I have been enameling on sterling and fine silver for a year or so. I either use a torch to melt the surface of fine silver to get a high polish before the first enamel coat or I use a soft brass brush to get a satin sheen. The problem is that sometimes the silver frosts over during the first enamel firing when the surface has the brass
brush finish. It never happens with the torch polished finish, but sometimes I prefer the brushed finish underneath the enamel. How can I prevent the brushes finish from frosting over. Appreciate your help!
Sorry, the title may not reflect the body of the inquiry, but I figured firing an enamel coat heats the silver just as annealing does. FYI, the brass brushed finish frosts over when I anneal the silver too, no enamel used.
You might consider asking your question on any of the various Facebook enameling groups.
It’s probably brass transferring to the silver surface during brushing. Try using a brush that is not brass.
Thanks LaLinda. I’ll try Facebook. I have even pickled the silver after brass brushing and enameling.
First of all you can brass brush silver, but do it with water to keep the brass from transferring to the silver. To make the surface shiny for enameling, heat it up to almost melting making the top surface liquid. When it cools it will be very shiny. There are how to’s on Google I would expect. Check out Ricky Frank’s intro to enameling on Rio Grande’s video site. Best of luck