From the Forge, Cheshire Forge

I hired my friend Jon Shearin to make me a custom stake with a long, round mandrel on one end and a narrow, flat anvil surface on the other. I used a similar tool in college to make forms for my BFA thesis on chatelaines and then revisited it last year when I made work for Spectrum. I love what I can make with this tool and want to continue with other hollow forms this year and beyond. Having a custom stake made by a friend makes it even better. (And he'll make one for you, too.)

one of my first chatelaines, made using a similar stake

Sculpture in steel by Jon Shearin

Be sure to check out Jon's work on Etsy, too, like this enameled
steel belt buckle.

Thanks for reading.

Stumped

I acquired a nice stump a few months ago and last week I finally customized it (with the help of Adam Whitney) to fit my vice, stake, and bench block/dapping block. Chiseling was harder than I remembered it to be and it was tough on my hands, but worth it. Now I can better utilize my tools and they are safer.

 

More images on flickr. 

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paper to metal to paper

I tried folding paper again the other day as a way to get me going in the studio. I made four forms and when I was not excited by any of them, I moved on to something else. The next morning when I walked into my studio, they were the first things I saw. They looked so interesting in a group. They had continuity and personality. I immediately thought I should make them in metal. So...I traced each form onto sheet copper, sawed them out, and started bending. Forming most of them was pretty straight forward with a mallet and bench block but the large, rectangular form required more attention. I used a stake for this one and really got into it, so much so, that the next day I went at it again to crisp up the edges. Next I spray painted them with several coats of white spray paint and let them cure for a few days. I followed this with my routine of sanding, filing, drawing, and scratching away at the surface.

paper teardrops

Once I had them looking the way I wanted, I began making pin stems for each - I really saw them as a group of brooches. I spent several hours on two separate days trying to work them out with no success. I finally gave up, wondering if maybe they should just be objects. (As a jeweler I naturally want everything to be wearable.) At this point I had already drilled some holes in each piece to accommodate the pin stems. To make the piercings look intentional I added a few more. Then I dipped them all in liver of sulfur.

The last thing I had to do was figure out a way to cold-connect one of the forms that was in two parts. I drilled more holes and tried wiring them together, but I didn't like the way it looked. I tied the pieces together with white thread instead and left the ends long.


I am very pleased with this little group and I am satisfied with them as objects and not jewelry. I really enjoyed each step of this process. It felt free. I made them because I wanted to make them, just for myself.

more on flickr.

Thanks for reading.