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FORMED BY CHANCE, ASSEMBLED BY DESIGN

Earrings

Solder one-of-a-kind
water-cast
components into
truly organic jewelry.
by Addie Kidd

Water casting gives fine


silver a purely organic look.
Paired with 24k gold and
patinated with liver of sulfur,
the water-cast components
make an earthy pair of earrings.

2009 Kalmbach Publishing Co. This material may not be reproduced in


any form without permission from the publisher.

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To learn how to water


cast, see Goof-Proof Water
Casting in the May 2009
issue of Art Jewelry.

ne of the best things about water-cast components is their individuality; its not just unlikely that youll repeat yourself when you make
or use them, its impossible. While you have some measure of control

over the size of the components you produce, all in all, its an exercise in
random creation, and its up to you as a designer to assemble these random
elements into a pleasing whole. The entire process gives you the opportunity
to create highly distinctive, truly one-of-a-kind jewelry.
Select your components. Lay out a number of drop-shaped water-cast components.
Arrange the components until youve found three pairs (small, medium, and large) of
roughly the same size and shape. Dont worry about matching them too closely; the
asymmetry of the finished earrings is part of their charm.
Youll solder earring posts to the medium pair, and the large pair will dangle below.
To add visual interest, youll solder small components inside the large pair and add 24k
gold balls within the small components. Here are my mocked-up earrings; the medium
component on the left wasnt as textured as the one on the right, so I put a tiny watercast piece within it that Ill also solder in place [1].

NOTE: Make sure you select sturdy components that dont have any thin spots thin
spots could melt as youre making the earrings. I kind of manhandle the components a
bit to make sure that theyre tough enough to stand up to wear. Id rather have a piece
bend or break now than after Ive completed my earrings.

Part 1:

Dangles

Pre-solder the small components.


Separate one dangle into its three parts:
large component, small component, and
gold ball [2]. If it matters for your design,
make sure to keep the left and right
earring components separate.
Place the small component convex-side
up on a soldering block. Flux it and place
a medium/large pallion of hard solder on
top. Its okay to use more solder than you
normally would; you wont see it here.
Heat the component evenly until the
solder has melted just enough to adhere
to the component [3]. Do not allow the
solder to flow completely. Remove the
heat, and place the component aside
no need to pickle it. Repeat to pre-solder
the other small component.

Join the small and large components.


Place a large component concave-side up
on the soldering block. Flux the inside
bottom of the bowl, and place a presoldered small component inside it.
Heat the outside of the large component until the solder on the small component flows and joins the two pieces. If
necessary, use a soldering pick to adjust
the placement of the components [4].
Allow the assembly to cool, and repeat
to join the other dangle components.

Form bails for the dangles. Cut two


pieces of 18-gauge (1.0 mm) wire about
15 mm (9 16 in.) long. Using half-round or
roundnose pliers, form the wires into
matching U shapes.

Fit the bail wires. Using tweezers, hold a


U-shaped wire against the top of a large
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component. If necessary, use flush


cutters to trim one or both ends of the
wire until the ends fit flush against the
component. Repeat to fit the other bail
and large component.
NOTE: You may need to angle one or both
ends of the bail wires to achieve a good fit.

6
7a
7b

Pre-solder the bail wires. Place one bail


wire on the soldering block, flux each end
of the wire, and place a small pallion of
medium solder at each end. Heat each
end until the solder flows just enough to
adhere to the wire [5]. Remove the heat
and let the wire cool. Repeat to pre-solder
the other bail wire.
Attach the bails. Using a third hand,
steady the assembled dangle component
on the soldering block. Flux the top of the
dangle component where youd like the
bail to go. Grip the bail wire with insulated
cross-locking tweezers, and hold it ready.
Gently heat the dangle component
until the flux turns clear and glassy; this
means soldering temperature has been
reached. As soon as the flux is clear, guide
the bail wire down, touching the presoldered ends to the dangle component.
Heat the assembly until the solder
flows [6]. Immediately remove the flame,
but hold the bail in place until the molten
solder solidifies. Quench, pickle, and rinse
the assembly. Repeat to attach the other
dangle components bail.
Pre-solder the gold balls. Use the
soldering pick to create a tiny divot in

the soldering block. Place a gold ball in


the divot; this ensures that the ball wont
roll away. Flux the ball, and place a small
pallion of silver solder on top of it [7a].
TIP: If youre soldering gold
to gold, use gold solder. But
if youre soldering gold to
silver, you can save money
and use silver solder.

Heat the ball just until the solder flows


onto it [7b]. Dont heat it too much, or the
solder will cover up the gold. Set the ball
aside to cool, and repeat to pre-solder the
other ball.
Solder the gold balls in place. Place a
dangle component on the soldering block
concave-side up. Lightly flux the interior of
the small inner component, and place the
gold ball within, pre-soldered-side down.
With your torch, gently warm up the
assembly until the flux stops bubbling,
and check the position of the ball. The ball
may jump around because of the bubbling
solder; if necessary, use your solder pick to
reposition the ball so the solder is down.
Heat the assembly, avoiding the thin
bail, until the solder flows and joins the
gold ball to the dangle component. You
may have to use your soldering pick to
hold the ball in place [8].
Quench, pickle, and rinse the dangle.
Check that the ball and component are
joined securely; re-solder as necessary.
Repeat to attach the other dangle
components gold ball.

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Part 2:

1
2
3

Modify the earring-post components.


If youve decided to add one or more
textural pieces inside your medium
earring-post components, solder the
textural pieces in place by following
the same techniques you used to presolder the small components and join
them to the large components [1].
Cut the earring posts. Use flush cutters
to cut two pieces of 20-gauge (0.8 mm)
sterling silver wire about 20 mm (3 4 in.)
long. If the bottoms of the wires arent flat,
flatten them with a needle file.
Pre-solder the earring posts. Grip a
post wire with insulated cross-locking
tweezers. Flux the end of the wire, and
place a medium pallion of hard solder
on the end.
Heat the wire until the solder flows and
covers the end [2]. Allow the wire to cool,
and repeat to pre-solder the other wire.

Assembly

Cut and fit hook wires. Use flush cutters


to cut two pieces of 20-gauge (0.8 mm)
sterling silver wire about 10 mm (3 8 in.)
long. Using roundnose pliers, form each
wire into a tight U.
Use tweezers to hold a hook perpendicularly against the bottom of a post
component. If necessary, use flush cutters
to trim one or both ends of the hook until
a good fit is achieved. Repeat to fit the
other hook and post component.
Pre-solder the hook wires. Using easy
solder, pre-solder the ends of the hook
wires [1] as you did for the bail wires.
Allow the wires to cool.

TIP: When Im filing small


components, I steady my file
against my bench and draw
the component down the
file [3]. I find this technique
easier than holding the small
component and pushing the
file against it.

Solder the earring posts. Place a filed


post component convex-side up on the
soldering block, and flux it. Grip the post
wire in insulated cross-locking tweezers.
Holding the post wire out of the way,
heat the post component until the flux is
clear and glassy. Touch the pre-soldered
end of the post wire to the heated component, and heat until the solder flows [4].
Remove the heat, but hold the post wire
in place until the solder solidifies. Quench,
pickle, and rinse. Repeat to solder a post
wire onto the other post component.

Prepare the backs of the post components. Using a flat file, slightly flatten a
spot on the back of each post component.
This flat spot will ensure that the post has
the largest possible point of contact for a
secure join.

Part 3:

Posts

Place the dangles bail in the hook. Use


insulated cross-locking tweezers to grip
the earring post, and gently lower the post
component to the hook wires. Test that the
pieces will fit correctly when you solder.
Flux the bottom of the post component
where the hook will attach. Holding the
component slightly away from the hook
and dangle, heat just the component.
(Keep the flame away from the post, or
it may melt.)
When the flux on the post component
is clear and glassy, lower the component
until it touches the hook wires ends [2].
When the solder flows, immediately
remove the heat. Dont move the post
component until the solder has solidified.
Quench, pickle, and rinse. Repeat to
assemble the other earring.

Solder the hook wires. Use a third hand


to grip the lower back of the hook wire.
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Part 4:

Finishing

Harden the earring posts. Using flatnose


or chainnose pliers, grip an earring post
lengthwise. Twist the post for about three
full rotations [1]. This will harden the post
and also check your solder seam. If the
post pops off, you can easily resolder it
at this point. Repeat to harden and test
the other earring post.
Trim the earring posts. Using flush
cutters, cut the posts to the correct length:
811 mm (5 167 16 in.) from the back of the
earring to the tip of the post.
Round the ends of the posts. Youll need
to round the ends of the posts so that
theyre comfortable to wear. You can use
needle files to file any sharp burs from the
ends of the wires, but I prefer a quicker
method: using a cup bur. Cup burs have
fine cutting teeth on the inside of a
concave cup.
Place a 1 mm cup bur in your flex shaft,
and lubricate it with bur lube. (I prefer
synthetic lubricant, because I find beeswax
clogs up too much.) Hold the earring post
firmly, and place the spinning cup bur on
the end of the post. Rock the bur around

materials

Fine-silver water-cast components: 48


24k gold balls: 2 mm, 2
Sterling silver wire:
18-gauge (1.0 mm), round,
30 mm (11 4 in.)
20-gauge (0.8 mm), round,
60 mm (21 2 in.)
Sterling silver earring backs: 2

the end of the post for about 3 seconds


[2], until the end of the post is smooth.
Repeat on the other earring post.
TIP: To make sure metal
pieces are comfortably
smooth, run your fingers
over the metal. Your fingers
can sense much more than
your eyes can see.

Create grooves for the earring backs.


A groove on an earring post lets the
earring back snap into place, which helps
to ensure that the earring will stay in the
wearers ear.
Using the tips of a pair of roundnose
pliers, grip an earring post about 2 mm
(5 64 in.) from the end. Firmly squeeze,
creating a small dent in the post [3].
Open the pliers and rotate them around
the post, gripping as you go. Dont overdo
it; you only need a small indent.
If necessary, straighten the earring post,
using flatnose or chainnose pliers. Repeat
to make a groove in the other earring post.
Patinate and finish the earrings. Following the manufacturers instructions, apply
liver of sulfur to both earrings. I applied
mine until it was very black inside the
components and any visible solder seam
was fully covered.
Using a brass brush and soapy water,
polish some of the patina off of the
earrings. This will highlight the texture of
the water-cast components and make the
gold balls shine. Rinse and dry the
earrings. Add the earring backs.

3
online extra
To watch a video on how to
apply a liver of sulfur patina,
visit www.artjewelrymag.com/

videos

toolboxes, www.artjewelrymag.
com/toolboxes

Soldering
Finishing
Wirework

See Safety Basics at


www.artjewelrymag.com/howto

The ends of the earring posts


are slightly rounded to ensure
that the finished earrings are
comfortable to wear.

suppliers

Casting grain, wire, earring backs,


liver of sulfur, cup bur (Rio Grande,
www.riogrande.com); 24k gold balls
(Metal Clay Findings, www.metalclay
findings.com)

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