Wow, it has been a very long time since my last post. First things first, Happy New Year! Since last writing I’ve taught a couple of Christmas ornament workshops, but alas, I have no pictures to share. I’ll smarten up on that front!
Now on to the subject at hand – metal stamping. There is so much that can be done with metal stamping… words, images, a combination of the two. Alas, I generally have a tough time figuring out how to make them work properly.
I have a metal stamp with my initials on it to sign my jewellery, as well as a .925 stamp. I have learned not to stamp directly onto the jewellery, as it doesn’t always come through strongly, and there is no way (that I’ve found) to have a decent do-over. Instead I stamp little scraps and attach them. I like the way it looks (very finished), and if it doesn’t work, well, that scrap will become something else.
It would have been very difficult to stamp directly on to this piece due to the domed shape.
I’m happy to report that I may have figured out how to make the stamp work for me and not against me. I was in the studio the other day, and changed up my hold on the stamp and the hammer I was using, and I was able to (miraculously) produce a very strong image. Yay! Fingers crossed that this is the first of many, and not a once in a lifetime event.
Success!
I certainly have a new appreciation for those who make stamped jewellery with whole phrases/sentences… it’s not just the lining up of the individual letters that would be tricky (and it would be VERY tricky for someone like me!), but the actual stamping technique.
I think perhaps a course is in my future… I do have some other stamps with patterns on them, and it would be nice to actually put them to use! Respect the stampers – they’ve got skills!