Seashells by the seashore

Another adventure into metal clay!

I was fascinated with Cold Mold from Rio Grande, especially those little pocket-sized pots.  I could see me running into something while out and about that I’d like a mold of.  I just had to have some and try it out.

It’s extremely easy to mix and use (I watched a Beads and Baubles video on Rio Grande’s website) – all I needed was something interesting to make a negative image of.  I looked around the house and found a small dish of shells we’d gathered along Cocoa Beach in Florida several years ago.

Squishing shells into cold mold

The Cold Mold firms up quickly and lets go very easily.  I could have easily used less, but once you open the pot and mix, you can’t really save it.  I did a couple of shells that seemed like they might make nice pendants.

It became clear, after they set, that I’d made a bit of an oops – the molds were fine, but they were deep.  How was I going to get a thin layer of metal clay pushed in there?

I opted for the shallower mold, on the left in the finished molds photo. I used a chart included in the PMC3 instructions to figure how thick to roll the clay.  It was about a 4 card thickness – again, a light sheet that would be hard to push into the mold.  The best thing I could think of to use?  The eraser end of a pencil.

Not using a finger made it slightly hard to feel, so I was super-cautious of pushing too hard.

Finished molds

Unfortunately, it took several tries and by the time I got it right, I had folded the clay into itself  to remix it with too much Slik on it.  The bottom section ended up as a separate piece.

The pieces dried well – I let it go for a few days anyway because I was busy.  They were pretty fragile, so I tried to be careful handling them.  I was able to smooth out quite a bit with sanding before sintering, something I’d only read about recently.  Using the torch went fine, also, though every time it’s a bit nerve-wracking.  I can’t image how it must be to use a kiln – at least I can see while I do it, and if it starts to melt, I can back off.

Since I’d ended up with separate pieces, I used some easy solid solder to tack them together.  It didn’t quite look right and as I started filing a bit to make the fit look better, I dropped it onto the concrete basement floor.  A problem with making things with stiff, misshapen hands – they have to be durable, too.  I’d obviously not soldered well because it let loose into two pieces again. I decided to try liquid solder instead and that seemed to make things more solid. ( I dropped it on the floor again later just to be sure – or maybe I just had trouble holding it again.)

Shell with pearl

I wasn’t sure what to do with the piece once I was finished and I left it out on my worktable to ponder.  The back had a nasty unfinished look to it from the two soldered pieces, so I eventually got a teeny grinding head for hubby’s Dremel that looked like a shape I could fit into the very concave back.  It worked well at the lowest speed and made things look a little more finished and uniform.  While I was at it, I got out my teeny Dremel bits and drilled a hole slightly off-center at the top for a jump ring.  (All this was with hubby’s coaching and a hand when needed.)

I found a stray pearl in one of my bead boxes that was a bit irregular and goes well with the very natural-looking shell.  I’m still not certain this is a finished project and might try adding a patina for some contrast, though is seems like everything is patinated lately.  I may just stick with lovely, shiny silver.

Fall 2010 Fashion Colors

Pantone predicts a pretty rich palette this Fall.  I love, love, love “Lipstick Red.” I’m also scoping their home colors for a nice sage-ish green…

Time flies when you’re making stuff

Since my venture into metal clay, I took a class in bezel setting at 1 Stop Bead Shop from Leslee Frumin, who’ll be teaching the same class at Bead Fest.  It was another fun one and now I’m definitely hooked with the metal/torch thing!  I bought the tool kit we used in class and have a table on order to put in the basement for my metal “annex,” basically using the torch in an area not quite as stuffed with vital papers as my office.  I also won’t have to put away my hubby’s tools first to use his bench.

Bezel set cabachon

The bezel is made with “bezel wire.”  Several steps are involved, such has soldering the wire into a ring you’ve sized for the cabachon, soldering that ring to a Sterling plate, and cutting out some of the Sterling to form the bail at the top and soldering it on.  Lots of sawing, filing, and sanding to make the wire and back piece look like one, and lots of torching, pickling, and polishing.

I’m interested in combining the metal clay and bezel setting.  I’ve seen some beautiful pieces online and “Art Jewelry” and “Jewelry Artist” mags.

A few other things going on.  My unusual pearl necklace, 2 knotted strands with keishi and button peach pearls and peach crystals, is already up online in the April “Bead Trends.”  I’m not thrilled with the photo – a little too much orange in the background to show the delicate peach colors off – but I’m certainly flattered again that they used it.  Things like that really help remind me I do have some sort of eye for it.  By the way, when I put this piece on myself to see how it looked when finished, I though it was damn sexy on bare skin!

The other thing happening is I’ve made room in my schedule to have Fridays all for jewelry stuff.  I wish it included just making, but there are so many other things to accomplish.  Still, a whole day dedicated to it should really help.  This Friday, for example, is the Intergem show.  It comes through town several times a year and is stuffed with vendors selling semiprecious beads, pearls, and silver beads and findings. Oh, and there’s finished jewelry, too, but of course, I’m on another mission there!  I have so much semiprecious I think I’ll be on more of a focus for cabachons and maybe pearls, although I’ve got a good selection of them, too.  It’s also mostly to cruise and see if there’s anything new and totally inspiring.

Oh, and 1 Stop has a Czech glass and semiprecious trunk show, too, so I just can’t go wrong tomorrow!

Hey, that’s silver!

So when things dried out, I did a little sanding and smoothed edges.  I have a nice set of needle files but also find the buffer from my local manicurist handy. Then I got to pull out my soldering tools and get ready to get some things hot. Very hot.

I tried out the most often suggested method on my “spare” piece, the long, flat thingy with the pattern pressed in – torch the piece to a nice orange glow and keep it there for about 5 minutes.  Too short and it won’t set up right; too long and you’ll see a silver “flow” like in soldering, and your piece is melting.  Sounded intimidating but worked really well!  On to the “real” pieces, my oval charms

So, grit teeth and get the fire on!  I’d been really impressed with how the “test” piece worked, so wasn’t too concerned.  It was a little harder to keep two separate pieces up to the same color/temperature but I stuck to the 5 minutes that seemed to work before.  I counted and kept the kitten from sticking his nose in that fascinating flame!

You could seriously see the “retraction” or shrinking as the piece heated up but not much other sign of anythng momentous happening.  After 5 minutes, I had two charms that still looked the gray/white color of the clay.

I chose to quench the pieces in water to cool them quickly.  No pickle necessary here as this is fine silver, lacking the alloy that would discolor under the torch.  I found hubby’s small wire brush, not much stiffer than a good toothbrush, and “burnished” the piece by hand, quickly revealing the silver.  Ooo, aaah!

Now, that’s silver!  The finish is rough, requiring a set of sanding papers in order to be the familiar smooth and shiny finish, but the rough look is appealing, too.  Just a few touch-ups with the buffer and needle files and I’m happy.

Now, for those that aren’t fellow jewelry makers, there’s one other obesession we have besides our beads, stones, and metals.  It’s our tools. We love to collect them, looking forward to the techinques that will require their use.  Most of all, we like to use as many as possible.  I pulled out everything from pliers to cutters to the ring mandrel.  Oh, and the chasing hammer and bench block.  Yes, an opportunity to hammer!

I looped some wire and curved it over the mandrel to make looped earwires and attached the charms.  And just like that, I have earrings that I made, not just assembled.  The idea is mind-blowing and begs for more.  With the price of silver and other metals going up, I probably will try using some plain polymer clay to practice more with the clay medium itself, not a strength of mine. I see the use of moulds making more sense – Rio Grande’s Cold Mould to Go could be really useful and certainly a class to help not so much with technique but definitely with design options and possibilities..

What is PMC3?

That was hubby’s question as I started gathering these strange things together today for some experimenting.  It’s a polymer clay with fine silver embedded in it.  You can shape it and texturize it and do some amazing things, then fire it, which burns away the “clay” and leaves you with a piece of silver jewelry. Nice thing with “3″ is the firing time is short, so you can use a torch instead of a kiln.

I have nil experience with clay beyond the rock hard stuff you could get cheap for kids and/or Playdough, so I’m sacrificing a bit to try this out.  If it’s a disaster, I’ll buy some polymer clay to work with more for a better understanding.  The tools seem to be mostly the same.  I improvised and got a set of cutters for fondant used in cake decorating, but the texture sheet was from the clay supplies. I went on the cheap and used olive oil to prevent sticking, having read that it could be used.  Ick, what a mess.  Next time I’ll get the recommended “release” spray.

I followed some guidance from videos – used playing cards to keep the rolled size even and coffee stir straws to punch out holes for attaching to jump rings or whatever – quite clever. Since the clay was skidding on the inordinate amount of oil I sprayed, rolling was much more difficult than I think is intended.  I may have also pressed the texture in a bit too far – there are some pretty thin spots.  I  did two textured ovals for charms and rolled the rest out for a possible pendant or wrapped ring.  Or it’ll all be a mess!

Now the oily clay gets to sit and dry for a good long time – probably don’t get to play with fire until tomorrow.  That gives me time to review the directions.  It’s only slightly annoying that one person’s time and color instructions differ from another’s.  I guess I’ll have to see for myself.

In the meantime, the PMC Guild’s website has some beautiful galleries like this for inspiration and your basic ooooos and aaaaaahs.

Why quality comes back

We always want to get the most for our money, but “the most” isn’t necessarily all you can pack into a storage room for the lowest price.  We’re tempted in this economy to buy what’s cheap.  If it’s not quite as nice up close or something that probably won’t last, not a big deal – it “only” cost a little.

Still, there is something to be said for buying quality items for a little more and getting a lot more out of them.  Clothes are certainly like that.  Ever buy a cheap black shirt and have it fade to gray with the first washing?

Jewelry can be like that, too, especially if paying more means you get something like real pearls instead of glass, or a necklace on beading wire instead of something not as durable.  And if you know that the artisan selling jewelry to you stands behind their work and takes pride in offering something of quality, that’s an added value, too, because they’re more likely to back up that work with repair services.

And what about the ability to order something completely customized to your needs and wants?  I know I find it fun and challenging to make custom pieces, and my clients have liked it way more than scouring the stores for just the right length/color/style for hours or days.

So the next time you’re about to by that necklace or earrings at a discount store “because it’s so cheap,” take a few minutes to scan the jewelry section of Etsy.  You can find just about every style and price range and you’re more likely to find something made with care and backed with pride – important elements of quality.

Already?

New colors for next Spring are out. Is it just me or did they essentially tweak this years Spring colors?