Adventures in Metalsmithing

<img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5557625107263994274" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJTn_DfUZkpqmxalDt-k3zVQXAeAYS2B59eGD6dfethtCX_7FbAeysUsthaPNp0LI-lb8N-a-yez_fIrs-f7d1tew7EYl9d6nSexBBXtvRmzAxgUEl-_USaZNWS1EDAAzgGNVEu5mj374/s400/Texas+necklace.jpg" style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 329px; CURSOR: hand" /><br /><br /><div><div><br /><br /></div><div> I've never been one to take a class on something when I want to learn something new. Usually I feel like I can learn just by watching someone do something--either on <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_0" class="blsp-spelling-error">tv</span> or on <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_1" class="blsp-spelling-error">youtube</span>. After watching Vickie Howell on <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_2" class="blsp-spelling-error">Knitty</span> Gritty I felt like I could learn to knit by picking up a book and some knitting needles and sure enough I learned. I've always loved working with metals. Maybe it's <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_3" class="blsp-spelling-corrected">because</span> they are durable enough that if you make a mistake you can usually fix it. I mean let's face it I "can't have nice things" because I am a bit like a bull in a china shop most of the time. Whatever it is I find myself at home when it comes to metals. But since I am stubborn and like to learn on my own it's about a lot of trial and error. So experienced <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_4" class="blsp-spelling-error">metalsmithers</span> get ready to cringe over my technique!</div><div><br /><br /></div><div></div><div><br /></div><div>My brother in law Jim asked me to make his wife, <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_5" class="blsp-spelling-error">Christy</span> who is from Texas, a necklace in the shape of Texas with a jewel on it. I was excited! I was too nervous to work with the sterling silver (it's so expensive!) so I did my first one on sheet metal.<br /></div><div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></div><div><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5557624245582472050" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuLVA9buvjnck2x4dVW6E0hi2Zlc72TfQ-Kbc7pKe1wWBSIXfYAKs-oK9hzeBZcvWfatwII0pLRhuG72kMXV1E2qKEYoeXjW3voj75xgG1VbfxSw6ebiGr2GSqCLRA29JY3dYGtBi-wbw/s400/texas+necklace+sheet+metal.jpg" style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" />I love the way it turned out actually. I made my first bezel by cutting a thin strip of the sheet metal, soldering the joint and then soldering it onto Texas. I mixed up some resin and tinted it dark purple and poured it in.</div><div></div><div><br /><br /><br /></div><div>Next it was time to do it in sterling. I printed out another 1" map of Texas and used rubber cement to adhere it to the metal. I didn't have a very good saw so I bought a new one at CR Hill and wow what a difference it made. It cut out so well.</div><div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></div><div><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5557625100944975570" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheCjj6nCQMYYQbOPh4LfoR-u6MESqU2su3dtFNU03zFOpAX1JUXinb4dMA0KmLqPglZaxdEuPZX4e9ZYTv2CBnT6Dwjd9k5L5kYWnB2zJdHDebh9JSMMosYGV_BBw0Id2iG5EoIylrXFE/s400/texas+necklace+1.jpg" style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 359px; CURSOR: hand" /><br /><br /><br /><div align="center"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5557625098455890546" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimhw0B7Ich85VnKojKsM0SqH9kVEqVr3b4ttBN7wtsy2DAjG1UTVIbB3WS0LUOfUxd3308YvpwmT4MgY6E9r31X-FfVvb1nESyusAyqnCepo2qU5SA5ma-oIO_04m1L4dPMlEJiWp0nVA/s400/texas+necklace+2.jpg" style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" /> The cuts on my finger tips are still healing. But at least we had neon pink <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_6" class="blsp-spelling-error">bandaids</span>.</div><div align="center"><br /><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5557625090794295042" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAS1OP1b9rDvNlxNR6eCp89WUgV44yb_ZM4k4LeLjfZf53pQXuII8nF3Stq3avssSBGsnenqiJ0mULhzsuySko_3oGu1VV7hw1azs6xONiMFI9cig7O0IQW3FghJD5Ajy6EUJWIvxJxxg/s400/texas+necklace+3.jpg" style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" /><br /><br /><div> After cutting it out I used my <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_7" class="blsp-spelling-error">dremel</span> to sand down the edges and shine it up nicely.<br /><br /><br /><br /><div><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5557624874570195970" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQjLctJmDZrrr-SNjpcp4qWAEx-rg5uPdNOhI4l1xt3JwvqwXv-ZpS97HTz1ddGjS0QJkjKlvtcKOKIdShHVVEQOAucmYX_TH1zpxWfcK86VHeWuYjVnEaSUWevL35oXvkLKDP6ZrztHo/s400/texas+necklace+4.jpg" style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" /> Bezel time. Here is where I spent an entire day of frustration. After driving to the metal supply store to buy bezel wire (because for some reason the bezel wire I already had just wouldn't solder for me) I arrived to find a note on the door saying they were closed for the day. I tried 2 different stores and they did not have any. I was out of luck. I also tried to buy garnet <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_8" class="blsp-spelling-error">swarovski</span> crystals at Munro's jewelry supply but they didn't have them in the size I needed. I ended up at Michael's and found a pack of <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_9" class="blsp-spelling-error">swarovski's</span> that were perfect. Plus now I have a bunch more to experiment with. I tried making my own bezel by cutting a thin strip out of the sterling and soldering the joint.<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5557624867319310946" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzr64GdE_bKt6CjxSbyY1u06LeLhJ7AumcepF6zh6KwJiGGwUpXSOlAtJ7stJ1qzgIo4iV7uypAgIfj6jBoesjRma8bCkMXXJCEyXus3LN-KVd5mB_7wftKCUXXQrl28IZ3q7jwndweWU/s400/texas+necklace+5.jpg" style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" /><br /><br /><br /><div align="center"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5557624863692476994" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicoS5gvzZ0e2ycpUMqXD3Zx_rypjFOUnd_Ry0YIV3kRPTaOe4BL0QgILYKgA8ZjQEHUjdY-QxliDyNugODBjfgWOYL5mi6IoXuXn4ll0gpECorH3FwDabUwtg_1_4PsDSoy5zaV9Ds7j8/s400/texas+necklace+6.jpg" style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" /> It seemed to be working great.<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5557624859111186802" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCn3wO9xpBtxmd_lGVBDbF1lyx0WmySPdukesqW85mGFxdG75nloxzK1A2r3_qnxGghTBfD93T1t5KMZXfGAbVFMnbf28AK9K5aQLkPXFO-xNPkO0KuYU4T0p1aCjes7CHR0XcjmyP1XI/s400/texas+necklace+7.jpg" style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 217px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" /> (Another time to cringe. Not only do I use a huge torch with hardly any control over the flame but I do it at my kitchen counter. I am super careful not to wave the flame around the cabinets though.)<br /><br /><br /><br /><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5557624856966541042" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRJBkcS0wz8Muk_mSavaogzIM7_BiC2Cv8q_QYDY7fXbJwRkKvdgyk4SEnrjHETCpSdYAV1jfKkRk99D6_6hKdtMpBLSAE0JZfzlTfykjoUk9jyXW03pLsuhF2Dp6GnIQP-ZldsXDc7jo/s400/texas+necklace+8.jpg" style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" /><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5557624273773222594" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5VlGLKmaX6FT5KumOpxbgrtUv9kCK11L0yN5kZYPblAx158_GBRBDY3ewdt-r0anEIiWfbuzboFNOIMVUH8KTroxmeiHO1iUUNxCFrj92xnSkA9kRHGwOGhf8ytMRBhc29SVSv1arGCA/s400/texas+necklace+9.jpg" style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" /> <div><br /><div><br />I sanded it down and got it all ready for the <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_10" class="blsp-spelling-error">swarovski</span>....it was too small. I tried using my files to sand it down in the inside. Still too small. I tried using the grinding tool on my <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_11" class="blsp-spelling-error">dremel</span> but I just couldn't get it right.<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5557624269984821490" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5z2w-gPNEnTG9WXjCZ9wcZ_F26xHzYTb6EDlmKNLAjXjzq_FQDdwbnx2kG3S5vnVreRlfBq1zmnWpN2z51EBbFdBbtJAGk-sHqY-w8BjEl0IItDa-mDoedX2WT_Sz6RimioXM6uqbbwo/s400/texas+necklace+10.jpg" style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" /><br /><br /><br /><div> At this point I had given up on doing a bezel and thought I'd be wire wrapping a crystal and hanging it next to it. But again, I am stubborn. I decided to try hitting up the bezel wire I had one more time. I cut it in half and soldered it together. After a lot of fussing and a lot of flux I finally got it to stay on Texas. Whew. I used E6000 glue under the <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_12" class="blsp-spelling-error">swarovski</span> just for some added strength and then bent the bezel around the stone. It's not perfect but I'm still pretty darn happy with the way it turned out. I found a beautiful sterling silver chain for it too.<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5557624262284364722" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFnIgMD9akYAcTLK_Rq3nyHU2LU-3PptN3OGnHc-gpkG7VfZt3SgivLyHK1bDqeWYLPcCMIFpsWrC3KzpB0nSbYGYNmM3vVroNCJyUqpAR0AeXP2AYMkNumqVJRyIlpALAq76tGELccAc/s400/texas+necklace+11.jpg" style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" /> In between waiting for the piece while it was in the pickle I worked on another piece with copper. I cut 3 strips and when I used my metal snips it sort of bent the copper. I went with it and overlapped the 3 pieces and soldered them together. Then I cut out a half moon shape and 2 pieces to bend and shape around it to create a half moon bezel. I was so proud of how it came out, especially after the issues I had with the sterling. I soldered it into the middle of the other pieces and below is the result. I mixed up some more resin, put the typewriter #4 sticker from the scrapbook store in the bottom and filled it with resin.<br /><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5557624256053268130" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlZ281o-Urx-PT_yClTG9fP_1AHy3h5He56gKkq4QsVC2ee2SX6ErS5HwgyR5SNxtBU4ht2C_Fczy9D9kH6wuxtWl0C7rYYlfzI8c-MjVNcRLGuriBwfAxPubHMOJbUCpnHs3GwBaOjZc/s400/texas+necklace+12.jpg" style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" />I took some sterling silver wire and melted the ends into little balls, oxidized it, and then hammered it flat. I bent it around each side and then hammered the loop part to give it extra strength.<img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5557630398383859746" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGinmRdSD1kj6fD4RsLHsK81sz7vLCEAxYItWMDv6iUujyCw2WxU0-JwB9OVNEvoUyBsGCMpf1zI-HXOZEgP9X0PKTTiYCYyK4NU7SGChxcj13Z2pmkkpsPLlkaDwLGSqWjz9HVltMB18/s400/copper+metalsmithed+necklace+3.jpg" style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 332px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" /><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5557630401894657426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnvS1vmh-YkLdZB3xBLDs5CnoOJCrRMi3828OxfMbhMdgaIBqwOA4GctmlgaxDTUQoLNbi7-9lfvbxcFiB0M-48b5152F1XTP8HepklNSd1NlqTUo7HdJvrd8t-6tpxWbiZbKFgFvfkoA/s400/copper+metalsmithed+necklace+4.jpg" style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" /><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5557630392255523394" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQogVGc42D3i-k2izfp9HlI7pyKBvaH_G_33uVtELNvpFfWfFvWOxJUp8bnYsdCAcsbv_9peAfbQ3o-jDcyB7W2hCSyWEL_KUNqA49kn-AWWpJf4VEaaj95r97rfTtlLvol87mKgMBfkU/s400/copper+metalsmithed+necklace+7.jpg" style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" /><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5557630386583952866" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi76jRsTWjznN2uTh01RCiO3FEfA5k6Q-OiUWYLcpOar6FnL3D6ONn6rSCq6UgKthrOANVHeoR06VxxT3JNVKvP04KnsY4m_bAAFA05gCD_mB6gme9Y_5eEH19-yHkK9x8v1Zp3XKHm6nU/s400/copper+metalsmithed+necklace2.jpg" style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" /><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5557630404262210370" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5AUGRfD4dKVfhos_CA1cJtwiMZGZ2RpgaBIHJOrPzJw-il8E1SQPxqJSAsVPElHTS8sas6A56EuEjA0Wbr_jj5O7IHSlHcp85VYOTZIyyZLzOjJj3LqFvENgaZ3TIigRrQR0uq3pqD7w/s400/copper+metalsmithed+necklace+5.jpg" style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" /><br />Follow me on facebook <a href="http://facebook.com/lilacpopphotography">here</a>.</div><div>Follow me on twitter <a href="http://twitter.com/lilacpop">here</a>.</div><div>My jewelry etsy shop <a href="http://lilacpop.etsy.com/">here</a>.</div><div>My photography etsy shop <a href="http://lilacpopphotography.etsy.com/">here</a>.<br /></div><div><div><div> </div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div>

Adventures in Metalsmithing

I've never been one to take a class on something when I want to learn something new. Usually I feel like I can learn just by watching s...

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