SILVER CHAIN JEWELLERY

Southland Times, Issue 23793, 15 April 1939, Page 8 (Supplement)

SILVER CHAIN JEWELLERY

Simple jewellery or silversmith s work is most interesting for girls who like doing craftwork. Silver wire is excellent material to use and it is quite easy to handle. The first thing to do is to gain control over

the use of the mouth blow-pipe and this can be done by cutting off short bits of wire and melting them into small beads as shown at Fig. 1. The blow-pipe as shown at Fig. 2 is used with a spirit lamp or a flame from

a bunsen burner; the flame is directed on to the wire which is placed on a block of charcoal or carbon. Powdered borax is used as a flux in assisting the melting of the metal. In making a number of

beads, place the short piece or wire on the block, cover it with powdered borax and then play the flame ‘on the wire until it melts and runs into a bead. It is better to blow the flame with a continual number of short breaths rather than a long breath with a considerable pause between each. With a little practice the blowpipe can be used to play almost a continuous flame. When the necessary command over the flame has been gamed, three of the beads or grains should be placed together as indicated at Fig. 3 for soldering. The solder is purchased in small sheets and is cut, into small snippits. Place some borax on top, rest the snippit ofsolder on the borax and then heat until melted. Continue with this form of soldering until it can be done easily and quickly. The next stage is to form the links by winding some wire round a suitable rod as shown- at Fig. 4, remove the links from the rod and saw them apart as shown at Fig. 5; this is easily done with a fretsaw. The links are now arranged in a suitable manner and . each one soldered separately. Before soldering up a chain it is advisable to deal with a few separate links and form them into a pendant as shown at Fig. 6 and also at Fig. 7. For soldering the links the small snippit of solder should be placed in position

on the join and covered with borax. Small grains placed between the rings, either singly or in combinations of three or four give a decorative effect. As silver becomes oxidised very quickly when exposed to the air, care should be taken to clean up all parts to be soldered quite bright. As it is not always convenient and often impossibe to file the surfaces bright, it is usual to dip silver work in a pickle composed of diluted sulphuric acid. This can be obtained from a chemist in a stoppered bottle and it should be used most carefully. The pickle is one part of acid to 20 parts of water. If the acid is pure, it should be mixed by pouring the acid into the water; on no account add water to the acid.