Learn some of the tricks, tips and techniques that have helped me make jewelry making easier, faster, better and just plain more fun.

Polish your hammers. The better the finish is on your forging hammers, the less finishing work yu will have to so on your forged jewelry.

Polish your anvils. Just like your hammers, if your anvils have a good polished surface, the back side of yoru work will reflect that high polish and you will have much less polishing to so on the finished piece.

Inspect raw materials before you start. Make sure that the material is clean and free from any possible contaminants. Sometimes the silver wire I get is held together with tape. If the residue is left on the wire when you start to forge it, it will have a slight distortion and will be harder to clean later on.

Calculate material needed. When I have a piece to make out of gold wire, I usually take a piece of copper wire of a known length. I make a prototype of the part and then measure the left over wire to more accureately calculate the length of wire to use in gold.

Cadmium Free Solder. Whenever I silver solder, I always use a solder formula that contains no cadmium. Cadmium is very toxic not only for the jeweler making the piece but also for the one wearing it. When you order your silver solder, always request a Ccadmium free formula. If you can't find a company that will sell it, contact me for some options.