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here's news about the Broken Pottery Jewelry Workshop I went to yesterday...

It was a nice group of women at the workshop. The presenter facilitates one "recycle" workshop a month at the Estate Store.

Several of the woman volunteer at the Estate Store and the director was there. The presenter experimented with shard jewelry over the last couple weeks before the workshop. I admit to having done that in my past as an art teacher [ I'm making paper beads like crazy as I'm offering a class two months from now]... so for all it was a learning experience and good company.

When I came home, I looked up some references to broken pottery jewelry and realized we were not using the wheeled cutter properly. Its more to score and then use pliers to snap a clean break. This way it creates a straighter break that you don't have to clean up as much with a tile stone or various grinding stones using a dremel.

The main tools you need are: the wheeled tile cutter tool, regular & tile nipper/trimmer pliers, glass key cutter, scorer/breaker tool, and safety glasses. A dremel or flex shaft or a tile stone can be used to smooth the sides. I will experiment more as I love how the shards look. You need a really good soldering gun, lead free solder, copper foil tape like they use in stain glass and flux. A hammer can be used to break the plate/cup into smaller pieces but I saw a picture demo that just used scoring and snapping with the nipper/trimmer pliers. Much more control over the braking/selecting of the pattern.

I didn't stay to put the jump rings on... I had to get home as my son hasn't been feeling well. As I said, it was fun group and we played musical chairs moving around from dremel tools or soldering irons all the while chatting away.


Lots of patience to get the sides smooth [see better cutting tool list above] and to put the self sticking copper foil tape around the edges without wrinkles as well as an even edge on front and back of the china piece. Next hold in place with clamp or clothespins, apply flux to help move the solder, apply heat to the solder and melt/smooth over copper foil and finally add a jump ring. A third hand tweezer would be great to hold the jump ring in place while applying the solder.

That's it - fairly easy process but its deceptively tricky... I think they're making book clocks next month, then a garden angel and sometime soon Fairy Lamps from tea cups with the addition of a small solar light... great group of women and I'm enticed to learn more. My daughter is bring up some broken plates later next week so I need to get some tile tools!!!!!

http://www.theestatestore.com/

Keep Arting - now to go make some more paper beads and finish my earrings...


I just found a video showing how to glue leather to the back that encloses a wire bail! No soldering...

http://www.ehow.com/video_6035374_make-broken-china-jewelry.html