Ever want to challenge yourself? Commit to making something and then try doing it. Oh wait, forgot to add...make sure you have to use techniques you've never tried before. And give yourself an agressive deadline while you're at it.
Last Thursday, I recieved a call from the Eastern Nebraska Office on Aging (ENOA) asking if I would donate an item for a silent auction. The auction is held during the annual Share the Table fundraising event for Meals on Wheels...an organization I actively support by delivering meals to older and disabled folks. (I love Meals on Wheels deliveries...my friend Linda and I have had the same route for about 4 years, and we've gotten to know many of the clients over that time. It's very rewarding!!!)
I started thinking about what I had on hand to donate, and came up with the brilliant idea of making a pendant using the ENOA logo. My idea was to fashion the logo out of silver wire, solder it to a copper backing and be done with it...easy peasy! ENOA wanted the donation to be dropped off by Monday - no problem!!
Not so much. The logo wasn't as easy to fashion out of wire as I'd imagined. Back to the drawing board...all I had to do was make a copper and silver pendant with the ENOA logo, as I'd cleverly described.
I'd never pierced and sawed out any kind of design, nor had I riveted before, but I decided those were the best methods of making my pendant. Off to do some research....
I shrunk down a picture of the ENOA logo, and using techniques from Step By Step Jewelry Workshop, I pierced and sawed it out of a piece of 24g copper sheet. I then cut a piece of sterling silver sheet (28g) that would fit across the back of the copper, stamped my business name and the year on the back, and riveted the two pieces together. My good friend Nancy's tutorial on riveting was, well, riveting and served as my guide for learning that technique.After completing the riveting and some additional filing, I soldered a bail on the back...I've done plenty of soldering, but nothing quite like that...another new technique learned!
I was very pleased with the end result - there are a couple of boo-boos on the piece, but hopefully they are apparent only to my eye. ;-) I'm dropping it off at the ENOA office this afternoon, and I hope they like it as well.Piercing and riveting was fun...I think I'll try it again, but not with the pressure of a deadline!
Labels: charity, copper, ENOA, Meals on Wheels, new techniques, pendant, pierced, rivet, saw, solder
