Shame about the day job...

I have had so many orders over the last few weeks that I have to take leave from my day job to keep up with. Not that I am complaining, I would MUCH rather be in my workshop all day everyday if I could. 

I made a bracelet like this one for a one year old baby called Mikayla in Melbourne. Its made from 1.5mm wire, hammered for texture and strength. The little charms are cut using a disc cutter from 0.8mm silver sheet.

Gave me a chance to use my new letter punches which are not as easy to use as you might think. If the silver is too thin the imprint shows on the reverse. If you don't bang it hard enough or evenly enough the first time you can't go over it again. Bit more practice needed I think. I have some copper from old heating pipes which I use to practice this sort of thing.

I was inspired by a vintage hairpin that my friend Jo wears. 

I thought it would be an easy thing to make. I balled up the ends of some 1.5mm wire, then shaped it and soldered on a flower. Looks lovely BUT no matter how much I fiddle with it, I can't get the pin to grip together enough to stay in the hair. In the end I took the flower part off and re-attached the flower to a proper (non-silver) jewellery hairpin and it looks fine, but would have preferred to make the whole piece in silver. 

This lovely hammered heart ring is now my best seller. It has been bought around the world and has also been used by a guy to propose to his girlfriend in lieu of her choosing an engagement ring. How nice is that!

Nothing to do with silver at all, but these are my first new potato pickings this year. They were lovely, but shame there wasn't a few more beans to go with them. We had one each !