Alexandra Raphael wins gold in both enamelling sections and the overall gold Senior award for all technical categories.

In December 2018 I created a “lace” plique-a-jour bowl that subsequently was purchased by the V&A museum for their collection. I thought the bowl was a beginning of something that was truly interesting - the

Meanwhile, Adam’s cup was going along fine. It was stoned down and refired for the final time. Ready to polish. Several frustrating days later Mark’s cup was ready as well. Final polishing with pumice and

New colours are introduced and as they are transparent, any additional layering will start to result in gradual gradation of colours. This will enhance the three dimensional images and give them shading and highlights.  

The cups were fired at 800C for a few minutes until the melting glass fused the wires in place. This first firing can be very nerve racking as the wires are only held in place

Once the wirework was completed, I began to grind the enamel glass in a mortar and pestle washing as I went - a laborious process to insure the colour glass was as translucent as possible.

I milled the cloisonné wire for the cups slightly less high than I normally used for my jewellery as I had not wanted to counter enamel the cups. (I would later have them gold plated

Concentrating and looking just at the silver and gold wire on the shiny silver cups is a little eye straining to say the least. The replica of their newborn hospital bracelets were essential for the

It was a slow and nostalgic process…. Memories of our early years in Ireland, our Irish Wolfhounds, baby blankets crochet by great grandmothers and favourite soft toys. Their marriages and subsequent children were to be

I was in lockdown but, I had all my essential tools, enamels and kilns at hand. Several months before the lockdown, by sheer luck, I ordered 6 silver cups spun and ready for enamelling. These