Monday, 17 May 2010

Hammer finish, silver bangle


Silver cuff bangle with hammer finish and textured stripes.  After cutting out the blank the areas to receive a hammer finish were masked off, and the stripes were etched with a wheel (not chemical), firstly across the width of the bangle,and then at right angles.  A final run over with a brass brush produced a sort of 3-d effect.  The etched areas were then protected during the hammering process.  Several rounds of annealing and hammering were needed to render the silver first pliable, then hardened.  There's a tendency when hammering for the metal to curl upwards when the bangle should curve the other way, so annealing of the work-hardened silver is essential to achieve this without splitting the metal. 

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