BY DESERT DR IFT ER J EWE L RY
M A K I N G T H O U G H T F U L LY H A N D C R A F T E D R I N G S
INTRO DUCTION Welcome to Class One, How to Build a Ring for Beginners. I’m so excited to have you here. In this class you will learn how to make a simple ring, that is thoughtfully handcrafted in your very own home studio. I will give you the tips and tricks that I wish I knew when I started. At the end of this course, you will have all the tools and resources necessary to get started in silversmithing.
TABLE OF CONTENTS Vocab. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
The Project. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Material Checklist. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
Le t’s Ge t Started. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
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VO C A B Before we start, I would suggest reading through this vocab list, so you can learn some of the new vocab words that are used in the metalsmithing world.
Anneal
Softening metal by heating it up, after the metal has been work hardened. This technique is also used to make metal more usable when shaping.
Bezel
The wire that wraps around your stone, and keeps it in place.
Blank
The ring blank, or what is commonly referred to as the band, is the portion of the ring that encircles the finger.
Cabochon
A gem that is polished and ready to be set. When searching for loose gems to use in your jewelry this a a key term to use.
Firescale
A layer of oxides that forms on the surface of metals when heated. This is cleaned by using pickle.
Flux
Cleans, coats, and protects the piece and enables the solder to flow easily between the joints when heated.
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Gauge
Measures the thickness of metal or wire. The smaller the gauge the thicker the wire.
Pickle
A liquid compound used to remove oxidation and flux from newly soldered jewelry.
Solder
A small piece of alloyed metal that is used to connect different parts of your jewelry.
Stone Setting
For this course, this refers to the place the stone is set and includes the piece of sheet silver, bezel wire, and decorative wire that is used.
.925 Sterling Silver
The metal we will be using in this class! It is an alloy of fine silver (92.5%) and copper (7.5%) It is strong and hypoallergenic. Fine silver (99.99% pure) is often too soft to make functional, long-lasting pieces.
Work-Harden
As you work with jewerly it tends to get more stiff and stong. This ensures that the metal will hold its strength and remain strong.
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TH E
PROJECT
I got my start with Desert Drifter making rings. We are going to cover all the things I wish I knew when I started, compiling all the most important information into one place. After this class you will know how to: Source metal, stones, and tools. Construct a simple ring by sawing, soldering, and shaping. Clean and polish silver. Set a stone inside your ring setting. Now to the fun part…here is a picture of the ring you will learn how to make compared to my first ring. Let’s get started!
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M AT E R I A L One of the hardest things to learn about metal smithing when you are first starting out, is where the heck you get all of your supplies! We will cover where to source metal, tools, and places to further your learning. Let’s start with tools: Sawing & Cutting Jewelers Saw Wooden Pin Clamp Shears Dykes
Polishing Dremel Dremel Attachments Vise Silver Blackener Polishing Compound
Shaping & Forming Hammer Mandrel Pliers File Ring Sizer
Safety Glasses Mask Other Sharpie Ruler (Make sure the ruler has millimeters)
Soldering Third Hand Solder Block Torch Flux Solder Brush Copper Tweezers Crockpot Pickle
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CHECKLIST My very favorite place to source metal is Rio Grande. In addition to metal, they sell anything a jeweler might need. This will be an incredible resource for you going forward. You can find all the metal you will need for this project there. Metal Bezel Wire Half Round Wire Sterling Silver Sheet Patterned Wire You will only need about 4 inches of the wire, and the sheet needs to be a few millameters larger than your stone. I would suggest getting at least a foot of the wire and at least a 3x3 piece of silver. Once you make your first ring, you will be hooked and want to make more! This way you can make a few more pieces.
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Let’s talk stone sourcing! I like to look for Authentic stones that are mined and cut in the US. The main stone that I use is turquoise, so most of these shops are turquoise based. As a jeweler you are responsible for providing information to your customers about the stones you are using! One term you will see often is whether a stone is calibrated or natural. Here is some more info on that from one of my favorite shops, Turquoise Moose. Don’t be afraid to reach out to your stone and gem dealers to find out more about their process.
Calibrated vs Natural
“Calibrated turquoise is turquoise that is cut to fit standard size commercial gemstone jewelry mountings and settings, just like many gemstones that adhere to standard jewelry setting measurements, such as 7mmx9mm, 8mmx10mm, etc. The nature of turquoise being relatively soft, therefore, even the highest grade natural turquoise needs to go through a certain enhancement (stabilization) process to be cut into precision without breaking. The stabilization process was invented in the 50s in Arizona and was soon adopted globally. Essentially, the stone is put under pressure to absorb a clear epoxy filler which makes the stone much stronger to cut and polish. Setting the record straight, calibrated turquoise does not mean it is fake. Stabilization is a necessary process to make natural turquoise hard enough to be shaped. In fact, the higher-grade natural turquoise is dense enough to be cut and shaped without too much enhancement. The higher the quality of the stone is, the less stabilization it undergoes. On the other hand, a softer and lower grade of turquoise needs to have more
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treatment and requires more stabilization. In fact, calibrated turquoise can be more expensive than freeform turquoise cut from the same rough, because the yield rate of calibrated turquoise is so much lower, sometimes even below 10%.” Instagram: @redmountainoutpost @turquoisemoose @turqouiseattic_ Etsy: Sharon from Extreme Beads TurquoiseNMoreInc
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LET’S GET Get your stone and bezel wire. Wrap the bezel wire around your stone and make a mark with your sharpie. Make the cut with your wire cutters. If the newly cut wire is flat, use your mandrel and hammer to make it into a circle.
Once your bezel wire has some curve, bring the two ends close together so there is no gap. Place the closed bezel wire on your soldering block, then place flux and a piece of hard solder where the two ends meet.
Heat the entire bezel wire until it bubbles, then concentrate your flame where your solder is. Because the bezel wire is so thin, you must be careful when heating up the metal to ensure it does not melt. Look for the solder to flow, you can tell when you metal turns from dull to shiny.
Quench your bezel wire and quickly place it into your warm pickle pot. You only need to keep it in for a few seconds, just to get the fire scale off.
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STA R T E D Now we will measure our decorative wire. The easiest way I have found to do this is by placing the bezel wire back over the stone and then wrapping the wire around the stone and bezel. Make a mark with your sharpie and cut with your wire cutters or saw.
Repeat steps 2 – 4
We will now measure how much sheet wire we need. Place the bezel wire inside the decorative wire. Now put them on top of the sheet metal. Find where it fits best and trace around the decorative wire with your sharpie.
With your saw or metal shears, cut out the shape you traced. It does not need to be perfect, in fact, I usually cut it slightly larger just in case.
Make sure your bezel and decorative wire kay flat. Place it is the middle of the shape you cut out of the silver sheet. Place flux where the wires and sheet connect. Then place solder along the outside wire and inside wire.
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Once everything is placed how you would like, it is now time to heat that bad boy up! Just like before, heat the entire area until the flux bubbles, then focus your torch in the middle of the piece you are working on. Once the metal becomes shiny and you can see the solder flow, you can quench your piece. Then place it into the warm pickle for a few seconds.
Now it is time to make our ring blank. Get out your ring blank sizing chart. Measure and saw (or cut and file) your half round wire according to your size. Look under the 10-gauge column. Keep it mind that because millimeters are so small, your measurements may be slightly off.
Take your newly cut half round wire and shape it on your mandrel. Try to get the ends as close together as possible, and make sure it is the correct size. At this step you may have to take off some additional metal.
At this point, your piece should be roughly shaped, and the two end pieces should be touching. Now it is time to solder. Follow steps 2-4.
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You now have two pieces, the stone setting that includes the two wires and sheet, and you have the ring blank. The final step is soldering these together. Place your stone setting upside down on your soldering block. Put the ring blank in your third hand and make sure the solder seam is facing down. Configure the two pieces to touch each other. Make sure your ring blank is centered and straight. Where the two pieces touch, place flux and solder. Heat until the solder flows and quench. The two pieces should now be one. Place the the piece in your pickle pot and let it sit until it is clean from firescale. Now that your piece is clean it is time to patina if you choose. Use a paintbrush to patina certain parts of your jewelry, or you can dip the whole piece in. Polish time! If you have a tumbler, set your patinaed piece in with a drop of dish soap and fill the tumbler 3/4 full with water. Tumble until you reach your desired finish. If you opt to use a dremmel, use a polishing wheel tip and polishing compound. I like to put whatever piece I’m working on in my vice to get the big chunks polished.
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To set the stone, grab your setting tools and set your piece in the vise. Make sure the back of the ring is resting on the top of the vise, to the bezel cup is supported by the vise. Now start using the bezel rocker or square tool to push the bezel closer to the stone.
Go around the bezel a few times. Make sure the bezel is as tight as possible and the stone does not rock inside the bezel cup. Once you feel the bezel is tight enough, take a straight file and go all the way around the bezel to round off the edge.
The last step is taking a polishing cloth to the whole ring. Wipe off any other debris and give it a final polish.
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There you have it! You have made your very own hand-crafted sterling silver ring. I would love to see the pieces you created, so please tag @desertdrifterjewelry on Instagram and use the hashtag #driter. If you have any further questions, make sure to join our Facebook page, or you can DM me. I’m so excited to see what you create in the future!
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