i’m interested in trying some of the nontoxic recipes for creating
patina on copper that i have seen in messages lately. but i have a
few questions.
-pedro mentioned that a salt and water paste would create a patina on
copper. i have tried soaking the copper (wire) in the paste, but no
patina has developed. does the wire have to be exposed to the air
after the contact with the salt/water before the patina develops? is
it a matter of repeated exposures to the salt/water and air? how long
does it take for patina to develop with this?
-alma mentioned how her flux for lead-based solder created a
blue-green patina. how long does it take for the patina to develop?
i have treated some copper wire to the flux with zinc chloride, but
see just a hint of cloudiness on the wire. do i need to be patient?
do i need multiple applications? is the heat of the torch necessary
to see a rapid development?
-i have looked in tim mccreight’s complete metalsmith for patina
recipes. the green patina refers to ammonium chloride and says another
name for it is sal ammoniac. where should i look for this ingredient?
i have never purchased anything from a chemical supply place and hope
that sal ammoniac is something common that i can buy somewhere else.
i looked at the brain press page on ganoksin.com and found his book
"patinas for small studios." it sounds like just the thing i need.
the emphasis is upon common, safe ingredients…
thank you in advance for any advice you can give me. i should say
that i took one year of chemistry about 36 years ago. you get the
picture.
Jean Adkins columbus, ohio