I am very new at enameling and have only experimented on copper thus
far. I would like to make a pin out of silver with enamel but I have
some questions about it before I design it. How can you attach the
pin back? Is it possible to not counter enamel on silver or to leave
some areas on the front of the piece bare? Thanks, I appreciate your
time. I learn so much from this group! Gwyn
I attach pin backs with IT solder prior to enameling. You have to be
careful though as the finding can come off if the kiln is the
slightest bit too hot. I have found that counter enamel helps to
alleviate cracks. Another posibility is to bezel set the enameled
piece.
–Vicki Embrey
Dear Gwyn, You could think of your enamelled unit as a separate piece
to be “set” into a silver brooch base. I’ve found this to be useful
because it makes it a lot easier to repair or alter or rework the
piece if you have to at a later date. This approach also frees up your
design work and allows you to consider a range of matching pieces
where only the enamelled addition changes. It allows you to see your
designs as interchangeable, changing the enamelled units so that the
piece has a multifunctional character. Kind regards from Rex in Oz
Hallo Gwyn,
How can you attach the pin back?
***Solder it before enameling with extra hard solder, make sure the
silver you use won’t melt when you heat it up to the temperature your
enamel must have.
Is it possible to not counter enamel on silver or to leave some areas on the front of the piece bare?
***When your silver is thick enough you don’t have to countereamel. It
depends on the measures from your pin. With silver from 1mm. and your
enamel not too thick you could leave the counter enamel away. The
counterenamel is needed to take away tension, so when there is no
tension in your material and the way you use your pin won’t give any
tension, you can leave away the counterenamel.
You can leave some silver without enamel, I often do it. But notice
the way the enamel ends, it will show as an accident. You can engrave
a line or something like that zo that the enamel ends tight, in a
line. When you don’t, the enamel ends as the sea on the sand (quit
beautiful when you want it that way). My experience is that you don’t
need to counterenamel when you leave some surface without enamel.
Succes! Marleen B.Berg, Maastricht, the Netherlands.
enameling
How can you attach the pin back? Is it possible to not counter enamel on silver or to leave some areas on the front of the piece bare? Thanks, I appreciate your time. I learn so much from this group! Gwyn
Gwyn, I usually bezel all my enamels and solder the pin back on that.
I do counter enamel my pieces because fine silver is so soft it helps
to prevent warpage and cracking. I imagine if your silver is a heavy
enough gauge you could leave some silver exposed, I think you’ll have
to experiment on that one. Good luck! – Lisa Hawthorne