These are the instructions I have found. I am new to this area of
jewelry making. Can someone let me know what to purchase as far as
the boric acid, alcohol and the pickle are concerned? This sounds
easy enough. And is the acid and alcohol something you need to mix? I
really want my work to be as made from scratch as possible and this
is much cheaper then buying the little things.
Thanks so much!
Cut the wire into the length you want. To determine that,
you’ll need to experiment by cutting several lengths, each one
longer by 2 or 3 mm - record your lengths for future
reference. Then dip the length into boric acid and alcohol,
burn off, and holding the wire vertically in cross-lock
tweezers, melt one end into the ball you like. Repeat with each
length. Drop into pickle and let them sit for a minute. Remove
from the pickle, rinse, and lay them down in order of length -
measure each one and match it to the record you made earlier.
Now you know how much length you lose when the ball is formed.
You can use these sample headpins to determine the best length
for your purpose, and cut as many as you think you’ll need. I
cut at least 100 at a time… mindless work… watch TV.