" with the clay. On the first class day students will work with the new, fabulous bronze metal clay. On the 2nd day, we will create piece from pure silver clay. You will learn to work with textures, shapes, setting stones, balls, jump rings and slumping while creating pendants, charms and earrings. Patinas and finishing techniques will be taught as well. 2-day class offered 1st semester. No prior experience necessary. Setting Natural Stones in PMC Nancy Duvall There are many natural and semi-precious stones that you can set into the metal clay and kiln fire. This class will teach several different techniques for setting those stones while creating several fabulous, one-of-a-kind pure silver rings. 2-day class offered 2nd semester. Prerequisite: Basic PMC skills. Fall Dates: September 7th-13th Speaker in Residence will be Brenda Foreman CLASS INSTRUCTOR DESCRIPTION Cabochons - Basic Al DeMilo Hands on instruction will be given to show how to transform a rough piece into a shiny, well-formed cabochon with no flat spots. The use of a trim saw as well as techniques to grind, sand and polish the stone into a standard size and shape will be covered. Slabs will be provided, but you may use your own with instructor's approval. 2-day class offered 1st semester. No prior experience necessary. Cabochons - Intermediate Al DeMilo This course is an extension of already learned skills. It will focus on the crafting of cabochons of difficult shapes and sizes. Much one-to-one attention will be given. Slabs will be provided, but you may use your own with instructor's approval. 2-day class offered 2nd semester. Pre-requisite: Students must know how to use the trim saw, dop a stone and use a grinding, sanding and polishing machine. Exhibiting & Judging B. Jay Bowman Take an in-depth look at the AFMS Uniform Rules and how they apply to exhibits you may wish to prepare. Students will need to have the 2009 AFMS Uniform Rules (available for purchase at Wildacres). 4-day class. No prior experience necessary. Faceting Reivan Zeleznik Students will learn to cut and polish a 57 facet round brilliant gemstone. In addition, they will learn how to identify well-cut stones, select rough material and see whether or not they enjoy this fascinating aspect of the hobby. 4-day class. No prior experience necessary. Fused Glass - Basic Becky Edmundson Fused glass is the art of cutting and layering pieces of glass and then firing them in a kiln. Dichroic-coated glass gives a 3-D look. Students will learn the basics of cutting and firing the glass and will complete at least 2 pieces of jewelry. Please bring safety glasses. If you own them, please bring a glass cutter and breaking pliers. 2-day class offered 1st semester. No prior experience necessary. Fused Glass - Advanced Becky Edmundson Students will learn to use a wet saw to cut shapes, a grinder to smooth the glass, and a jeweler's bit to cut a channel in the piece before it is fire polished in a kiln. You should expect to complete a minimum of 2 finished pieces. Please bring safety glasses. If you own them, please bring a glass cutter and breaking pliers. 2-day class offered 2nd semester. No prior experience necessary. Lampwork Beads Pat Baker An introduction to glass bead making, this class will focus on basic bead making techniques including shapes, surface decoration (dots, latticino, frit, metal leaf), pulling stringers and making latticino. 2-day class offered both semesters. No prior experience necessary. Pewter Fabrication Bruce Gaber Learn to make functional and decorative objects from a wonderfully versatile metal. Pewter is easy to work and easy to solder. This allows us to make a variety of forms in a much shorter time than working in silver. Pewter can be finished in everything from a glossy high luster to a deep rich matte. The surface can be further embellished by embossing and the addition of an etch or patina. Join us as we explore this most ancient and traditional material. Oh, and by the way, modern pewter contains no lead. 4-day class. No prior experience necessary. Silversmithing - Basic Ruthie Cohen Students will learn the basic skills needed to make jewelry including filing, soldering, bending and polishing. 2-day class offered 1st semester. No prior experience necessary. Silversmithing - Intermediate Ruthie Cohen Students will use basic silversmithing techniques and learn new ones as they create more advanced jewelry. 2-day class offered 2nd semester. Pre-requisite: Basic silversmithing skills. Wirewrapped Jewelry Ginger Posthumus Students will learn the basics of wirecraft using brass and then will work in silver to make a beaded chain and in gold-filled wire to make either a pendant using a cabochon or a beaded bracelet. You may bring your own tools if you wish, but be sure to mark them clearly. 2-day class offered both semesters. No prior experience necessary. Sharing Time Sharing Time is a series of mini-presentations or demonstrations of various lapidary skills, videos or slide presentations that are hobby-related, etc. These programs are generally less than 45 minutes each. Should you have any skill or other program you might like to share while you're at Wildacres, please indicate your desire on the application form. More About Wildacres Among the many groups using the facilities are music and art master classes, religious and interfaith groups, mineral and lapidary societies, medical, social science, natural sciences, academic, environmental and senior citizens groups. All groups must be nonprofit and have planned educational programs. Each group plans its own program and furnishes its director and staff. Wildacres supplements the programs with the aid of its staff and equipment and some recreational equipment, including scenic nature trails, horseshoes, ping-pong, volleyball, basketball and a canteen. Wildacres is not a holiday resort and does not cater to the traveling public. Only group reservations are accepted with a maximum of 120 people. Small groups can be accommodated at the same time. Due to health regulations, no pets are allowed. There are two lodges, a dining hall building, a library and auditorium, a mineral and lapidary workshop and a pottery studio. All buildings are heated. Meals are served family style. All sleeping rooms have private baths and have either two twin beds or one double and one twin bed. There is a spacious lobby and several large and small meeting rooms. When weather permits, the patio can also be used for assemblies. Wildacres has a lending and reference library and gem and mineral displays. All facilities at Wildacres are designed in an attempt to "blend the graces of modern life with the beauty of the wilderness." Points of interest in the area include the North Carolina Mineral Museum, Mineral and Gem Mines, Blue Ridge Parkway Scenic Overlooks, Crabtree and Linville Falls on the Blue Ridge Parkway, Grandfather Mountain, two 18 hole golf courses and tennis nearby, and Mt. Mitchell, the highest peak east of the Rockies. Wildacres is about 3 miles from the Little Switzerland post office. Nearest towns are Spruce Pine and Marion, NC. Access is available from the Blue Ridge Parkway at Gooch Gap, located between mileposts 336 and 337. Distance from Charlotte is about 112 miles. More Wildacres Pictures, double-click here. For a better understanding of our host, Wildacres Retreat, click here. For questions or further information, please contact Fran Sick, EFMLS Wildacres Director at ednfran@epix.net If you would like to obtain a short CD about the EFMLS Wildacres Workshops, send an e-mail to: <cscrystals2@verizon.net> giving the name and postal address to which the program is to be sent and the name of your club. The program is free for the asking and an ideal way of sharing Wildacres with your club members.