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| PMC Clay Fine Silver Pendant |
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| PMC Clay Fine Silver Jewelry |
Would you like to make sterling silver jewelry like this
with only a minimum investment in equipment and tools? Here is a description of how I did this.
I started out, 20 years ago, taking classes in making sterling silver jewelry at a local Community College. I had to keep signing up for the same class because I couldn't afford to buy all the equipment necessary for casting silver on my own at home. After a few years, I had enough equipment and tools to make jewelry using silver metal sheet and wire, but still didn't have any casting equipment, or the space at home for that kind of a workshop.
I continued to work with the tools I had, but wanted to create 3 dimensional designs and still couldn't afford to buy any more equipment. I was stuck between a rock and a hard place.
In 2004, I took a new class in "BronzClay" at
Rio Grande Jewelry Making Supply in
Albuquerque, New Mexico. (I highly recommend these folks! They have video tutorials and tech support on almost everything they sell. They bend over backwards to get you the right tool for the job. Usual disclaimers - No affiliation, just a happy customer.)
I started with BronzClay, since it was relatively inexpensive, compared to Silver Metal Clay (PMC). Since then, I have developed a good business on my own website (
www.Esprit-Mystique.com) and my
Etsy Shop, selling jewelry and key rings made from BronzClay and Precious Metal Clay (PMC).
Precious Metal Clays (PMC) are ingenious materials that
combine fine particles of metal (gold, silver, bronze, or copper) with fine
particles of a clay binder. You can mold PMC
just like regular clay. When dried, they
are fired in a small kiln between 1000 & 1600 degrees for a few minutes, to a
few hours, depending on the clay. The
clay binder burns off and leaves the silver, gold, bronze, or copper, just like a
piece of cast precious metal jewelry! Here is a piece
of dried clay (BronzClay) before it was fired in the kiln:
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| Dry BronzClay before firing in kiln |
Here are some examples of what polished BronzClay looks like after it
was fired at 1550 degrees for 3 hrs:
I learned a lot from working with BronzClay, such as, how to turn my original drawings
into stamps and molds, but I still hadn’t achieved my goal of creating 3
dimensional Sterling Silver pendants and key rings. So, I bit the bullet and ordered some PMC
Fine Silver. I already had a small kiln
to fire BronzClay, so I could use it to fire PMC silver.
I was nervous! PMC Silver was 5
times the cost of BronzClay, and more expensive than purchasing
silver sheet and wire. But, my customers kept asking if I could make the same
designs in silver. I decided it was
worth the expense because if I made a mistake, I could easily “recycle” PMC Silver
by melting it down, or sending it to a Refiner for CASH. You can’t recycle BronzClay, so mistakes are
tossed in the trash and considered a $$$ loss.
That is why, going forward, I am concentrating on PMC silver.
Here’s a breakdown of the minimum of tools you can get away with to
make items like those above:
Programmable Kiln with kiln shelf
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| Rio Grand New Kiln $680 |
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| Kiln Shelf Kit $14 |
Roller
to roll clay (6 inch piece of 1” diameter PVC pipe)
Scraper
– thin metal (found at Metal Clay suppliers or, on Rio Grande website)
Glass
sheet working surface, or smooth acrylic sheet, to work on so clay won’t
stick.
Texture
tools – Make your own original designs with Rio Cold Mold Silicone Compound.
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| Silicone Mold Compound |
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| Variable Speed Lathe for polishing and grinding |
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| Muslin Polishing Wheel |
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| For smoothing rough edges |
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| Drawing - Stamp - PMC |
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| Stamp and Pendant |
Create your own design stamps.
Press PMC into the stamp to form a pendant. Check out YouTube for a wide variety of ways to make your own stamps.
Find large antique buttons to use with mold
material or, press buttons directly into clay.
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| Antique Brass Belt Buckle |
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| PMC Silver Pendant |
You can also use Polymer clay to make molds and press PMC
clay into the hard-baked Polymer clay.
Check out YouTube for lots of interesting ideas on how to make your own
molds.
S Shape
cutters – Round circles or squares work well (cookie cutter bakery
supplies).
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| Swanstrom Hole Punching Pliers $40 |
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| Economy 4 Pliers and Cutter Set - $50 |
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| Sunshine Tarnish Removing Cloths 25 pack for $26 |
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| Patina for Silver - Liver of Sulfur $15 |
Here is another way to get started with many of the items listed above. It doesn't include a kiln, but it does include a torch and DVD with directions.
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| Rio Grande Starter Kit using Propane Torch instead of kiln $360 |
This kit includes:
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- - PMC3™ clay; 25 grams
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PMC3™ slip; 15-gram jar
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Rio PMC® work surface
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Rio PMC® tool kit
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Rio 2-part mold compound; 1 lb.
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3M polishing paper asst.; pkg/12
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Straight, serrated util. tweezers
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Pocket needle file set, cut #2; set/6
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PMC® greenware file; pkg/3
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MIDAS® liver of sulfur; 8-oz. can
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Sunshine® Cloth; 5" x 7"
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PMC Basics DVD
If you don’t have time to take a class in PMC, then check out all the
You Tube videos!
You will find all the
answers to your questions and lots of creative ways make your own tools.
The bottom line is, that all the jewelry equipment I worked so hard to buy many
years ago, are now gathering dust, since I am concentrating on PMC instead of
sheet silver. I have increased my rate of production and eliminated
waste. I didn't have to make a special room for casting silver and didn't have to purchase more equipment to achieve 3 dimensional pieces.
I have sold (and eliminated the need for) the following
equipment and tools:
Rolling Mill ($1000) -
Metal
Brake ($900) -
Ring sizer ($300) -
Acetylene torch/tank
($350)
20 Ton Hydraulic
Press ($600) - Scores
of hydraulic press dies ($600) - Drill
Press ($150)
Ultrasonic Jewelry
Cleaner - Tent
for Art Festivals ($500) - Foredom
Flex Shaft and
Accessories ($300) - Pickle Pot and solution ($50) - Soldering Station with Fire Extinguisher
If I had started out with PMC in the beginning, I would have been able to
sell jewelry online sooner, with less investment in tools. If your budget
is what is holding you back from selling online, I hope this helps get you
started. It might work for you! Feel free to contact me with any
comments or questions. I am happy to help!
Virginia Vivier
www.Esprit-Mystique.com
www.Etsy.com/shop/EspritMystique
Tucson, Arizona
email: Designs (at) Esprit-Mystique (dot) com
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