Crafts
Metal & jewellery
Working metal at every scale, from silversmithing to blacksmithing.
David English / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0
Home machining
Turning and milling metal to close tolerances on a lathe or mill in a garage workshop — the craft that makes every other workshop craft possible.
Over £1,000 to start · indoors · gentle
Lahoucine Boukhanchouch / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0
Hand engraving
Cutting lines into metal with a graver — lettering, ornament and inscription, done by hand at a bench.
£300–£1,000 to start · indoors · sedentary
Tiny Home Nomad / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0
Knifemaking
Making a blade from steel — the two routes in, what heat treatment actually does, the grinder that is the real hazard, and where UK law sits for a maker.
£300–£1,000 to start · indoors or out · demanding
Also in this category
Classified but not yet written up.
45 activities in the catalogue, 4 written up so far.
Armour making
CraftRaising and dishing plate armour for reenactment and historical combat, from patterns taken off the body.
£300–£1,000 to startIndoorsDemanding
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Beadwork
CraftStitching tiny beads into patterned fabric, jewellery and ornaments.
Under £25 to startIndoorsSedentary
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Blacksmithing
CraftHeating steel in a forge and shaping it on an anvil with a hammer.
Over £1,000 to startIndoors or outdoorsVery demanding
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Bronze casting
CraftCasting sculpture in bronze, usually through a foundry but sometimes at home scale.
Over £1,000 to startIndoors or outdoorsModerate effort
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Chainmaille
CraftLinking thousands of metal rings into armour, jewellery and sculpture.
£25–£100 to startIndoorsSedentary
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Chasing and repoussé
CraftRaising relief in sheet metal by working it from both sides with punches.
£300–£1,000 to startIndoorsModerate effort
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Clockmaking
CraftMaking clock movements and cases from scratch, distinct from repairing existing ones.
Over £1,000 to startIndoorsGentle
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Coppersmithing
CraftRaising vessels from copper sheet by hammering, with annealing between each stage.
£300–£1,000 to startIndoorsDemanding
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Costume jewellery collecting
HobbyCollecting non-precious jewellery by maker and period, where signatures and construction date a piece.
£25–£100 to startIndoorsSedentary
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Damascening
CraftInlaying gold or silver wire into a keyed steel ground, used on arms, ironwork and jewellery.
£300–£1,000 to startIndoorsGentle
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Electroplating
CraftDepositing metal onto a surface by electrolysis, used in restoration and jewellery finishing.
£100–£300 to startIndoorsGentle
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Enamelling
CraftFusing powdered glass onto metal in a kiln or with a torch for permanent colour.
£300–£1,000 to startIndoorsGentle
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Filigree
CraftBuilding jewellery from twisted and flattened fine wire soldered into open patterns.
£300–£1,000 to startIndoorsSedentary
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Forge building
CraftBuilding a solid-fuel or gas forge and the shop around it, before any smithing happens.
£300–£1,000 to startOutdoorsDemanding
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Granulation
CraftFusing tiny metal spheres onto a surface without solder, an ancient goldsmithing art.
Over £1,000 to startIndoorsSedentary
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Home foundry casting
CraftMelting and pouring aluminium or bronze into moulds you made yourself.
£300–£1,000 to startOutdoorsDemanding
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Jewellery making
CraftMaking wearable pieces from wire, beads, resin, clay or metal.
£25–£100 to startIndoorsSedentary
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Knife handle making
CraftFitting scales and handles to blades in wood, bone and composite — the accessible half of knifemaking.
£100–£300 to startIndoorsGentle
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Lampworking
CraftMelting glass rod in a torch flame to make beads and small sculpture.
£300–£1,000 to startIndoorsGentle
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Lapidary
CraftHobbyCutting, grinding and polishing stone into cabochons and faceted gems on wheels and laps.
£300–£1,000 to startIndoorsGentle
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Lost-wax casting
CraftCarving a model in wax, burning it out of a mould and casting metal in its place.
£300–£1,000 to startIndoorsGentle
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Metal clay
CraftModelling with clay that fires to solid silver, bypassing most traditional metalwork.
£100–£300 to startIndoorsSedentary
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Metal spinning
CraftForming sheet metal over a mandrel on a lathe with hand tools, one of the few chipless metal processes.
£300–£1,000 to startIndoorsDemanding
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Mokume gane
CraftLaminating and forging patterned metal billets, wood-grain metal from Japan.
Over £1,000 to startIndoorsModerate effort
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Pattern welding
CraftForge-welding layered steels into a patterned billet, usually for blades.
Over £1,000 to startIndoors or outdoorsVery demanding
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Pattern-welded steel
CraftForge-welding layered steels into patterned billets for blades and jewellery.
Over £1,000 to startIndoors or outdoorsDemanding
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Pewter casting
CraftCasting a low-melting alloy in simple moulds, the gentlest introduction to metal casting.
£25–£100 to startIndoors or outdoorsGentle
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Pewter smithing
CraftRaising and spinning pewter, a soft metal that forgives beginners in a way silver does not.
£100–£300 to startIndoorsModerate effort
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Powder coating
CraftElectrostatically applying and oven-curing a powder finish, now within reach of a home workshop.
£300–£1,000 to startIndoorsModerate effort
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Repoussé and chasing
CraftRaising relief in sheet metal by working it from both sides over pitch.
£100–£300 to startIndoorsModerate effort
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Resin casting
CraftCasting polyurethane and epoxy resin into moulds for models, parts and jewellery.
£100–£300 to startIndoorsSedentary
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Ring making
CraftSizing, forming and finishing rings — the usual first project in silver jewellery.
£100–£300 to startIndoorsGentle
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Sand casting
CraftCasting metal into bonded sand moulds, the accessible route into home foundry work.
£300–£1,000 to startOutdoorsModerate effort
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Sheet metal fabrication
CraftCutting, folding and joining sheet into boxes, panels and enclosures, worked out flat before it is bent.
£300–£1,000 to startIndoorsModerate effort
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Silversmithing
CraftForming, soldering and finishing silver into jewellery and vessels.
£300–£1,000 to startIndoorsModerate effort
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Steel tongue drum making
CraftMaking tuned steel tongue drums by cutting and tuning sheet steel.
£300–£1,000 to startIndoors or outdoorsModerate effort
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Stone setting
CraftSecuring gemstones into metal — the jewellery skill with the least margin for error.
£300–£1,000 to startIndoorsSedentary
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Tinsmithing
CraftMaking and repairing objects in tinplate, a light-metal trade craft.
£300–£1,000 to startIndoorsGentle
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Torch enamelling
CraftFusing powdered glass to metal with a hand torch rather than a kiln.
£100–£300 to startIndoorsSedentary
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Watchmaking
CraftBuilding and servicing mechanical watch movements to tolerances measured in hundredths of a millimetre.
Over £1,000 to startIndoorsSedentary
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Wire wrapping
CraftBinding stones and beads in shaped wire with no soldering at all.
Under £25 to startIndoorsSedentary
In the catalogue, not written up yet