Why wait?

Spring has been pretty symbolic in the Weasinart household this year: back to the blog, back on the fitness tracking and training, back on track in the household (Spring cleaning has begun!), and today back in the studio.

Metalwork Monday: Cider Vinegar and Sea Salt Patina

At the very heart of my crafty universe is metalwork. I am always

trying to learn new techniques and love to experiment. 

Giving metal new colors and textures is one of my favorite things.

I brewed up a batch of patina solution with items from pantry and 

absolutely love they look that they produced.

Metal Work Monday: Owls..so maybe I am trendy...

You can probably tell that I am not super trendy. Well, I didn't think that I was until the owl craze starting sweeping the nation. Freakin' hipsters.

I made this super cute owl bracelet, perfect for the fall. 

I ran a bronze ID tag and a silver disc through the Sizzix 

Big Kick to emboss the tree and owl.

I used my jeweler's saw to cut out the owl.

I used my Dremel and several files to smooth the edges.

I used some purple nail polish to give him some zest.

I sanded a bit off to really accentuate the details.

I used two brass eyelets to cold connect the two pieces.

It seemed perfect to make them his eyes.

I combined gunmetal and bronze chain for further interest.

Love at first sight!

Metalwork Monday: Wibbly Wobbly Doctor Who Earrings

Okay, so it's out there. I am a geek of the highest order. 
I went to RIT (nerd central), I direct Shakespeare, I have my own Sonic Screwdriver.
True story.


This week is dedicated to my biggest nerd obsession: Doctor Who.
You're welcome.

I chose two types of washers, brass and copper. I also
chose two different fonts and two different
treatments.

After stamping, I painted alcohol ink onto "wibbly wobbly"
and liver of sulfur gel onto "timey wimey."

I used the dremel to sand of most of the ink and age the brass.
I brushed on the patina gel to make the copper look older.

Unfortunately, they don't go "ding" when there's stuff.

Metalwork Monday: Folded Flower Pendant

Being sick has one or two tiny advantages. Instead of roaming around spreading the plague, I have been able to do lots of designing and some creation between meds, tissues, and tea. Yay!


I spent time this week experimenting with new techniques and tools and am pleased with what I have learned. Stay tuned for future posts featuring these great new design elements! 


One of the simplest new techniques that I tested was folding my flowers rather than dapping or doming them. It needs a little refinement, but am happy with my first attempt!

I folded and curved a nickel and copper flower blank and
riveted them to a brass filigree flower to create the pendant.

The tools: blanks and filigree, hole punch, design stamps,'
round nose and chain nose pliers, rivet/riveting tool, hammer,
bench block, marker, liver of sulfur.

I drew a large asterisk on each flower. It is a little
messy, but they will buff out when I polish them.

I punched a hole in the center of each and stamped
the edges of each flower.

I used my chain nose pliers and folded each flower by
placing my pliers on the marker lines and bending
the flower towards the pliers with my fingers.
After I bent the flowers all the way around, I used the round
nose pliers to curl the ends of all the petals.
Because the hole in the filigree is larger, I also punched
a hole in a small copper blank to hold the rivet on.

I layered the 4 pieces and attached all three with an eyelet.
It is ready for a jump ring and chain!

How Tuesday: Commitment Phobia

My hands are sore. Like, hurt to bend my fingers sore. My arm is tired from lifting my hammer. It is like a good workout...it is a good kind of sore. I am back in the saddle, although it has taken me a few tries each day to really get into the groove. 


Nothing, though, is permanent. I may be able to stay on the the streak and make new pieces everyday. I got a fun new tool today that will pique my interest for the immediate future. I may not though. Nothing is permanent. Okay, maybe one thing is... tattoos. Lots of my friends sport a little ink. I would, but I am not a fan of pain...or very confident about how it would age. 


I figured if I wasn't going to get one myself, I would make one. Inspired by vintage motifs, it is a tiny piece of nostalgia around your neck. I come from a line of sailors, so it seemed appropriate.

Inspired by my grandparents. My grandpa was in the Navy and
I regret never seeing his actual dog tags.
The piece is an aluminum dog tag, a copper banner, and copper rivets.

This piece is a copper heart, brass banner, and vintage chain.

First, I stamped the words onto the banner. I used a
pre-cut banner piece, but you could cut your own.
I started from the center of the piece and stamped out from there
to keep the phrase centered. 

I used my chasing hammer to deckle the edges and then
used my round nose pliers to give the banner movement.

After a dip in the liver of sulfur bath.

I used my Crafted Finding rivet tool to attach the two pieces.
I added a vintage heart charm that also reminded me of an
old-school tattoo.

The rivets from the back. Check out the finished piece at
the top of this tutorial.

Metalwork Monday: Hammer Therapy

Sometimes, when you are having a rough time, it is difficult to recall why you like doing the things you do. Is it habit? Is it boredom? Or do they really still give us joy?


After the week I had been having, I doubted this morning that I would be be very productive. Heavy thoughts are still troubling me and focus has been tough to come by, but I took a couple of days off specifically to make things. So today, I put the pigtails back in and went into the jewelry studio. I had been avoiding it, primarily because since the turn of the year, business has been slow dead.  I had been spending many hours, designing and creating, but to what end? No one was buying.


I committed to posting a new metal working project every Monday, so I had to at least make one piece. But I also had a bunch of pieces that I had etched last week that needed to be made into something. Hmmm...I had to chose between the disappointment of not selling my work and the thrill of designing something totally new. Granted, if I made something truly stellar, I might sell it. Hmmm...


In the end, being creative won. I was able to make multiple pieces and I am very happy with them. I will list them in my shop later. Plus I have several more pieces to put together tomorrow. Additionally I worked on 5 other blog projects and will begin work on my sampler tonight. As a very wise man once said, hard work is its own reward.

WIP Wednesday: Etched Metal Jewelry

Creating metal jewelry is incredibly liberating--forming the metal with your hands, using hammers and drill presses, using both brute force and precision. 
My favorite contrast is creating a piece with a jewelers' saw, the tiny teeth cutting an intricate design, and then applying my 2 lb. hammer to it to add textures, words, or rivets.The juxtaposition is delicious. 
During the holiday rush, I added a new tool to my arsenal: ferric chloride. It etches away the top layer of cooper and copper alloys. It allows a level of design difficult to achieve with different mediums. 
So in addition to my safety glasses, I have added rubber gloves to my metalworking uniform.
While teaching an etching class at Beads and Beyond recently, a student who is also a scrapbooker brought in some stamps and ink to try it as a resist. Since the pieces are suspended in an acid bath, a pigment ink is necessary. We tested Versafine Archival Pigment Ink.


It worked beautifully! I was jealous that I hadn't figured it out on my own, but that didn't stop me from buying ink and stocking up on stamps.

A gorgeous stamp that reminds me of a tin ceiling.
I think it will look fabulous as wearable art.

A variety of old and new stamps and ink.
Testing multiple shapes and types of alloys.

Stamped and drying...which takes forever!
They will go in the acid bath on Friday,
be incorporated into jewelry over the weekend,
and will be posted Monday.
Stay tuned!!