Laura Griffin Designs

As promised, here is a pic of my last project from my silversmithing class…a large stone-set bezel ring (and I do mean large!) At one point, I overheated the metal and thought I might be showing you a picture of a big slumped silver mess…but luckily all was salvaged. Thank goodness for ring mandrels & hammers! It came right back to its original shape. Gotta love a hobby that lets you bang on things & make lots o’ noise.

The cabachon used here is a Pietersite…it is hard to see from the picture, but it has beautiful depth & translucence to the stone. Pietersite is said to provide physical protection. Spiritually and psychically, Pietersite helps in working with angels, experiencing visions, and precognition, relating to feminine or goddess energy.

I’ll let ya know if I start seeing spirits.

It started with two 1″ squares of sterling silver. Six hours & about 8 saw blades later… I ended up with these. *LOL* They were fun to make, and I learned a lot about sawing, filing, soldering & polishing.

Lesson 1: There is a reason that jeweler’s saw blades come in packs of 12…especially if your name begins with Laura & ends with Griffin. Buy several dozen at a time.

Lesson 2: It is nearly impossible to hold a flame in one hand & maneuver tweezers, wire, & solder in the other without seriously putting your health in danger.

Lesson 3: A little shine makes anything look better…who says symmetry is important?!

Next week, we start our final project for our class… a stone set bezel ring. Keep posted for pics…

Well, amazingly enough, I managed NOT to set the studio on fire with the gas torch. I had a lot of help from my teach, but here’s the result from my first fabrication (silvermithing) project. It’s certainly not perfect… but it’s handmade with TLC. And yes, I realize I spent beacoup bucks on a class to make a ring I could buy in Mexico for $2, but we won’t go there… As I continue to learn more about this craft, I am hoping to combine fabricated silver with polymer clay to create custom jewelry. Julia Sober does an excellent job of this kind of work. Check it out!

My next project is a set of celtic domed earrings. Keep posted for pics…