Wow does time fly! The leaves are falling and the temps are dropping. Great time to spend in the studio, especially with holidays around the corner. This issue has an opportunity to show your work and to see others. I also have a suggestion for a must-have book.
An inexpensive alternative to working in silver, copper is gaining popularity. Also a great material for mocking up a design before launching into the real piece in silver, copper removes that scary feeling of "What if I screw it up?". For pennies on the dollar a mistake in copper is a lot less painful and may give your design an order that you might have missed without mocking it up.
A few things to keep in mind when using copper... it has a different melting temp than sterling silver (silver is 1640 F while copper is 1981 F) which makes combining the two a challenge. You also want to designate a "copper only pot" when pickling. Simply because the pickle becomes copper rich faster and causes issues for others in the studio working in silver.
What's Stopping You? Continue Your Creative Journey!
If you have taken a Silver Saturday or a Discover Silversmithing 1 Workshop, you are eligible to move to the next level; Using Stones. Not only does this 6 hour workshop teach you how to make a traditional bezel for a cabochon stone, it increases your experience with soldering.
Must Have Book Most of you know that I don't use my Flexi-Shaft as my primary tool for finishing. Ideally I like to Front-load my work. But that doesn't mean that I don't have one of those days when the Flexi is my best friend. Which doo-hickie to use for what is the big question. To demystify all those little accessories the book you want is "Making The Most of Your Flexible Shaft" by Karen Christians.(Amazon)
Shows Shows Shows! Holiday season coming up which means stearing attention towards showing work (to sell) for the holiday market. This comes in many levels, from gallery feature sales to community tent "craft" shows. At any rate, both the artist and the patron can do well at these events.
One of our own SilverWorks smithys is embarking on this brave new world with a few of these holiday shows. Joan Danoff took her first workshop at SilverWorks less than two years ago, and is now off and running. Come out and support your fellow smithy!
See Joan Danoff at...
Salisbury Christmas Craft Fair
Sat/Sun October 29 & 30 10am-4pm Wicomico Youth & Civic Center 500 Glen Avenue Salisbury, Maryland.
About the Director
Blair Anderson is an artist in residence at Glen Echo Park, MD. read more...
An inexpensive alternative to working in silver, copper is gaining popularity. Also a great material for mocking up a design before launching into the real piece in silver, copper removes that scary feeling of "What if I screw it up?". For pennies on the dollar a mistake in copper is a lot less painful and may give your design an order that you might have missed without mocking it up. 
