While I agree that many cuff bracelets and bangles are made by some
combination of forging and saw piercing, the suggestion that other
methods of construction such as casting, or for that matter
fabrication involving soldering, cannot remain unchallenged. The fact
is that we choose the techniques of jewellery construction to what we
wish to express and achieve.
As I said in a previous posting I have made an open oval cuff
bracelet using lost wax casting and intend to make at least one more
so I can see how people respond to them. I chose lost wax casting for
this project because I now have sufficient experience with this
technique in my studio to have some insight into what it can and
can’t achieve. In the case of the bangle I made I wanted it to
express an informal organic flowing aesthetic and I achieved this
through a combination of fabrication with soft wax sheet, overall
shaping around some dies and mandrels, piercing with wax burrs,
shaping and flowing using a wax pen, smoothing with a flame and
finally finishing with wax solvent. This was a considerable amount of
work which at times cruised on the edge of disaster, and I would
suggest required more than a modicum of expertise on my part.
Some of the postings on casting versus “metalsmithing” seem to carry
the carry the implication that there is something inferior, lazy, or
perhaps “industrial” about casting and that real jewellers saw,
solder and bash metal and the extra real jewellers don’t sully their
hands with mere silver but only work in gold or platinum. I will
simply suggest there is also a long historical tradition of casting
in jewellery. My initial interest in casting was aroused by a display
of Inca jewellery. As it happens I also saw, solder and hammer
To return to the issue of the appropriateness of casting versus
other forms of fabrication, I agree I have seen some fine bracelets
produced using forging and saw piercing. I have also seen some fine
work produced through fabrication which like casting would have left
the metal in an annealed state. This is inherent in the technique and
is an issue that must be addressed through a range of measures
including work hardening by hammering and tumbling, the inherent
stiffness in the design of the piece (e. g., the use of curvature and
the thickness of metal) and possibly also heat treating the metal.
Finally might I respectfully suggest that if a questioner suggest
the particular technique they wish to employ, then please respect
their right to make that choice unless it dangerous or highly
inappropriate (e. g., casting opals in place). Otherwise let’s just
accept people may legitimately choose to do things differently than
we might.
All the best
Jenifer Gow
Tears of the Moon Artisan Jewellery