STRONG — From his western Maine studio, Steve Mitman methodically worked with a silver band, buffing it to perfection. Buffing is one of the final steps in finishing the rings he designs and produces at Silver Beehive Studio.
Steve Mitman puts the finishing touches on one of his Silver Beehive Studio designs. Dee Menear/Franklin Journal Buy this Photo
Mitman graduated in 1989 with a bachelor’s in ceramics and art education from Michigan State University in East Lansing, Michigan. During his senior year, he took his first metalsmithing class and was hooked.
“I fell in love with making jewelry and would have changed my major if MSU had a jewelry program,” he said.
Mitman is an art educator in Maine School Administrative District 58. For the last 29 years, he has inspired students in developing their individual creativity.
Four years ago, Mitman added a studio onto a barn he and his daughter, Ivy, had built. With a studio, he was able to focus on creating designs but had no intention of selling his finished product.
A tree of colorful wax rings is ready to be set in plaster which will be cured at a maximum temperature of 1,600 degrees Fahrenheit. Submitted photo
“Over three and a half years, I probably made between 600 and 700 rings,” he said. “That is the creative process. Experiment, fail and keep the pieces of the failures you like.”
His technique is unique in that he fabricates ring designs by adding texture and material to wax bands called sprue. “Most jewelers remove material by carving wax. I add matter to it. Basically, it is small sculpture,” he said.
Once the ring is finished to his vision, it is placed on a wax cylinder, called a tree, with other prototypes. The tree and rings are cast in plaster, then cured in a kiln.
“It is cured for an 18-hour cycle with a top temperature of 1,600 degrees Fahrenheit,” he said. “When it comes out, all the material is melted and I am left with a cavity.”
The hollow is filled with molten silver and then quenched in water. Once the plaster is washed away, Mitman is left with a silver casting of rings.
“It takes about 10 minutes from the time the plaster mold comes out of the kiln,” he explained. “It’s like Christmas. What was once a colorful wax tree is now all silver.”
The rings are then finished by tumbling, filing, sanding and buffing.
Sometimes there are flaws in the design process. The flaws are learned from so the design can be improved. Once a design is perfected, it is sent out so a rubber mold can be made of it, making it easier to produce.
Last December, Mitman decided to put his rings before three focus groups to gauge interest and see what people would respond to. He grouped a few hundred rings into collections and asked people for their opinions.
“That gave me some direction and I was able to narrow down my focus to what would become my first collection,” he said. “We started with simple textured bands; the Archetype Collection.”
Current and future designs in Silver Beehive Studio collections. Submitted photo
It is a collection of 30 bands with names like Citrus Peel, Honeycomb, Fir Bough and Snakeskin. The collection was released over the summer through the Silver Beehive Studio internet storefront.
“This is quality, unusual, affordable jewelry that is made in Maine,” he said. “Our market is global; it is retail without borders.”
The website features many photographs of each ring, which Mitman feels is an important aspect.
“It takes a lot of courage to buy a ring online,” he said. “To help make it more comfortable for customers, there are lots of pictures of each ring on the website.”
Mitman said he also felt it was important to photograph the rings on the hands of local people, rather than use hand models. He said this would allow people to visualize what the rings would look like on their hands.
The next collection to be released will have an art deco inspiration. “Ultimately, I would like to release three to four collections a year,” he said.
In June, Mitman hired Michaela Zelie as a shop assistant. Zelie is a Mt. Abram High School graduate and holds a creative writing degree from the University of Maine at Farmington. She works as the librarian in the high school she graduated from.
Mitman’s wife, Christi, also an educator in MSAD 58, also helps out in the studio, mostly with the paperwork end of things.
Michaela Zelie sizes a wax strip, called a sprue. This is one of the first steps in creating a Silver Beehive Studio ring. Dee Menear/Franklin Journal Buy this Photo
“I’ve always been creative but never really took any art classes,” Zelie said. “It is a lot of fun. I didn’t realize there would be so much involved in making jewelry.”
Zelie does everything from sizing sprue to shipping the final product.
“Michaela takes care of the structure here,” Mitman said. “I am having a blast designing.”
For more information or to view the collection, visit silverbeehivestudio.com. Silver Beehive Studio can also be found on Facebook and Instagram.
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