Any gemstone having the potential for an optical phenomenon will be difficult to cut, and stones having Adularescence – or Schiller – are particularly difficult to orient for cutting. Moonstone is named for this effect, which gives the impression of silvery lunar light. Schiller is...
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Category: Tutorials
If you’ve ever spent way too much time trying to capture too many tiny jump rings, links or other small parts out of a hot acid bath with too-large copper tongs, this post is for you. And, if you fabricate a lot of chain, links,...
Bench Blocks and Small Anvils A solid steel work surface is essential for many metalworking tasks like texturing, hammering, punching or stamping. Because metal is so malleable, when you apply force to it without a sturdy backing, all metal will bend, dent or stretch. Sometimes,...
I own piles of pliers, and whenever I go to a trade show, there’s always an unnerving array of sexy new jewelry making pliers in every style, quality and price, and then I tell myself that maybe having 30 sets of pliers is invaluable and...
There are many ways to texture jewelry metal, including using a hammer with a face that is specially designed to create patterns. Some brands of texture hammers are manufactured with fixed faces — meaning each of the two faces on the hammer is carved with...
Tool Two: Your Jeweler’s Saw The jeweler’s saw can strike fear in the heart of any beginning metalsmith. I will never forget the curses of frustration, moans of despair and sound of breaking blades in my first sawing class. And of course, the instructor makes...
Tool One: Your Ring Clamp A ring clamp is one of the most useful yet least-used tools. This simple and typically inexpensive tool is a powerhouse for working smart, and once you learn to use it, your ring clamp will help you with filing, sanding,...
The thing I am most known for writing about is tools. And, as a jeweler, the tool I use the most is not a saw, it’s not a torch, and not even a hammer or pair of pliers. You may not even remember it’s a...
You can use a flex shaft to sand and polish the metal sections of jewelry work – but for some occasions, hand sanding and polishing is more appropriate. If you’ve already made a set of Custom Polishing Sticks, it’s a good idea to also make...
I don’t own a full-size buffer because my lapidary equipment fills the worktop in my shop. Most of the time I can get by using my flex shaft to polish the metal sections of my work, but there are times I’d love a high polish...
I use tumbled stones and slabs, cabochons, beach pebbles, raw crystals, sea glass and pottery shards in my jewelry making. Because I use cold connections to join much of my work, I have to layer different types of materials, so I drill lots of holes...