"Sun and Sea" Silver Bracelet

Step 2

Steps:

1. Draw a scale design of the sun and sea on graph paper and make one copy.

2. Cut out the design and glue it to one of the 1-1/4" x 7" strips of silver metal using rubber cement.

Step 3

3. Cut out the raised central portion of the design for the front and the back of the bracelet with a jeweler's saw.

Steps 4-6

4. With the remaining scrap sheet silver metal (left over from cutting out the designs), cut circles with a disc cutter and steel hammer.

5. File the edges of all cut pieces until flat and smooth using needle files.

6. Place these bracelet components aside.

Step 7

7. Wash, dry and place the two 4mm strips along each long edge of the second 1-1/4" x 7" strip of silver metal.

Steps 8-9

8. Apply flux and hard solder to the edges of 4mm metal strips to the 7-inch metal strip. Put on shaded safety glasses. Light the torch, tune the flame and slowly apply heat until the solder flows into desired location on the metal pieces.

9. Let the piece cool and place it into the pickle to remove the melted flux from the soldered area. Take it out of the pickle and rinse in water. Dry it with a terry cloth towel.

Steps 10-11

10. Place the sun cutout design on the metal strip between the two soldered strips near one end and the water cutout design between the narrow metal strips near the other end of the strip. Place the discs randomly along the strip.

11. Flux and solder the design pieces to the metal strip.

Step 12

12. Saw the metal strip into two pieces — one 3-3/4 inches long and the other 3-1/4 inches long. Pickle the pieces, rinse and dry.

Step 14

13. Wrap the 3-1/4-inch strip around the oval mandrel and pound it into the bracelet shape with a leather hammer. Repeat with the 3-3/4-inch strip.

14. Place the ends of the shaped metal pieces together and adjust them to fit together perfectly.

Steps 15-16

15. Cut each piece of tubing into three equal pieces. There will be a total of six pieces of tubing for the hinge joints of the bracelet.

16. Align the edge of the 3-1/4-inch shaped bracelet piece with the edge of the 3-3/4-inch shaped bracelet piece on the soldering surface placing three pieces of hinge tubing between the two.

Steps 17-18

17. Clamp the bracelet pieces in place. Carefully mark the hinge joint placement so the solder is adhered in the precise area. Placing the solder for this section is critical as there will be two attachment points on the 4-inch section and one attachment point on the 3-inch section.

18. Apply flux and using medium solder, solder the hinge tubing to the bracelet pieces using the torch. Wear shaded safety glasses when using the torch.

Step 19

19. Align the opposite edges of the bracelet pieces and solder the remaining three-hinge tube pieces in the same manner. Pickle the pieces, rinse in water and dry.

Step 20

20. Coarse polish the front and back sections of the bracelet with a buffing machine. Wear clear safety glasses.

Steps 23-24

21. Apply silver oxidizer to darkened areas shown on drawing with a cotton swab or a small paintbrush.

22. Rinse the bracelet thoroughly with water and dry.

23. Medium and fine polish the bracelet using a buffing machine or the flex shaft.

24. Rivet the hinge with the 1-1/4-inch piece of 16-gauge round wire.

Step 25

25. Hold the remaining 1-1/2 inch piece of 16-gauge wire with tweezers and heat the end of the wire until it creates a ball. Remove it from the heat. Allow the wire to cool, and then polish it.

Steps 26-27

26. Using chain-nose pliers put a small bend in the middle of the wire with the ball on the end. This becomes the locking pin for the bracelet.

27. Insert the wire into the completed "Sun and Sea" silver bracelet and wear it!

Susan Tinkler O'Neal has held many jobs, from scuba instructor and ceramics teacher to office manager and stay-at-home mom. But the one thing she has always come back to is jewelry. She took metal smith classes in college where she learned to work with silver and gold and then began dabbling in beadwork and wire wrapping.

Website: www.tinkleroriginals.com