Delicate three petals - silver flower earring
I enjoy fusing silver pieces together to recreate the natural world around me. These aren’t a replica of a particular flower, just inspired by the lovely shapes I see outside.
Size: The leaves are about half an inch long but vary due to the nature of the process. The entire earring is about an inch long.
The Process:
Each of my pieces is hand fabricated, not cast. This means that each piece is cut from silver wire and sheet, folded, hammered, soldered and finished all by my hand. This creates a truly unique piece, as each one is made individually. I use a hammer and anvil to create the textures that appear on the silver. I also use a technique called “fold forming” which requires me to repeatedly heat and fold the metal to create lines in the metal. You can see much of my process by visiting my instagram @sydneymetaldesigns where I make jewelry and other art!
I like to say I’m not a jeweler, I just make jewelry. I am currently using metal smithing techniques to explore the details and beauty in nature by recreating the natural world in silver jewelry form for us to appreciate.
The Material: Argentium Silver
I use a relatively new alloy of silver called Argentium, which has a slightly higher pure silver content than sterling and a small amount of germanium. This alloy is 94% pure silver, while sterling has a purity content of 92.5% (why some sterling jewelry has 925 stamp). I find the slightly higher silver content makes the silver more tarnish resistant and gives me the ability to fuse the material instead of just soldering. The silver has a lovely, whitish brightness to it that I really enjoy! I clean my silver with toothpaste and a brush for the hard to reach areas. But you can clean this silver the same way you clean your sterling silver.
I enjoy fusing silver pieces together to recreate the natural world around me. These aren’t a replica of a particular flower, just inspired by the lovely shapes I see outside.
Size: The leaves are about half an inch long but vary due to the nature of the process. The entire earring is about an inch long.
The Process:
Each of my pieces is hand fabricated, not cast. This means that each piece is cut from silver wire and sheet, folded, hammered, soldered and finished all by my hand. This creates a truly unique piece, as each one is made individually. I use a hammer and anvil to create the textures that appear on the silver. I also use a technique called “fold forming” which requires me to repeatedly heat and fold the metal to create lines in the metal. You can see much of my process by visiting my instagram @sydneymetaldesigns where I make jewelry and other art!
I like to say I’m not a jeweler, I just make jewelry. I am currently using metal smithing techniques to explore the details and beauty in nature by recreating the natural world in silver jewelry form for us to appreciate.
The Material: Argentium Silver
I use a relatively new alloy of silver called Argentium, which has a slightly higher pure silver content than sterling and a small amount of germanium. This alloy is 94% pure silver, while sterling has a purity content of 92.5% (why some sterling jewelry has 925 stamp). I find the slightly higher silver content makes the silver more tarnish resistant and gives me the ability to fuse the material instead of just soldering. The silver has a lovely, whitish brightness to it that I really enjoy! I clean my silver with toothpaste and a brush for the hard to reach areas. But you can clean this silver the same way you clean your sterling silver.
I enjoy fusing silver pieces together to recreate the natural world around me. These aren’t a replica of a particular flower, just inspired by the lovely shapes I see outside.
Size: The leaves are about half an inch long but vary due to the nature of the process. The entire earring is about an inch long.
The Process:
Each of my pieces is hand fabricated, not cast. This means that each piece is cut from silver wire and sheet, folded, hammered, soldered and finished all by my hand. This creates a truly unique piece, as each one is made individually. I use a hammer and anvil to create the textures that appear on the silver. I also use a technique called “fold forming” which requires me to repeatedly heat and fold the metal to create lines in the metal. You can see much of my process by visiting my instagram @sydneymetaldesigns where I make jewelry and other art!
I like to say I’m not a jeweler, I just make jewelry. I am currently using metal smithing techniques to explore the details and beauty in nature by recreating the natural world in silver jewelry form for us to appreciate.
The Material: Argentium Silver
I use a relatively new alloy of silver called Argentium, which has a slightly higher pure silver content than sterling and a small amount of germanium. This alloy is 94% pure silver, while sterling has a purity content of 92.5% (why some sterling jewelry has 925 stamp). I find the slightly higher silver content makes the silver more tarnish resistant and gives me the ability to fuse the material instead of just soldering. The silver has a lovely, whitish brightness to it that I really enjoy! I clean my silver with toothpaste and a brush for the hard to reach areas. But you can clean this silver the same way you clean your sterling silver.