1 Fusion, July 2007 - Rio Grande

JOURNAL OF THE PMC GUILDTraveling with PMCSoon after the Sept. 11 terroristattacks in the United States, LindaKaye-Moses was traveling fromher Massachusetts home to NewZealand to participate in a PMCworkshop. She shipped her kiln andtools as checked baggage and carriedall the PMC she thought she wouldneed as part of her carry-on luggage.When she got to the security checkpoint, the airport guards were suspicious,and skeptical. ey were unfamiliarwith PMC, and Kaye-Moseshad to convince them, on the spotthat PMC was a legitimate materialand that she was not of nefariouscharacter.“Right there in the securityarea, I gave a sort of mini-workshopto the security personnel and tothe two National Guardsmen,”she recounts, several years later. “Iexplained what the PMC was, howit worked and why it was considereda precious metal. When I was finishedexplaining, one the guardsmenasked if he could learn how to usethe stuff to make a real pendant. Itwas an interesting episode.”PMC is an unusual substancethat naturally causes consternationin our hyper-sensitive, securityconsciousculture. ese days, theburden rests with jewelry makers totravel wisely, to anticipate problemsand strategize the best and smartestway to travel with PMC and PMCtools.Few people have had more experiencetraveling with PMC thanChris Darway, a designer, teacher,and metalsmith from Philadelphia .Chris teaches at least one workshopeach month, and often more. Heoffers several ideas for making traveleasier.First and most important, neverconsider traveling with PMC toolsas carry-on luggage. Not only is itcommon sense, but the TransportationSecurity Administration won’tallow it.Just as important, he said, alwaysallow extra time at the airport, especiallyat the smaller, regional airportswhere security officers may have lessexposure with suspicious material.Arriving 75 or 90 minutes beforethe scheduled departure may not beenough time, he said.“I get to the airport real, realearly—at least two hours. It’s thebag thing. It never dawned on methat even though your bags arethere, someone is tearing them apartand looking through them.PMC in NYC212–947–6879WWW.SILVERCLAY.COMPAGE 13