Repousse, thickness of silver?

Jewelry Discussion
1

Hello,

One thing I cannot find is what the thickness of silver is supposed
to be for Repousse. what is too thick and what is too thin? please
help

Thank you
Olga

2

Olga,

The thickness of the silver for repousse differs with the type of
piece you are working on. For a bracelet I use 22g and 20 ga and for
a vessel I use 18 ga (but repousse on a vessel is much more
difficult.

Jennifer Freidman
Ventura, CA

3

Dear Olga,

One thing I cannot find is what the thickness of silver is
supposed to be for Repousse. what is too thick and what is too
thin?

The thickness depends on how much you need to move or stretch the
metal. For example, if you plan to reproduce the repousse work in
casting you will need to have at least 0.7 mm of metal thickness
after the relief has been raised. If you plan to do enameling or
granulation on top of the repousse piece you can’t use less than 24
gauge as the work may collapse during firing.

For small jewelry design I use 24 gauge silver or gold. For belt
buckles, large bracelets or vessels - 18 gauge.

Hope this helps,

Valentin Yotkov
Valentin Yotkov Studio
Artisan Member of Society of American Silversmiths
68 Jay Street, Studio 501A
Brooklyn, New York, 11201