Tag Archives: The Silver Forge

Peridot and Sterling Silver Earrings

Flashback – Peridot and Sterling Silver Earrings

Peridot and Sterling Silver Earrings

Continuing my flashbacks to the first pieces I ever made, the next step I took at The Goldsmith’s School was to learn to set a stone. A round or oval shaped cabochon is the simplest to set (no corners to contend with!) and I chose one of my favourites, peridot.

Peridot and Sterling Silver Earrings

I have written about the stone setting process previously here and here – and as you can probably tell, it is one of my favourite ways to create!

Peridot and Sterling Silver Earrings

I’ve gotten faster and better at setting stones of course, but these earrings have stood the test of time – although I would design the ear hooks differently another time! I still love peridot, too – it and garnet are some of the few gemstones that are not treated in any way.

Puddingstone and Sterling Silver Ring

Puddingstone and Sterling Silver Ring

Puddingstone and Sterling Silver Ring

I created this puddingstone and sterling silver ring for one of my super-lovely clients.

Puddingstone and Sterling Silver Ring

 

Gorgeous! The lovely stone was from my gemstone collection.

 

Puddingstone and Sterling Silver Ring

Puddingstone is an agate, and this one comes from Agate Creek right here in Queensland. You can read more about puddingstone here on my blog.

Blue Topaz Cabochons (6mm Round)

Blue Topaz Cabochons (6mm Round)

The blue topaz gemstone cabochons shown here are 6mm in diameter, and are available to be handcrafted into custom pieces for you.

Black Onyx Cabochons (6mm Round)

Black Onyx Cabochons (6mm Round)

The black onyx gemstone cabochons shown here are 6mm in diameter, and are available to be handcrafted into custom pieces for you.

Haematite Cabochons (6mm Round)

Haematite Cabochons (6mm Round)

The haematite gemstone cabochons shown here are 6mm in diameter, and are available to be handcrafted into custom pieces for you.

Lapis Lazuli

Lapis Lazuli has been mined in Afghanistan for over 6,000 years.

(image credit Philippe Giabbanelli)

(image credit Philippe Giabbanelli)

Lapis is the Latin word for ‘stone’, and lazuli comes from the Latin ‘lazulum’ which was derived the name of the stone in Persian. The name of the stone came to be associated with its color – the word azure comes from lapis lazuli.

(image credit Parent Géry)

(image credit Parent Géry)

Lapis was long ground up to make the pigment ultramarine, which was widely used during the Renaissance in frescoes and oil painting (this method was replaced in the 19th century with a synthetic compound.)

(image credit Walters Art Museum)

(image credit Walters Art Museum)

Because of its amazing blue colouring, Lapis has been prized; carved and worn throughout antiquity, in pieces like this Roman Imperial Eagle. I saw quite a lot of it in precious pieces in museums while travelling in Egypt.

Large Lapis Lazuli Cabochon

Lapis is believed to be good for communications and good judgement, for enhancing memory, and to attract success.

Lapis Lazuli Cabochon Pair

Lapis is gorgeous – and I have these pieces in my gemstone collection just waiting to be made into something fabulous!

Peridot, Black Onyx and Moonstone Sterling Silver Stacking Rings

Peridot, Black Onyx and Moonstone Sterling Silver Stacking Rings

Peridot, Black Onyx and Moonstone Sterling Silver Stacking RingsIt’s always lovely to create for people you love, so when my bestie asked me to make her daughter a set of stacking rings as a sixteenth birthday present, I was stoked!

Peridot, Black Onyx and Moonstone Sterling Silver Stacking Rings

The stones come from my embarrassingly extensive gemstone collection.

Peridot, Black Onyx and Moonstone Sterling Silver Stacking Rings

 

If you’d like a set (or just one!) of your own, let me know – I’d love to make you some.

Pink Opal Cabochons (6mm Round Rose Cut)

Pink Opal Cabochons (6mm Round Rose Cut)

The pink opal gemstone cabochons shown here are 6mm in diameter, and are available to be handcrafted into custom pieces for you.

I used a similar cabochon to create this custom piece:

Pink Opal and Sterling Silver Ring

Tourmalinated Quartz and Sterling Silver Ring

Tourmalinated Quartz and Sterling Silver Ring

Tourmalinated quartz is such a lovely stone, and when my gorgeous client Jane chose this one from my gemstone collection for a ring to replace one that we had an issue with, I was very happy to create with it!

Tourmalinated Quartz and Sterling Silver Ring

I still get such a buzz out of every ring that I make.

Tourmalinated Quartz and Sterling Silver Ring

If you need one of your own, let me know!

In My Jeweller’s Workshop II

Following on from my previous post in which you’ll find the first batch of workshop shots, and bringing us up to the minute, I’m visiting my workshop space in space and time. You can sometimes catch me posting more of these snaps on my Instagram page and my FaceBook page – I’d love to see you there!

Silver Forge Workshop 14-09-24

24 Sep 2014

This was obviously a busy time for rings – I see a ruby zoisite, an orange titanium coated drusy, a faceted black onyx, a malachite, a piece of labradorite, a brown drusy and a howlite ring all in the creative stages. And some of my domed pieces, too!

 

10 Oct 2014

10 Oct 2014

Here, I’ve come along further with some of those previous pieces, and added this rest of the faceted onyx set and green mojave turquoise ring to the mix. That is my pair of nylon jaw flat nose parallel pliers on the right – fabulous for holding components that are too tiny to be held with fingers while I saw or file or emery, without leaving marks on the metal! Also, a little batch of jellyfish earrings in the making on my soldering block.

6 Nov 2014

6 Nov 2014

The storage expansion continues.. and while it has been there for a while, I draw your attention to my tree stump, kindly provided by a neighbour. It is extremely useful as an ‘anvil’ base, and I’m pleased that even though a tree had to be chopped down, I could salvage a piece of it for a good purpose!

9 Nov 2014

9 Nov 2014

Bead obsessed, much?

21 Nov 2014

21 Nov 2014

Amongst that mass of tools, I see this pendant on my bench peg, and I am still working on that crazy creation underneath!

8 Feb 2015

8 Feb 2015

A couple of repair jobs in the front, some pairs of earrings, a shattuckite pendant and this mojave green ring are all works in progress here! It’s so satisfying to have a number of jobs on the go at once – there is a fair amount of downtime while you’re waiting for things to cool and pickle after soldering.

Silver Forge Workshop 15-03-04

4 Mar 2015

I quite often have things on my bench waiting for inspiration or the right time to strike – some seaglass is in the process here! Also a bunch of forget-me-nots, which I will post more about another time.

1 Apr 2015

1 Apr 2015

Beads for the beginnings of my Ceramic collection are on my bench this day, as well as a number of stones waiting to be set – including this rhodochrosite pendant! The forget-me-nots are all on my soldering block. Stay tuned.