Fabricate the Bezels
Photo 1 To make the bezel, I cut a piece of
22 gauge copper sheet 3 ⁄ 16 " wide. I chose
copper to set off the colors in the stones.
Photo 2 Wrap the copper bezel around
each stone, mark, cut, and solder with
hard solder. File the outside of the solder
joint so there is only a very tiny line of
silver on the copper.
Photo 3 Make sure the bottom of the
bezel is fl at by sanding it on 180 grit
sandpaper.
Photo 4 Lay out your stones with the
bezels and draw your fi nal outline of the
pendant. I used this outline to start the
overlay for the back plate.
Saw Pierce the Back Plate
Photo 5 For the saw piercing, I got a
pattern of hearts that I liked from a
MATERIALS
22 gauge sterling silver sheet for
the backing
22 gauge x 3⁄16" wide copper
bezel wire
2 cabochons
Miscellaneous jump ringsTOOLS
SOLDERING: Torch set-up
HAND: Jewelers saw, burnisher,
stamp, rawhide mallet
FINISHING: Flex shaft w/cut-off
wheelSOURCES
Many of the tools and materials
for this project are available from
well-stocked jewelry supply
vendors, many of whom can be
found in our Advertisers’ Index,
page 71.WHAT A BEAUTIFUL K AILY AGATE
CAB! I got it a while back from John Heusler and was playing around
with it to see what it had to say. It just looked like half a heart to me, so I
started drawing hearts and things and decided what was needed was a
complementary stone to match its contours and colors to make a heart. I cut
a piece of porcelain jasper; it didn’t look right. But then I bumped the table
and accidentally off set the stones, and voilà! I had my design.
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January/February 2016^27