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The creation of silver jewellery can be traced back thousands of years to the time of the Ancient Egyptians. Since then, the techniques and skills involved have been refined and there are many tools and aids available to the artisan to help with the process of silver jewellery making. Craftsmen today are able to buy ready-prepared silver sheets, silver wire and silver findings - none of which were available to artisans of the past. However, the basic techniques using heat and manipulation have not changed all that much. Using a simple pair of ear-rings as an example, we can see just what is involved.
For this basic project, the craftsman will require a sterling silver sheet, a scribe, a jeweller's saw and blades, a bench peg, a jeweller's drill and access to a buffing machine. Once the basic piece has been made, it can, be embellished with silver wire or silver findings.
The sterling silver sheet, if bought from a reputable jewellery supplier's will already have been annealed to maximise its softness and malleability. Silver sheet can be bought in a variety of thicknesses and 'hardness'; this will depend on your personal taste and what you feel comfortable working with. The first stage is to put your design onto the silver sheet. This can be done by simply drawing the design on paper and fixing it to the silver sheet using scotch tape. Should duplicates be made, one of the pieces can be kept as a template and the scribe used to mark the design into the silver sheet.
You are now ready to cut out the design. Depending on its intricacy, you may want to create a cutting point with the drill; a small drill bit can be used to create a hole in the silver sheet to facilitate cutting. When you are ready to begin, start with a slightly forward tilt to the saw blade and use light and easy strokes. The onus is not on speed at this stage; it is more important that the strokes are consistently even and long. Due to the very thin blade, the saw will cut around very tight corners, as long as the strokes are consistent. You may wish to use the bench peg at this stage.
Once the design is free from the silver sheet, the jeweller's drill is used again to drill a hole for the ear-wires. This can be bought as silver findings or, alternatively, they can be created from silver wire and manipulated using jeweller's pliers.
The final stage is to polish the piece, using a buffing machine and gradations of polish to achieve the desired effect. The first polish is simply designed to remove scratches and each subsequent polish improves the lustre and the quality of the piece.
Although a relatively simple project, creating silver jewellery can become as complicated as you like, dependant on the intricacy of the design and the further embellishments to be included, such as stones, silver findings or added designs using silver wire.
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