Underwater Marvels Propel My Art
I had some oxygen free copper and fine silver parts that a friend’s local company deemed scrap. While I waited for clear nail polish (a masking method) to dry on my niobium bracelets, I decided to electrolytically anodize the oxygen free copper and silver parts. I kept part of the fine silver piece out of the process so I could compare the finishes to the raw material.
The beautiful blue oxide layers that developed on both metals was easily wiped off with a paper towel.
When Pat Accorinti floated the idea of creating an alloy with metal clay as a supplement to our demonstration with Mitsubishi’s quick fire copper clay, Kathleen Gordon and I were on board immediately. Pat had read Hadar Jacobson’s blog post about creating an alloy of copper and silver by combining PMC+ with her formulation of Quick Fire Copper Clay. Pat had also read the Art Jewelry Magazine article on shibu-ichi alloys which Hadar mentioned in her blog post, because we’d all just recently received our copies in the mail.
I had Mitsubishi’s clay products on hand, and I have a wonderful book on Japanese patinas which lists shibu-ichi alloy ratios and shows patina on some pieces made with shibu-ichi. Once we decided on a ratio, I calculated the amounts of silver metal clay and copper metal clay needed to mix the nami-shibu-ichi alloy of 25% silver and 75% copper.
After Kathleen and Pat mixed up the clay alloy, Pat created samples to match the copper clay samples she’d made almost a month earlier. The domed circles of nami-shibu-ichi clay were then split up for various treatments and finishes by the three of us. Kathleen fired her set of samples immersed in carbon in a kiln. Pat fired her samples by torch and in a kiln without carbon. And, I kept some of the torch fired samples to patina. Pat also took some of the samples to enamel on and to paint with purchased patina solutions.
Results Summary: the quick fire clays seem to sinter reliably in the kiln. The nami-shibu-ichi does take patina differently than pure copper. Care needs to be taken to avoid the introduction of air bubbles in the clay alloy mixture. Torch patina and kiln patina on the nami-shibu-ichi were very popular with the demonstration audience.
In the years since I made a certain filigree component, I forgot which gauge wires I used. I also forgot that I’d annealed several times during the process, an oversight which was easily remedied after the small twisted strands broke a few times and I spent a few seconds thinking about it. Turns out I liked the large wire combo better for what I have in mind.
Today’s samples could become a part of a filigree hinged cuff idea that is in the process of moving from my mind into silver. Yesterday I flattened wire and made fine silver diamonds that could maybe – possibly – perhaps also be part of the final design.
The other day I made these
And, tomorrow or someday soon, I’ll get back to making consistent versions of these
While watching TV these past couple of weeks, I’ve also been working on some new combinations in knitted wire chain. I tried mixing copper and fine silver wire at the same time, copper only, two strands of fine silver, and increasing and decreasing the size of my loops.
I’m seeing a funky bracelet in this sampler piece. Now it’s time to create the sample where I pull the chain through the drawplate to see how my double strand pieces look once drawn….
I spent most of the day yesterday creating 22 new pairs of earrings using texture molds I’d taken on the Yucatan Peninsula. I especially like the fine silver pieces that look like coral and urchin shells. Here’s a sample of the pieces:
Now it’s time to pack up all the new earrings and head over to The 6th Annual Virgin Artists Show & Sale for today and tomorrow.