ASK THE ARTIST: WENDY THURLOWhttp://www.ArtJewelryMag.com 31
What studio mistake has taught you the most?
“A few years ago, I overheated and cracked a pendant I was
working on. At irst I was horriied, then I realized the crack
was quite interesting. I enlarged and reined the crack in the
silver, then set a raw ruby within the space. Now I do it on pur-
pose and ill the lines and cracks with gold and gemstones!”
Contact: http://www.hammeredbywendy.com,
[email protected]78
intricate or precise designs that require a
distinct edge. Don’t worry about the gold
shapes being neat or complementary; the
gold will lose its distinct edge during the
later rolling process.
NOTE: Make sure the silver and the gold
shapes are completely flat. Place each
piece on a steel bench block one-at-a-
time, and use a European dead-blow or
rawhide mallet to flatten it. This is im-
portant so air bubbles don’t form when
you fuse the gold to the silver.
Clean the metal. Dip a cotton swab in
rubbing alcohol and use it to wipe both
sides of your silver sheet and gold shapes
[3]. This step will remove any grease or
dirt that remains on the metal. Allow the
alcohol to evaporate from the metal.
Fuse the gold and silver. Place the silver
square on a charcoal block.
NOTE: To create a reducing atmosphere
(which is best for fusing), work on a char-
coal block. The burning charcoal forms
carbon dioxide (CO 2 ), which absorbs oxy-
gen and hinders oxidization of the metal.
Use tweezers to arrange your gold
shapes on the silver [4]. Again, do not
worry about precise placement of the gold
shapes; just be sure that the gold doesn’t
hang over the edges of the silver sheet.
Use a bushy, reducing flame to evenly
heat the metal until the silver becomes
shiny and mirror-like [5]. When there is
a bright flash between the gold and the
silver, the gold and silver have fused.
NOTE: If the silver overheats, it will flow
over the edges of the gold. Don’t worry!
After the metal cools, use a medium-grit
silicone wheel in a flex shaft or rotary tool
to remove the overlapping silver [6].Let the metal air-cool to avoid thermal
shock. If quenched while red-hot, sterling
silver may crack.Check for air bubbles. Once the piece is
cool, check for air bubbles trapped under
the gold. If you find any, use a needle to
punch a hole in the center of the bubble.
Use an agate burnisher to tap and burnish
the bubble flat, working from the edge
of the bubble toward the hole. Then re-
heat the metal to fuse the burnished gold
to the silver.
After you remove any air bubbles or
silver overflow, place the piece in pickle
to remove any oxidation. Let it sit for a
few minutes, then rinse it. Check that the
gold is fused, with no loose edges, then
brush the metal surface with the soapy
brass brush to clean it. Dry it well.Roll the metal. Run the fused sheet
through a rolling mill multiple times
to compress the gold completely flush
to the silver. To get the most out of
my gold, I prefer to roll out my 14-gauge
(1.6 mm) sheet to 22 or 24 gauge (0.6 or
0.5 mm) [7].Anneal the sheet as necessary while
rolling it down to avoid cracking.Texture the metal sheet. When you
get close to your desired gauge, an-
neal once more, and then lay a piece
of textured fabric or paper on top of
the sheet and pass them through the
rolling mill together. I find that rice
paper adds a beautiful, subtle texture
to the metal [8].NOTE: After rolling down and texturing
the fused sheet, sweat-solder a piece of
22-gauge (0.6 mm) silver onto the back
to add strength, if desired.Fabricate your piece. Cut, form, solder,
embellish, and finish your fused sheet just
as you would a sheet of sterling silver.BASICS & VIDEOS
Learn fundamental techniques
in these bonus tutorials:Annealing metal ••
Preparing and using
a charcoal block •
Pickle basics ••Using a rolling millRoll printing metal •
Rolling mill maintenanceSweat soldering ••
Basics, page 75
Videos, http://www.artjewelrymag.com/videos
Subscriber videos,
http://www.artjewelrymag.com/subvideosProcess photos by Melissa Enders.