Slow and Steady

by Suzanne on June 6, 2011

So my big idea to make a ring from the Moonah castings was nearly a disaster.

My out of practice soldering was not a pretty sight. In frustration I tried fusing the
join and it worked, although my third attempt ended in a puddle of molten
silver.

To top everything else off brilliantly, the rings were all too small, even for a child. So, not a great day, but I still enjoyed every minute. I felt like a kid in a sandpit playing with my toys.

Today I approached the ring differently. I used the planishing hammer which gave me more length. Not prepared to be defeated by the soldering, I took my time and made the two ends meet perfectly before attempting to solder. It worked like a dream.

Slow and steady wins the race! I even managed to stretch the rings I made yesterday using the planishing hammer on the mandrel. So I feel like I’m now making a piece of jewellery that has some character.

I like that the organic texture is obvious on the side of the ring. It could be worn on it’s own or in a group of two or more for added drama.

Suzanne

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{ 5 comments… read them below or add one }

Rosy De Freitas June 6, 2011 at 1:50 pm

The best thing about mistakes is that you’ll never repeat it and will perfect any technique you are up to.
Congratulations!!!!
I loved your design!

Reply

Suzanne June 6, 2011 at 4:36 pm

Thank you, a work in progress.

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deb fallowfield June 6, 2011 at 1:40 pm

Hey,
I am glad others have “bad solder days”-after 15 years doing this I still have them too!
love the result 🙂

Reply

Suzanne June 6, 2011 at 4:35 pm

Oh! That makes me feel better, I think?

Reply

laurie K June 6, 2011 at 3:00 am

I like the design and it wasn’t a failure – you learned how to make small rings – ha ha.
Look upon it as perfecting the design. The next “real” ones will go much smoother.

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