Turning over a Silver Leaf.....

It's been funny lately... seems I'm doing dribs and drabs of all sorts of things, but not getting anything finished. Don't you hate that feeling ?? So today, I sat down at my bench, determined to do something from start to finish without getting sidetracked.

A few weeks ago (maybe longer..) I made a few wax pieces. There was no urgency to get them cast, so I gave them to a friend of mine who has a casting set-up at home and whom I know does a good job. Last week, he returned my waxes in silver. Yayyy !

When the silver model comes back, there is still quite a bit of work left to do cleaning up and polishing, so I spent this afternoon doing just that.

Here's a picture of the waxes. The one on the left is the one I had cast.

The wax comes in thin sheets.

I heat the wax gently until it's just softened and then press a real leaf into it and allow the wax to reset. Then I carefully cut around the leaf with a scalpel. The leaf is then peeled away and some strengthening pieces are added to the back if needed. This leaf is actually a tomato leaf out of my garden.

When the cast leaf comes back, it needs a lot of work smoothing edges, shaping, adding a bail and polishing, but the end result is amazing.

I'm really happy with how this one turned out. It looks great on the leather necklace.

Another job I started and finished today was a sample for an upcoming workshop (see pic below). This class is specifically designed for beginners. It incorporates all of the basic silversmithing skills and comes together quickly once the components are made. By completing this project, students will have learned the basics of sawing, filing, soldering, shaping, texturing, polishing and design skills, in just one day....Phew!! Sorry the picture is not too good, I was running out of daylight by the time I was ready to photograph. All of the silver components of the bracelet are handmade, even the fancy silver bead!

If you're interested in paticipating in a beginners workshop, drop me a line. I'm also looking at holding some open day workshops (bring your own project, or something you're having trouble with) and also some set-project workshops in Canberra in the coming months, so once again, if you're interested, let me know and I'll send you details and dates once they're finalised.

Well, that's about it for this entry. Must be wine o'clock by now !!

Thanks for stopping by, I hope you'll come back soon.