Silver cake slice | Eileen Moylan

Kathryn Hinton

03.11.2011 by Eileen Moylan //

This week I came across the work of Kathryn Hinton. This British silversmith has a great collection of silverware specialising in silver cutlery. I had seen her work before in the Contemporary British Silversmiths website but when I went on to her own website I found lots more lovely things to look at.

Cake Slice and stand, Silver & Sycamore, Kathryn Hinton

One of my favourite examples of her work is this beautiful cake slice and sycamore cake stand. The way she has considered how the cake slice sits on the stand shows the attention to detail of her work. The great thing about this piece is that the function doesn’t compromise its aesthetic and actually adds to the beauty. As you know I’m in the process of making my own cake slice at the moment so I was delighted to see this piece. My cake slice has been put on the back burner until I can find the perfect vice. My old vice just isn’t up to the job so I’m on a vice hunt at the moment!

'Exhausted Cutlery', Silver & Ceramic, Kathryn Hinton

Another great example of Hinton’s flatware is ‘Exhaused Cutlery’. This knife, fork and spoon set are made in sterling silver. The cutlery follows the shape of the ceramic plate which it seems to have collapsed onto. Giving the impression they fell there of exhaustion from constant use!

'Non Sharing Bowl', Silver, Kathryn Hinton

The other piece in Kathryn’s collection that put a smile on my face was this ‘Non Sharing’ bowl and fork. This fork was made for people like me who are very protective of the food on their plate! The tines of the fork spell out the word ‘MINE’ so there can be no mistaking the sentiment. The double bowl also has the word stamped in two different fonts which looks almost like a hallmark. The concept of this piece is the playful interaction between the bowl and the fork. The two pieces come together through the lettering on the fork and the evidence of where it has been on the bowl by leaving its mark.

She also has a range of personal forks where you can commission a fork with your initials on the tines so you can hallmark your own food. The example below is made using her own initials.

In contrast to her Non Sharing bowl she also has a sharing dish for those of you who are feeling more generous!

Cake Slice Part Four

02.09.2011 by Eileen Moylan //

This is part four of a series on making a cake slice. Click on the links to see Part 1 and Part 2 and Part 3.

Having cut out and filed my cake slice I was short one tool before I could take it any further. Since I was making this for myself, it didn’t really count as a necessity buy. Well now I’ve got everything in order and am ready to plough ahead with the project.

The first thing I did once the piece was cut out, was to polish it on the lathe. I did this so I wouldn’t have to struggle getting into the hard to reach angles once I had formed the handle.

When the piece was cleaned and polished I began to mark out the dip from the handle to the base. The reason I do this is so I can have a line as a guide when I chase the lines into the metal. Chasing is a technique where you use a variety of punches struck with a hammer to create a design or detail. For my cake slice I want to create a straight line across the base so I can then fold the metal along this indented line.

The piece is then held in the vice to bend it into shape. I brought it to a 45 degree angle but this can be increased or decreased when I have the handle work done.

The next thing to do was to anneal the handle so it would be easier to manipulate. Annealing is the process of heating metal to a particular temperature and then cooling it quickly so the metal is softened. The metal is then cleaned in a pickling solution as all the impurities have risen to the surface when the metal is annealed. This cleans the metal so it can be used on your stakes. It’s really important to clean all metal that you are working with. Not only does it damage your tools it can also play havoc with soldering. A joint will not solder so easily if it isn’t clean.

Now that my cake slice is nice and clean it’s time to start hammering…block your ears!

Cake Slice, The Next Step

01.17.2011 by Eileen Moylan //

This is part three of my cake slice project. Part one here and part two here.

I use my modified paper template (from part two) and stick it temporarily to my sheet of copper. Why copper? As this piece is for myself I want to keep the costs down. The final product will be silver plated. Of course I would prefer to work with silver as it is softer and easier to manipulate.

With the paper secured I then draw around the shape with a scriber. Once the shape of the cake slice is transferred onto the copper. I begin cutting it with my piercing frame. As the metal is quite thick I use a slightly heavier blade to avoid the blade breaking.

Cutting out cake slice with piercing frame

When I have finished cutting I then start filing the edges. The more accurate the cutting the less work I have filing. With this piece I want to curve all the edges slightly especially around the handle.

Now that I have my piece cut out and filed I can begin hammering and shaping. See you for Part 4!

Cake Slice Models

01.12.2011 by Eileen Moylan //

I have finally gotten around to turning the cake slice sketches into paper models. If you want to see the original sketches and ideas just click here.

From these models I have decided on the overall shape and have explored the different handle options. Here are a few of the very early models that I did before deciding on the design.

These are just rough models that I cut out quickly. I use these to explore different ideas quickly so I can establish the overall design. I then refined these designs to come up with this.

This piece of paper will form the basis for the design when it is being cut out in metal. The paper can be used as a pattern so I can scribe around the paper and transfer the shape to the metal. This flat sheet of paper is then manipulated to become this.

The only problem with working in paper is that you can’t bend and curve it in the way you can metal. So while I do get the general shape and measurements the curves are mostly just in my head for now! I’ve made two of these models with slightly different handles. Using these I adjust them in different ways to decide the angle and diameter of the handle.

The difference between ‘Image 1’ and ‘Image 2’ is the angle of the bend up to the handle from the base. Image 1 has it at a 90 degree angle while Image 2 is at 45 degree. I like to do all this in paper and then photograph it from different angles to get a sense of the overall shape.

Once I have decided on the shape and size of my design I take the amended pattern and transfer this onto my sheet of metal.

Let me eat cake

12.22.2010 by Eileen Moylan //

I know it’s Christmas week so I should have probably started this project a little earlier but it was only when I was bombarded by shows on how to make Christmas cakes and desserts did I think about making the perfect Christmas utensil.

I haven’t the least intention of making a Christmas cake, thankfully my mother makes great cakes and has agreed to feed us (again!) this year. So with my festive food taken care of I’m turning my attention to something I can make in silver. I don’t own a cake slice (gasp!) so my present to myself is the time to make one.

The only guidelines I have set myself are that it must be made from a sheet of metal and there can be no soldering.

These shouldn’t be to difficult to adhere to but it just means some extra work resolving how to make a comfortable handle when you’re working with a flat sheet. I’ve scanned some rough images from my sketch book with the general shape I’ve decided on and some ideas for the handle.

The first sketch shows some of the ideas I started with but I discounted them. I think it would be perfect for cutting but the handle needs to be in the centre to balance the huge slice of cake I’ll be serving.

The second sketch shows the development of a twist in the handle. I decided on this for my overall shape, the twist gives the piece some ‘body’ since I’m working with flat sheet. I also decided on making the base with one straight and one curved edge to balance the twist.

In these handle sketches I was working on how to make my very 2 dimensional handle more 3D. These don’t really work as they just look like hollow imitations of a solid handle, but it did lead me to the sketches below where I better resolve the flow of the piece and use the 2D sheet to my advantage.

I always start with sketches. Not only because paper is cheaper than metal but also because it gives you a chance to change your mind. When you begin sketching a functional item, you consider how and why the piece will eventually be used, what traditional elements need to be retained. In the case of my cake slice I know the ‘base’ of the cake slice has to remain flat to be able to slide under the slice of cake. It also needs to be able to hold and serve a piece of cake so the base has to be a certain size (depending on your portion management!) Technically I’m making a pie slice as it will have a 1″ bend up the handle to allow me to scoop out my dessert from a pie dish. This is purely because it will double as a cake slice too. The next step for me is to make these shapes in card so I can refine the final shape before I start cutting it out in metal.