Anyone who reads this blog will know I love buying new hammers, tools or any sort of silversmithing equipment. Rather than go on about all the expensive tools I want I thought I’d write about the unconventional tools in my workshop that I wouldn’t be without.

So here we go, my favourite uncoventional tools

1. Cotton buds These are just perfect for cleaning and polishing small areas and getting into small corners. You can add some polishing compound to really bring up the shine in a small area. I also cut the top off them and use the plastic bit to get into the corners.
2. Cocktail Sticks Like the cotton buds these are great for doing small detailed work. I also use them when touching up my resists for acid etching. I dot a tiny drop of nail varnish on to the tip to fill the tiny little patches where the resists doesn’t take.
3. Clothes Pegs I wrote about setting pearls some time ago and my handy tip was to use a clothes peg to hold the pearl in place. The ones that I use at the moment have a cushioned edge so they don’t mark a highly polished surface yet they really do holds things in place.
4. Gramophone Needles Ok I know these probably aren’t the easiest thing to get hold of but I’m lucky enough to have a father who collects everything! I use these as scribers as I can clamp them in different scalpel handles and pieces of wood. They have an extremely fine point and are very tough so perfect for marking a really fine line.
5. Paper Clips and Picture Cord I’ve grouped these two together because they serve the same function. I use them to hold pieces I’m polishing on the lathe. Anyone who has polished tiny items of jewellery on a polishing lathe will know that they can often slip out of your hand and go flying across the workshop. By using the picture cord of paper clips it allows me to keep hold of the piece while still giving the entire surface a good polish.

I would love to hear what unconventional tools you use in your jewellery making and silversmithing.

I’ve only just gotten a chance to sort out my photos from the workshop I attended in Birmingham. I took lots of photos of all the different processes we used during the week. I think this set of pictures illustrates best the various stages of hand raising and will hopefully give you an appreciation for how slow a job it can be!

When practising hand raising we began with a flat disc of gilding metal. This was marked with a series of circles which we would use as a guide when hammering.  Then using our raising hammer and stake we began hammering from the inner most circle.

As the metal moves up the form starts to develop. I played around with the angles and curves of the bowl and brought it to this stage. I’ll post more photos when I have completed the finished piece.

Last week I spent a few days in Birmingham at a hand raising workshop at the Birmigham School of Jewellery. This was one of there short summer courses which run from May until the end of July.

The course was run by Samantha Chilton. It was a great four days we did lots of work on hand raising and forming. I know four days of hammering metal may not be everyone’s idea of a holiday but I came back refreshed and relaxed!

As I mentioned last week I was also using my time in Birmingham to stock up on some new tools. I wasn’t able to get everything I had wanted but considering the weight of my suitcase I didn’t do too badly!.  Here are just some of the tools I brought home.

As we were working in the silversmithing department of the college we also go the opportunity to try out the Bonny Doon hydraulic presses. I had never used these before so was delighted to get the chance to play around with them. I made a simple beaker shape and then decided to put add a step on the design. Alan the technician showed us some amazing tricks on how to get some really impressive forms. I’ll post photos of some of the work I did next week.

After my busy week of in Birmingham it was lovely to get back to the workshop and try out my new tools.

Well it’s that time of year again when I pack up my hammers and tools and head off to a silversmithing course. Since I began working for myself I make a point of taking one week every year to attend a skills workshop or masterclass. I’ve found this really beneficial as it gives me the opportunity to learn new skills and also meet other makers. It also helps to reinvigorate your work, I always learn something that inspires a new design or piece of work.
This year I’m attending a silversmithing workshop in Birmingham which is being given by Samantha Chilton. The four day hand raising workshop will concentrate on various silversmithing techniques allowing us to explore these techniques through our own individual projects.
The other great thing about doing this course in Birmingham is that I will be in the heart of the Jewellery Quarter for a week. This will give me a chance to do some long overdue tool shopping! I started a wishlist some time ago of all the tools I wanted so I’m going to use my lunch breaks to shop around and find exactly what I’m looking for. As the name suggests the Jewellery Quarter is packed with all things jewellery related so there is no shortage of tool shops and stone suppliers.

Here’s the link for the Birmingham School of Jewellery summer courses. While it’s too late for this summer’s courses it will give you an idea of what is on offer so you can start planning for next year!.
I hope to blog from Birmingham and as always will take lots of photos which I can post next week.
Till then…

Recently I wrote about melting down your old gold to make new items of jewellery. (Part 1 of Melting Gold and making charms). With no sign of gold prices decreasing it’s a handy way of  reducing the cost of a new piece jewellery and also gives you the chance to do some spring cleaning.

I have been making gold charms for a customer that wanted to add to her existing charm collection. The idea of these charms is that they would act a little decorative gold spacers between the larger charms to give the bracelet a two tone look.

After rolling the wire to the correct thickness and cutting it into the required lengths I begin shaping the charms on a stake.

As working the metal can make it quite hard it is important to anneal the metal regularly. This involves heating the metal to make it soft and more malleable.

Here’s a picture of some of the charms that I have made. As they will be sitting with lots of other more ornate charms I kept the designs quite simple. I’ve also incorporated some silver into the design to highlight the two tone effect. It’s amazing what can be done with some odd earrings and broken chain!