Here is a tutorial on making silver leaves from @spiritmountainsilver - “These leaves are made using 24 gauge sterling silver sheet. I simply draw the shape of the leaf using a sharpie and saw it out. Then I used a line stamp for the details of the... more
My annual Holiday Gift Guide for jewelers is on my blog! You can head over to the link in my profile to read it. I added some fantastic options from small businesses that are members of our community: 🔨 A vegan sandbag to place underneath your... more
#tooltalktuesday I have been wanting to show off a Butane Torch since I started this page. While I didn’t learn with one they are affordable, portable and I know many many people in our community use them. I am not super experienced with butane... more
Flux link in my profile! #tooltalktuesday this week I’m showing off pepetools_usa new Bench Basics Smart Flux and their Flux Spray Applicator. These are my go to when I’m annealing or soldering larger pieces! The flux itself comes in a large bottle... more
Here is a storage tip from @shira_hanna_designs - “Here’s a great #rainyday organizational tip for the #instasmithies . I pre-prepped my wire solder (silver) and sheet solder (gold) into clean, flat little pallions and then organized them into these... more
Here is a tip for preventing solder flow from @hannah.lynn.jewelry - “Ochre powder is a paint pigment powder that can be found in most art stores for a fraction of the cost of some of the solder flow preventing jewelry products that are available.... more
Here are some tips for doing Keum Boo on a hot plate from @taylorsaleem -“Keum-boo is an ancient Korean gilding technique used to apply thin sheets of gold to silver. This technique is usually accomplished by repeatedly annealing and pickling sterling... more
Grid Soldering Boards can be helpful when you want to align a nail on a pendant or a bezel onto a ring. You can certainly make your own with a ruler and a sharpie or you can get one from our friend David at this link (which has an automatic discount... more
Here is a flux tip from @silversuspensions - “Thought I’d share a flux tip I’ve learned from my mentor, he’s an old school master diamond setter/goldsmith. Find a small container (I’ve re-used a face cream container) drill a small hole in the lid,... more
Here is a tip for adding a wire to the edge of a ring from @sinead_cleary_jewelry - “I start by making my band a bit long as I’ll trim it and the wires down. I also make my frame wires longer so I don’t have to fuss with lining it up perfectly or... more
Here is a prong fabrication tip from @wendyjonewmetaldesigns - “While fabricating a pair of earrings one day, I decided to use my @pepetools_usa Ring Bender with one of the angle inserts to fabricate my prong settings. As you can see in the photo, I... more
I am so excited to have the opportunity to work with this sunstoneweld Orion 150s Pulse Arc Welder. I am completely new to welding and will be sharing my experiences and journey monthly! Setting this up was very easy and I was working on my practice... more
Here is a polishing tip from @isabelasopkova - “I would like to share my tip for cleaning small bezels after soldering, it is perfect for white gold especially. I use a interdental brush with polishing paste and it works very good :))” Thanks for... more
Here is a #diy flux bottle from - @9th_generation_stx - “ Here is my tip for a recycled liquid flux bottle. I can’t tell you how many times I've knocked over my flux, or set the plastic tupperware that I used on fire🔥, causing me anxiety and giving... more
Here is a sanding tip from @dangbravegirl - “I use mine so often that I keep it permanently hooked to a 2nd flex shaft (and to my Quatro dust collector). I can quickly clean up and smooth cuff ends, prep ring shanks for soldering, level a bezel... more
Here is a tip for securing components during soldering from @mdtc_handmade_jewelry Alex uses clay. That is the green material you can see in this video that is used to secure the individual prongs of the setting. Then plaster is poured over that. The... more
Here is a soldering station tip from @cynosurej - “ I use a magnetic strip from IKEA to organize my solder station.” This is so simple but I love that you can make your station less cluttered just by giving the tools a home. Thanks for letting me... more
I use magnetic strips, so my tools can become magnetically charged. In this scenario I had to grind these tweezers down and the little bits of steel are staying attached magnetically. So a solution is to use the demagnetizer. It works in seconds. This... more
Here is a tip from @hghjewelryinstitute - “I use potato for fixing the prongs and soldering them, it makes supporting the prong setting very easy. I wish this tip be useful for our friends on Metalsmith Society.” Fun fact I started Metalsmith Society... more
Here is a tip for your lost stone from @ateliers_du_bijou_contemporain - “Looking for the lost ring or the 'grasshopper' jewel 💎 if you prefer. By the light of your phone 📱or your flashlight 🔦 Who has never experienced this problem? Raise your hand ... more
