The third day of the retreat was fantastic!
Well, after I blew up the torch, then it was fantastic.
I literally started the morning, by changing the head on the torch I’d been using all weekend, turning the gas on and watching the thing become a decent sized fireball in my hand. Apparently I had good, quick thinking and turned it off right away.
After I stopped shaking, I proceeded to anneal my wire strip to make a bracelet. Before I show my absolute favorite piece from the entire weekend, I’ll tell you what I did. Basically, I hammered the ends and then cut out a long, wide piece in the center. It was pretty tough to saw because it was 14-gage copper.
I got halfway done, and then walked away for a bit to finish up polishing my main piece, my test piece, and one I just threw in there for fun. I only have a picture of my main piece right now.
I love how it turned out! It’s not perfect. After all the polishing was done, you can really see a spot near the top of the inside of the flower that did not get the solder. Also, I can still see all the little solder pieces around the edge. The instructor thinks there may have been some sort of contamination or something with the solder.
Then I went back to my bracelet. I finished the cut, widened the opening, and annealed it again. Then the fun part began. Basically, you twist and turn the copper and shape it into a piece that’s appealing to you.
I could tell from the beginning that the unpredictability of the piece would probably make me a little nuts, which is exactly why I decided to try this technique. What would be the point of taking this class if I didn’t at least try to do something outside of my comfort zone?
The results…
This is one of the top three favorite pieces of jewelry I’ve ever created. I just love how it turned out. I only wish that I had the ability to create more.
Overall, I had a great weekend. It was fun to rest, relax, and create – even if at times it didn’t really seem like much relaxing was happening. I’m so glad that I did it.
What I really need now is a studio, but I’m not quite sure I’ll be able to convince my husband to allow me to put something like that together. I haven’t really told him about my exploding torch incident yet…
Looks like you had tons of fun (even with the fireball incident:)) Your pieces look awesome!
I also had a torch incident in my home a few weeks ago. I turned on my torch and it transformed into a 3 foot fire-thrower. After the initial split second shock, I turned it off. Needless to say, hubby bought me a new torch! Glad we both didn’t get lit…
P.S. Your new pieces are gorgeous! I love the fun twist bangle, and the flower is adorable.
Thanks so much ladies! I’m really so happy with how the pieces turned out. I especially love that bangle. I’m trying to figure out how I could make it again without having to anneal the metal, but I don’t see how I could do it. The bracelet is just so fun! Sadly, I don’t see a torch in my future.
Sharon, that freaks me out to hear you had an incident too. I’m scared of the fire. I was shaking so badly after it happened. Then the instructor was like, ok, anneal this metal. Ummmm, sure?
Oh yes, even though I had a brand spankin’ new torch, I was quite gun shy for a week! I’m still extra cautious when I turn it on. Your instructor sounds like mine…in class she keeps telling me to get closer to the flame…umm, no!
I absolutely ADORE the flower one!