makin' it - k.o’brien jewelry

Here’s a little behind the scenes post on the basic staples of my jewelry line, moon post and bitty earrings. They are the perfect, everyday earrings that never go out of style.

The first step is texturing a sheet of silver. How I texture this shiny, yet empty canvass will still remain a secret for only me and my tools to know. Then I cut discs from this lined sheet with my disc cutters and arbor press. The arbor press isn’t much to see, but my ability to cut discs so close together is a skill I’d like to show off.

Next up I dap a whole lot of discs. Using one of my favorite hammers. There are a few reasons for this love affair, the head is dinged, it has the previous owner’s name stamped into the handle and I bought it from an antique shop in a quaint little Maine neighborhood. It seems to have a story behind it which I am adding to every time I hammer away with it.

Then comes mass soldering. This happens so quickly I can only manage a picture once it is complete.

Once these earrings spend some time in the pickle they are ready to be cleaned of fire scale. As with everything else, I use my 3M wheels to clean them to a shine.

Some get oxidized…

…while others are tumbled to a shine.

Then, mass packaging takes place. Let the summer fairs begin!

happy monday
xo, kim

ps: this is a post meant to connect with my customers and readers. it is not a DIY post. please read this post if you think otherwise.