When you are making multiples of a piece, creating a template in a base metal saves so much time! Thank you for sharing yours @jimbo_ve this particular template not only gives you a good trace to saw out the piece but it also has a hole you can insert... more
After recently asking about ergonomics in my stories (thank you to those of you that tune in and chat with me 😊🙏🏻) @refugesilver sent me this awesome #diy saw frame handle cover she fashioned from pipe insulation! Keeping our hands healthy is such an... more
I love this bur storage solution from @piecesofstarrjewelry - “1/2 inch brass pipe ends and coupling (purchased from Home Depot :), I tried 3/4 inch and it’s too wide-you want them to stand up a bit more so 1/2 inch is best! Also in the bottom of one... more
When your tumbler is broken, just throw your shots into a plastic bottle and shake! 😂 I absolutely love this @cloud91edelsmid (she shook it for 20 minutes while watching tv and it shined her earring wires right up!) This is a great opportunity to... more
Next time you are polishing a ring with your flexshaft, try holding it on a wooden mandrel. It will protect your fingers when the piece gets hot and also help prevent the ring from getting flung across the room! Thank you @noctuajewellery 🙏🏻😘 and to... more
When you are cutting rings (or jump rings) cover them with masking tape to keep them together as you saw 🎉 thanks for the tip @blueberryjewelry02 simple tips that make life easier are the best 🙌🏻 if you want to share a tip with me feel free to DM me... more
Here is a fantastic tool modification to help you with stonesetting from @lafemmebohemejewelry - “Cover the tips of your bezel rocker and bezel pusher with Jett Sett (now called "Jett Basic" on riogrande.com) to keep them from marking your bezel while... more
Here’s a way to get your prongs to stay in position while soldering from @sweetbellajewelry - “For prongs I use a soft solderite tile. It’s soft enough to push the wire prongs right into it.” 🤯 You know, the Metalsmith Challenge this month just so... more
How do you seal a patina and keep bronze, brass and copper from tarnishing? While there is no magic solution, @ritualremains generously shared some of their methods (swipe to see their notes on each) 🙏🏻 “This is a small series of what we use to seal... more
It’s a #DIY flux bottle from French jewelry blogger @apprendre_la_bijouterie - you take a glass dropper bottle and with gloves remove the glass dropper (she assured me that it easily comes off), then create an incision in the rubber top and insert... more
Amazing hinge tip from @elmharris - “I use graphite pencil leads to keep the hinge knuckles in place and to keep the inside of the knuckles “dirty” so solder doesn’t flow inside. I also paint a little rouge or white out (the green label, water based... more
Here’s a way to organize ALL THE METAL 😍🤯👩🏭 @salaciousstones uses hanging folders to store her ✔️ sheet metal ✔️ decorative wire ✔️ solder 👍🏻 not sure what’s happening inside those folders but if you also used ziplocks with anti-tarnish tabs you... more
If you are experimenting with wax carving purchase some drywall screens! Thanks for sharing this @gildedpoppyco 😘 - “I’m new to working with wax but I picked up this tip from a Kate Wolf YouTube video. Use drywall sanding screen to flatten out and... more
When you need to throw some earrings in the tumbler and don’t want to spend 20 minutes digging through shots 🤯 @brightsidejewelryco drilled holes into a plastic card, threaded her earrings and tossed into her tumbler 💃🏼 yassssss #metalsmithsociety... more
Here is an incredible prong setting tip from @mirieldesign - “Drill holes in a scrap metal plate (any metal works), and use that to hold prongs when soldering the setting together. Set a caliper to draw a circle first, mark off the distance between... more
I’m so honored to share some of the works created in April for the #metalsmithchallenge the theme was ✨TRIBUTE✨ these members of our community created pieces that honored, or were dedicated to a person or pet 💕 swipe through to see everyone’s and tap... more
Here’s a game changer from @sweetbellajewelry - “There are a few tools that I have purchased in the past that after I get them, I think ‘how did I survive without this’, this Dymo label writer is one of them! There are many different size labels but... more
For those of us that use steel stamps 👀@adornedsmithingco wraps her stamps with rubber bands to make a wider, more comfortable grip that is also more secure! She also marked her metal with sharpie to create a center line so she could place her stamp... more
