These pieces came out of a basic idea of the ‘S’ shape , and I started with the rings, using half-round wire , forging and bending the ends . The rings and bezel cups were rough-polished before soldering . Next came the bracelet , slightly more ambitious , with the same concept of one end forged wide and flat, and the other end forged tall and thin . The earrings were a lot more involved, but with my skills quickly refreshed (I had only made two other rings before this project , earlier in the year, but no jewelry in 20 years prior) I was ready . I was having fun, too, which was nice , because I had become somewhat burned out in the late 1980’s , doing tedious work at a bench , at a regular job .
The earrings are each made from a piece of 8mm x 2mm half-round stock , split up the middle most of the way, and then each side forged and bent to shape . Getting a matching left and right was no easy task , and with all the careful filing and hand sanding , it took most of a day to get those right. It was very much like the modelmaking (fabricated jewelry masters) I did at my last job ; very thorough , very meticulous . I had no time constraints or considerations about being fast to keep the cost down . These were labors of love .
sheltech
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{ 5 comments… read them below or add one }
These would b great for any stone
Thanks, folks; and LInda, this was a significant portion of all the forging work I’ve ever done with jewelry . Some crude banging and bending , and then lots of careful filing and sanding to clean up the mess, lol .
Lovely! Very inspiring for those of us who haven’t done much forging.
Dar, these are really lovely pieces. I particularly like the rings. I have one small criticism, but it’s a criticism of something that you did not make. I dislike seeing beautifully handmade earrings such as yours, which are then paired with mass-produced ear hooks. Your design and execution are very handsome, and I feel they would have been even better with hooks you had made yourself, to coordinate with the earrings. Please do not take offence at my criticism – none is meant. I really like the pieces in this blog post.
Really beautiful, Dar! I know your wife is very pleased! Thanks for sharing.
John in Indiana