“The class was sooooo good! Mabel was an amazing teacher, answered all my questions and helped me along the way, while still giving me space to do my own thing. I love the pendant that I took home, and feel so proud of what I accomplished. It was all thanks to this amazing workshop. Highly recommend.”
“Would Not Recommend – Please Read Below if You Are Considering This Class
My friend and I take a class every three months, and despite this being the most expensive one we’ve done, it was also the first ever we were disappointed with.
Pros
• We were offered tea upon arrival.
• We ended up with a nice pendant.
• Prompt email replies.
• After I shared my feedback, they offered me a free £10 chain (which I declined, as I wasn’t looking for anything free—just hoping they would address the issues).
However, many areas fell short:
Disorganized and Noisy Setup
• Instead of a structured class, this studio runs multiple groups at different times in a very small space. This made it incredibly noisy, with conversations overlapping and equipment constantly in use such as very noisy grinder. We could barely hear the instructor or talk to each other.
• They also had music playing which added to the noise, I asked for it to be turned down because I couldn’t hear anyone talk, but my request was ignored.
• Shared materials were being used by other groups, meaning we had to wait or miss out on things.
Lack of Transparency on Costs
• There was a board displaying sample designs, but we weren’t told until much later that the specific board we had been shown all required an extra charge. We were then showed board of included items (another group had this board so we didn’t view it initially) . If you’re going to upsell, at least be upfront about it.
• The sample board of included designs showed earrings and pendants, but some of the larger earrings were sold as singles, not pairs—something we only discovered after choosing. Again, just explain what we are looking at.
• I was happy with my final pendant but when I got home, I realized my pendant didn’t fit any of the chains I had. I emailed to ask and was told I should have bought a specific chain from them for £10. No one mentioned this during the class. Worse, when I brought it up via email, I was assured their staff had told us—which was simply untrue.
Poor Time Management & Experience
• We spent far too much time waiting around. After drawing our designs, we were left sitting there for ages in a noisy, unpleasant environment . Lots of classes have wait times which is fine, but it’s normally then when you can chat but this wasn’t feasible here, I went outside several times for some peace.
• There were no group introductions, or what to expect from the class making the whole experience feel disjointed.
Unprofessional Environment
• There was a strong smell of cigarettes, and right next to me was an ashtray and four packs of cigarettes and a lighter—hardly the atmosphere you’d expect for a creative workshop.
Pushy About Positive Reviews
• We were told multiple times to leave a good review, to the point that it felt forceful. Asking for feedback is fine, but insisting it must be positive is not.
Lack of Basic Hospitality
• After the initial cup of tea, nothing else was offered. Our entire table was thirsty, and another group eventually had to ask for water. There was a tap right there behind our group —it would have been easy to provide cups and let people help themselves.
Final Thoughts
Upselling is fine, but the basic experience should still feel complete. Instead, this class prioritized profit over experience—cramming in too many people, not having enough supplies (e.g sample boards, colour charts) , and failing to be transparent about additional costs and letting us know key info such as we need to buy a chain. If they focused on creating a well-structured class, clearly explained pricing before showing extra options, and limited it to one group at a time, the experience could be much better.
Based on other reviews, I suspect some people had a completely different experience—perhaps with only one group at a time. Unfortunately, we weren’t so lucky.
I wish I had known this before booking, so hopefully this helps you decide if the class is right for you.”
“I really enjoyed this beginner workshop. The instructor told me about the history of enamel and showed me how to apply it and blend the colours. We heated it and then filed down some of the excess metal on the design. I paid £10 extra for a necklace chain.”
“Ah what can I say here... I hoped for an amazing class and great experience and what we got was so much more than that!!! Our teacher was so incredibly knowledgeable and gave us a real understanding of Chinese influence on Enamel Jewellery! Then for the making of the pieces, she was so great at explaining what we needed to do and set us up for a great time in designing and making our final pieces. Also, her parrot is so funny and chilled! Added bonus! Here are the results! Thanks for an amazing experience ☺️”
