How to Make

Transcription

1 How to Make Fingerprint Jewelry Maggie Bergman

2 Copyright 2010 Maggie Bergman. All rights reserved. No portion of this book may be reproduced mechanically, electronically, or by any other means, including photocopying, without written permission of the publisher. It is illegal to copy this book, post it to a web site, or distribute it by any other means without permission from the publisher. Limits of Liability and Disclaimer of Warranty The author and publisher shall not be liable for your misuse of this material. This book is strictly for informational and educational purposes. Warning Disclaimer The purpose of this book is to educate and entertain. The author and/or publisher do not guarantee that anyone following these techniques, suggestions, tips, ideas, or strategies will become successful. The author and/or publisher shall have neither liability nor responsibility to anyone with respect to any loss or damage caused, or alleged to be caused, directly or indirectly by the information contained in this book.

3 Introduction Contents v What is it about Keepsake jewelry that makes it so very special? 6 1 Taking Clear Fingerprints 8 2 Preparing Artwork for a Photo Polymer Plate 11 3 Taking Children s Hand & Foot Prints 13 4 Making a Simple Rubber Mold 16 5 Turning Children s Drawings into Jewelry 19 6 Shapes & View Finders 22 7 How to Make a Photo Polymer Plate 27 8 Metal Clay Basics - Tools & Materials 33 9 Metal Clay Basics - Working with Metal Clay Making a Simple Hand or Footprint Charm Use Your Child s Art to Make a T-Shirt Pendant Heart Pendant with Fingerprint Birthstones & Firing Stones in Metal Clay Setting Stones in Metal Clay Key Ring with a Fingerprint & Handwritten Name Stamping Letters in Fired Metal Clay 57

4 17 Making a Fingerprint Key Keepsake Bracelet Bead Fingerprint Ring Applying a Patina Polishing & Tumbling Changing a Hobby into a Business Setting Up a Home Business - Checklist Conclusion 82

5 Introduction I think I have been creative all my life! My very first memories are the ones where I was making things, crazy things, pretty things, whatever I could get my hands on at the time. My creativity these days is taken up by jewelry in all its forms, Sterling silver, Copper and of course; Metal Clay! This amazing material has changed my life! I was one of the first group of Certified Senior Instructors for Artclay Silver to qualify here in Australia, then 12 months later I became a Senior Teacher for PMC when it arrived here. I have been teaching metalclay workshops since 2004, from beginners to advanced subjects. In 2007 I was honoured to be one of 15 people around the world who helped guide the setting up of the Metal Clay Masters program, this exciting program is now well on its way and presents a new challenge to artists all around the globe. Lately the requests for my workshops have changed! People me wanting to learn how to make Fingerprint jewelry, and they have been flying in from all states just to get the basics. Not everyone can afford to do this of course and I have had many s from people asking me to come to their town, or to recommend someone to teach them locally. This was not something I can do easily so at last I decided to write this book. The first 8 chapters are all about basic techniques to make your life easier when making keepsake jewelry. How to take clear fingerprints, working with children s drawings, taking baby s hand & foot prints and more. The jewelry making projects are presented with the simplest ones first and all can be done by a beginner as long as they are attempted, one at a time, in the order they are set out. If you have never worked with Metal clay before, please be sure to thoroughly read chapter 9 Metal Clay Basics, it is the foundation that all the other projects are build on. I hope you ll have fun trying the different techniques presented here! GET YOUR FREE BONUS TEMPLATES As a thank you for buying this book, I have prepared a free Pdf for you to download. It has over 100 shape templates to help you get started with great designs for all your jewelry. Go to: Enter this code: fpjeb0147 templates immediately! then fill in your name and address and I will send you the How to Make Fingerprint Jewellery ~ v

6 What is it about Keepsake jewelry that makes it so very special? Shared joy is a double joy; shared sorrow is half a sorrow. Swedish Proverb To capture a moment in someone s life, whether it is a child s special birthday, a couple at their engagement or wedding, or an ageing parent. Fingerprints Take their fingerprint and then make it into a special piece of jewelry that the wearer will cherish for life. These pieces of jewelry are often handed down through the generations, they become heirlooms, even adding other family member s fingerprints to the collection; treasured memories made in precious metal. I feel that we, as jewelry makers, are blessed to be part of the process and help people capture those special memories. Hand & Foot Prints Newborn babies do not have clearly marked fingerprints yet, but their tiny hands & feet make beautiful prints that we can use instead. The process of taking the prints is so easy, anyone can do it and the results are lovely pieces of jewelry that carry the memory of a very special time. Children s Drawings Sometimes a child will bring a drawing home that is just too precious to lose, or some children will draw the same thing for years, making them very memorable! These drawings can be scaled down and reproduced in silver, making gorgeous charms, pendants or cuff links. An added bonus could be the addition of colour to the artwork, from simple resin work, to How to Make Fingerprint Jewellery ~ 6

7 more challenging, but beautiful and durable, enamelling. Put the child s name on the back of the pendant, written in their own handwriting perhaps, or their Mum s, and maybe the date the print was taken, makes it an amazing treasure. All these pieces make lovely gifts for Mums & Dads, Grandmothers & Aunties. They also make great pieces to sell for fund-raisers, at the local school, or church fair. The popularity of this kind of jewelry is in a league of its own, the pieces sell themselves, which is great for artists that don t like selling. So, let s get started.. At the beginning How to Make Fingerprint Jewellery ~ 7

8 Section I Preparing the Artwork & Mold Making 1 Taking Clear Fingerprints Taking a clear fingerprint is not as easy as it sounds! Not only is the process tricky, if you are taking prints of small children the materials you use must be nontoxic and easy to wash off. There are Inkless kits on the market, these were developed for maternity hospitals, they work great and were designed to be non-toxic for use with babies. You can also use special stamping pads, look for them in stamping shops or online. These are great to use, select one that is nontoxic and can be taken off with a baby s wet-wipe. The general principle is the same for any method: Take the print onto a sheet of white copy paper Look for good contrast between the black and white of the whorls in the print. Redo if the results were less than satisfactory. A great starting point: a good fingerprint print, with just enough black and white definition to take into Photoshop or a similar image editing program. After manipulation in an image editing program and ready for making a Photo polymer plate How to Make Fingerprint Jewellery ~ 8

9 An easy, low-tech - low cost, way to take fingerprints at home is like this: We ll use a very dark pencil for this method, a Steadler Mars Lumograph 100 in 8B, is by far the best pencil I found for this. It can be bought from a good art materials supplier or from an online art store. (See Resources P ) Although it might look like a normal pencil, it has a different composition. Most pencils have a graphite lead, which is a greyish material, these Lumograph 8B pencils are made from another material and are much blacker. The print you get from an ordinary pencil is nowhere near the quality the non-graphite pencil will give. You might as well get everything working at an optimum level from the start! If you can t find the Lumograph pencil you can try a good quality, soft black colouring pencil, this comes closest in blackness for the contrast we want to get. These are the materials required: A Steadler Mars Lumograph 100 pencil in 8B or a good quality black colouring pencil as a second choice. A piece of #400 or finer sandpaper the grit is not crucial, nearly anything will work, just don t use the very rough sandpapers, they don t give you a fine enough powder. Wide clear Sticky tape. A sheet of white copy paper Method: Rub the pencil on a bit of sandpaper until you have a little powdered material, tap the sandpaper on its side to remove the loose powder. Gently rub the finger into the black area, picking up just enough material to make the fingertip black, but without picking up any lumps. Rub the finger very gently on some scrap paper. This evens out the powder collected and makes the print smooth. Take care not to rub too hard, this will drive the black powder into the grooves of the fingerprint How to Make Fingerprint Jewellery ~ 9

10 Press the finger smoothly down on the adhesive side of a piece of wide sticky tape. Be careful to press down in one smooth movement, don t use too much pressure, the print should not be too black all over. I suggest you try this on yourself first, just to get the feel of the pressure required and to learn how to judge the results. Remove the tape from the fingertip and stick it down onto the copy paper. Now you can judge the print and See how well you did. A nice, clearly defined print will show the whorls with a good contrast between black and white in between the lines. If the print is too light or too dark it would be best to try again. Leave the tape with the print stuck on the paper, this keeps the print protected while you handle it. Write the name and date next to it for future record, together with contact details of the customer. Big Tip! Sometimes there is not enough definition in a fingerprint, very young babies are especially hard to print! Try doing a hand or footprint for them! How to Make Fingerprint Jewellery ~ 10

11 2 Preparing Artwork for a Photo Polymer Plate These instructions apply to any artwork, not just fingerprints. If you are making artwork from kid s drawings, or handwriting, don t do step #3, with line work or writing no filters are necessary. BLACK WILL BE SILVER! When looking at your design, the easiest way to remember how it will look in the finished piece, is that anything that is black in the artwork, will be raised silver in the final metal piece. So if you made a plate with some handwriting, you would have to make the writing white on a black background if you wanted the writing to go down into the metal clay. If you applied a patina to the fired metal and removed it from the high areas, the writing would stay black and the background would be bright silver. 1. Scan the print into your computer using a 300 dpi resolution. This will give you the fine detail you need to keep while working on it in your image editor (such as Photoshop or Gimp) but with not too much information, which causes problems when you re trying to get good contrast. Set the scanner to Colour Photo or Best quality, this depends on the type of scanner you use. 2. In Photoshop (or equivalent) go to: Image > Adjustments - in the Menu bar - increase the contrast by using Levels, just enough to get some definition. 3. Go to: Filters > Sketch > Photocopy - make sure you have Preview ticked, play with the sliders until you get a result you are happy with. Aim for a good balance of black & white lines. 4. Zoom into the image so you can just See the pixels, make sure they are pure black & white, no grey. If necessary you can apply Levels one more time or use Brightness & Contrast in: Image > Adjustments > Brightness & Contrast. Slide the contrast slider all the way to the right, then adjust the brightness until you are happy with the results How to Make Fingerprint Jewellery ~ 11

12 5. If you know how to make crop marks, use them, but not too close to the print, otherwise use a couple of letters, also away from the image, as registration marks. 6. Fingerprints are very hard to line up without them. 7. Make sure you have enough black space around each print, this prevents unwanted marks on your clay later. 8. Double up the image in Photoshop, so you ll print out two identical prints on the same sheet 9. Print out the images onto an overhead transparency at the highest quality your printer will allow. If you are using an ink jet printer you need to get special transparencies, most brands have their own, but generic ink jet brands work fine as well. Any large office supply store stocks these. 10. Cut the transparency in half so you have 2 images, place them on top of each other so they line up perfectly - putting them on a sheet of white paper makes it easier to See the fine detail - start by lining up the registration marks to get a quick start, then check the artwork itself to make sure all the detail is exactly lined up. 11. Use clear sticky tape on 4 sides to keep images securely together. You are now ready to make a Photo polymer plate! Preparing the artwork using a Photocopier This same process can also be done with a good photocopier; Make sure the setting is fairly dark for maximum contrast, do a few test prints to See detail. Sometimes it works to copy the first photocopy you made (ISO the original) this will increase the contrast. Reversing the colours, sizing to the right scale, and printing onto a transparency, can all be done with a good copier and are all done by the operator. It s best to go to a very good copy centre, who have well trained staff, explain what you want to do and you would have no trouble getting your artwork ready for a Photo polymer plate. Remember that pure white as well as solid black lines are essential for this process to work. You are now ready to make your Photo polymer plate. (See Chapter 6 How to make a Photo polymer Plate ) How to Make Fingerprint Jewellery ~ 12

13 3 Taking Children s Hand & Foot Prints Children's hand and foot prints are like a snapshot in their life, like a growth chart! One of my friends takes a set of both her kids every year! These prints have a delightfully graphic quality and work beautifully on jewelry pieces, they are especially suited to very small items, like charms. Even at the smallest size, and although they loose fine detail, they are still a true picture of the handprint. Taking the prints is easy, you only need some very simple equipment, things most people have around the house already. These are the tools & materials you need Olive Oil A small, soft paint roller, like the ones you use for painting walls A piece of glass or plastic to roll the paint out (a board with some plastic taped over it works fine, or a roller tray, like the ones you use when painting the walls) Black poster paint White copy paper Some news papers Rags How to Make Fingerprint Jewellery ~ 13

14 Here s how you do it: 1. Wipe a very thin layer of olive oil on the hands or feet to be printed, wipe all of it off again, so only a very thin film remains. This will make the paint come off much easier. A good barrier cream would work as well. 2. Put a dollop of poster paint on the glass and spread it out a little with a brush. 3. Use the roller to roll an even coating on the glass. 4. When the glass (or plastic) has an even coating the roller will be ready to use on your children s hands. 5. Start with the hands, kids will get it quickly and there will be less trouble doing the feet. Roll a thin even layer onto the hands and have the child print the hand on a piece of copy paper. Roll out and repeat with the other hand, then do the same with the feet. 6. If you think it would help, do some test prints on newspaper first, it gets the kids into the spirit of it, no need for perfection, no pressure to get it right, just fun! 7. When you re finished, take off excess with the rag and some water, then just wash up with soap. 8. Lay the prints flat to dry, don t worry if they buckle a little, it all adds to the charm and the spirit of the moment. When the prints are thoroughly dry they are ready to be scaled down and the colours reversed to white on black, then printed into overhead transparency ready to make a Photo polymer plate. (See Chapter 2 - How to prepare your artwork, ready for a Photo polymer plate) Artwork ready for making a Photo polymer plate How to Make Fingerprint Jewellery ~ 14

15 Using an Inkless System There is a less messy way to get hand, foot or fingerprints: these are the Inkless Wipes. These kits have a special wet wipe that can be used on babies hands, they are then pressed onto the special paper that comes in the kit. These kits are a more professional method for you to use on other people s children, or to send by mail for customers to use at home. They are affordable, super easy to use and come with good instructions. Search for them online, a while ago I found some on Ebay which came from the UK. Be careful of your budget, these kits can add quite a bit to your expenses, the wipes that come with the kits dry up fast and can t be used again. On the plus side they are available in bulk, which brings down the price a lot How to Make Fingerprint Jewellery ~ 15

16 4 Making a Simple Rubber Mold Pressing a finger into Metal clay is the most direct way to get a beautiful fingerprint impression. This is of course not always possible, family can live far away and you have no way of taking the prints yourself. I believe the best way is to send an Inkless Wipe kit and then make a photopolymer plate. Using Kneadable Silicon rubber is another option, I must stress here that it is my least favorite way for fingerprints. Trying to get a clear impression from a small child s finger is very difficult, there just isn t enough definition in the fingerprints of babies & toddlers. You might consider moulding a couple of the fingers, the toes, or the whole little hand, it would be a great alternative and look very cute. But. some people might still want to try this method so here s the way you could try. Measuring the Rubber Kneadable rubber comes in 2 parts which are mixed in equal quantities, Part A & Part B. If you have scales that are accurate to a gram, it is easy enough to get the 2 parts perfectly equal, but things get a bit tricky when you do not have scales like that. The material is fairly forgiving and this is how I do it when I don t have any scales handy: 1. Take a small quantity of Part A, you ll need to use your judgement here, better to use a little more than to run short, this gets easier with experience. 2. Roll the rubber into a short, thick coil, about the size of your pinky, make sure the ends are nice and square How to Make Fingerprint Jewellery ~ 16

17 3. Now take roughly the same amount for Part B and roll it into a coil of equal thickness to the first one. Lay the two coils next to each other and chop to the same length. You can use a tissue blade or a scalpel if you have one, even a simple craft knife will do the job. 4. Flatten both coils and layer them on top of each other. Now just press together and double up, then cut in half and double it up again, layering as you go. Knead the rubber until it is well mixed, but do not take too long to mix the material, the curing process starts the minute you mix the 2 parts together, try to get it mixed in under 2 minutes. Please note: The mix does not have to be totally even in colour, a little marbled colour does not seem to affect its performance. Now we ll make the mold: 5. Roll the mixed rubber into a ball and put it on a smooth surface, without pressing it down. A piece of glass or plastic works well, anything that is firm when pressure is applied will be fine. 6. Lightly wipe the finger, or the baby s hand you want to mould, with a little vegetable oil and then wipe all of it off again, enough oil will stay behind to make it release easily. If you are taking a very young child s finger print it would be advisable to hold their finger yourself and press it down evenly, firmly, but not too hard. Do not wiggle from side to side, it should go straight down. 7. To remove the finger, hold down the rubber on both sides, then just lift the finger out of the rubber. 8. Leave the rubber undisturbed for 15 or more minutes, go by the manufacturer s instructions, leaving it longer only makes it stronger. 9. This type of rubber typically cures in 24 hours, but they can be used as soon as they set, I leave mine for approx.. 30 minutes before I use them with metal clay How to Make Fingerprint Jewellery ~ 17

18 10. The mold is now ready to use, it does not need oiling, but I usually do anyway, just to play it safe. Make sure to wipe off any excess, it might interfere with the delicate pattern of a fingerprint. So now you have the mold, but when you roll out the clay you ll find that the fingerprint is raised, as opposed to the normal indentation you get when pressing a finger into the fresh clay. To overcome this we re going to have to make a second mold, pressing another bit of mixed kneadable rubber into the oiled mold you ve just made. Just keep in mind that you are going to loose more detail in this second mold, this can t be helped it s just part of the process. Keep the rubber high while pressing into the first mold, this eliminates ridges that might make a mark on the clay. Trim any ridges with a sharp blade. This is the substitute finger that can be pressed into the clay, which then can be trimmed into the shape you want. Just remember that not everyone has very clear fingerprints, even adults prints can be indistinct, so if you are not getting a clear print in the rubber, try making one with a Photo polymer plate instead. (See Chapter 1 Taking Clear fingerprints ) How to Make Fingerprint Jewellery ~ 18

19 5 Turning Children s Drawings into Jewelry All children are artists. The problem is how to remain an artist once he grows up. Pablo Picasso There is nothing so appealing as a child s drawings, they have spontaneity and directness, an innocent use of line & colour that is striking and has a powerful artistic expression. Many established artists would love to have that childhood freshness back in their own work! School, and all sorts of other external pressure kids are exposed to, will often destroy the spontaneity of their drawings. This makes it even more important to capture the feeling of that early time in their life, when they were just having fun, and keep it forever as a precious memory. Scaled-down drawings can be used for any kind of jewelry, charms, pendants, rings, cufflinks, key rings and more. But because children are so uninhibited in their use of colour and scale, the resulting drawing can be a nightmare to reproduce in the solid black & white artwork we need for our purpose. It is vital to establish some boundaries for the little artist, allowing him or her to draw in a relaxed way, but still making it easy for you to convert the drawing into a transparency. (See Chapter 2 - How to prepare your artwork, ready for a Photo polymer plate) As you have probably observed, kids will draw on anything and grab any pen or marker they can get their hands on! We can use that to our advantage by giving them paper that is smaller & closer to the shape of our pieces, together with a fat black marker that is fun to draw with but suits our work as well How to Make Fingerprint Jewellery ~ 19

20 The reason for this is obvious when you think about it, the drawing will have to be reduced down to jewelry size, and in that process you can lose the thickness of the original lines, making them spidery and harder to reproduce. To avoid any problems, make up this drawing kit for your own child, or to give to your friends for their children s use: Cut some copy paper in half, and then in half again, making 4 - A6 size pieces from each sheet (about 10 cm x 15 cm or 4 x 6 ). Make a small stack of these for each child (drawing is a great kid s activity for a Keepsake Jewelry Party, while the Mums make up their mind what to buy from you!) Give them a fat, black marker, nothing else, no colours allowed for this! Give these to the child and then just let them draw for as long as they are happy to do it. If they are not too interested, leave the paper & marker there, they might come back to it after a while. A single figure per page works best, but if your child likes to draw complete scenes, that s okay too, just look for portions of the drawing that you could use. Mum, Dad & child standing in front of the house could be split up for instance, the family dog or cat are also good subjects. You could give them suggestions for specific pieces you would like to make; they could draw Grandma, if the jewelry is intended as a gift for her. Or draw something especially for Daddy to make a key ring for him. Get the child to write his or her name, if they can, on one of the drawings, this could also be made into a photo polymer plate and used in a jewelry piece, either by itself or as an extra touch. Think of how you could combine their drawing with a fingerprint, a hand or footprint, their name, written by themselves or by Mum, to make a charm bracelet or a necklace cluster. This is a great idea when you are turning this into a home based business, returning customers are your best customers. Carefully follow the directions on page 12 How to Prepare your Artwork, ready for a Photo polymer Plate starting at #6 A client could buy a bracelet or necklace chain with one charm to start, then add more at any time in the future. This could go on for years - think of the Pandora craze a while ago How to Make Fingerprint Jewellery ~ 20

21 Keep a folder with a client s particulars such as: Birth dates for the whole family - for relevant information on birthstones, star signs etc. Drawings & writing Fingerprints Hand & foot prints. All of these can be used by your client s friends and family whenever they want to give another charm as a present - they could come and See you, or even call you, to arrange for a charm to be made. You could even organise postage or delivery to their friend directly, in gift packaging and with a nice card from the sender. If you have a web site this becomes even easier! Of course you need to separate any artwork from the collection once it has been used for a charm - an envelope or small bag will keep it all together, without losing vital bits & pieces How to Make Fingerprint Jewellery ~ 21

22 6 Shapes & View Finders Having children drawing into the right shape for the piece of jewelry you want to make will save you lots of time when it comes to scaling it down and getting it to the right proportions. You will find some shapes sell well and are used a lot, and you can scale up that particular shape on the computer or with a photocopier, to fit onto an A6 piece of paper (a sheet of photocopy paper, folded in half and then in half again) I have given you some shapes to start with on the next few pages, they can be used in 2 ways: 1. Print them out and let the children draw inside the shapes. 2. Print them out and cut the shapes out of the background, then use them as a view finder on a child s drawings You might have to scale these templates in a couple of sizes to make the most of them. Smaller drawings need smaller view finders. Just hold the viewfinder over the drawing to isolate the sections you would like to use. Viewfinders simplify the process by masking some of the surrounding clutter For odd shaped pieces you may want to simplify the design area to fit inside the piece How to Make Fingerprint Jewellery ~ 22

23 OVALS How to Make Fingerprint Jewellery ~ 23

24 DOG-TAGS How to Make Fingerprint Jewellery ~ 24

25 SQUARE & CIRCLE How to Make Fingerprint Jewellery ~ 25

26 HEARTS How to Make Fingerprint Jewellery ~ 26

27 7 How to Make a Photo Polymer Plate Photo polymer plates are probably the most useful of all my tools, I can use them for my hand & footprints, fingerprints, handwriting and kid s drawings, to name just a few of their many uses. The first time you make a Photo polymer plate, or PPPs as they are known, you might find it very confusing, you have to think in reverse, even if your brain is going forward! As a beginner, the best thing to do is to just try and follow the instructions closely to make a couple of plates: expect the first few to be less than satisfactory, just try them a few times as a learning experience. You ll be amazed at how easy they are to make, once you get used to working with them and your own lights setup. PREPARING THE ARTWORK When you want to make a PPP everything depends on getting the artwork right. All artwork to be used for a Photo polymer plate must be in solid Black & White only, no grey areas, or faint lines. (See Chapter 2 - Preparing artwork for a Photo polymer Plate) EXPOSURE METHODS Photo polymer plates can be exposed using different UV exposure methods: Sunlight: Not easy to control, it is hard to determine the exposure times, they would be very different from morning to noon, from one day to the next, or through different seasons. It can be done though, use a very small test strip just before you are ready to expose a plate, you might find that in time you ll develop an uncanny sense of the exposure time needed. You don t even need sun, it s the UV rays you want and they are there most of the time, even when it s overcast How to Make Fingerprint Jewellery ~ 27

28 Home made UV exposure unit: This is fairly easily constructed if you are handy - it is basically a box of some sort, I used a plastic toolbox, fitted with armatures that allow the UV tubes to be installed very close together. Special UV tubes are available from any good electrical supplier, and are sold as Black-light Insect Control tubes. They are small tubes about 28 cm in length (under 1 foot) I chose a toolbox to allow me to easily take it when traveling, but any type of sturdy box would work just as well. Nail Artists exposure units: some metal clay suppliers sell these, I have also Seen them on Amazon and Ebay. They are accurate, easy to store and affordable. Get the large unit if you can afford it, the smaller ones will severely limit the size of the plates you can make. MAKING A TEST STRIP Test the length of exposure needed for your unit and your plates with your test-strip. When designing your test strip, don t make the lines too thin, they could lift off the plate. You can design this on the computer in any program with which you are comfortable, using any kind of symbols or text. Photocopy the artwork twice onto an overhead transparency, cut both pieces out and double them up with some sticky tape How to Make Fingerprint Jewellery ~ 28

29 THE EXPOSURE FRAME Here is artwork for a test strip for you to use if you don t want to make your own. The exposure frame holds the image firmly in contact with the plate during exposure under the UV light. An exposure frame can be easily made up using readily available materials: Some thin craft wood or masonite, about 5 cm (2 ) larger all around than the maximum size of your artwork (so for 4 x 4 plates I use a 6 x 6 piece of board) A piece of bubble wrap or thin foam to act as cushioning, bubble-side down and taped to the board. A piece of 2 mm thick glass the same size as your board and 4 large bulldog clips. An easy way to get these materials together might be to buy an inexpensive photo frame from a $2 shop: just make sure the backing is solid, not just a piece of cardboard How to Make Fingerprint Jewellery ~ 29

30 DETERMINING EXPOSURE TIMES USING YOUR TEST STRIP The plates can be handled safely for short periods, in any non-uv light, (normal fluorescent lights are fine for a few minutes). Be careful to keep them out of direct sunlight or near any UV light source. Keep the plates upside down on the bench if there s a delay in exposing them and make sure no sunlight can reach them, you can put some cardboard or a dark towel over them to make sure. Please note the exposure times below are a guide only. Sometimes you have to do your test strip a few times, to find the optimum exposure, for the combination of the UV light and the type of plates you are using. This timing should then stay the same for future exposures with the same batch of plates. 1. Using metal shears, cut a 14 x 2.5 cm (5.5 x 1 ) strip off the PPPlate you want to test. Remove the cover film from the front of the plate and position your artwork on the plastic side of the plate, take care to reverse it if you are working with text. 2. Position the plate in the centre of your exposure frame, cover with the glass sheet and position the bulldog clips in such a way that they are not covering the design. 3. Cover the plate with some heavy card over all of its length except for the last 2 cm (3/4 ) 4. Set your timer for 15 seconds, switch on your UV light source and expose for that length of time. 5. Switch off the light, reset the timer for another 15 seconds, move the cardboard another 2 cm (3/4 ) and expose again. 6. Repeat until the whole strip has been exposed. The very last exposure will have only received 15 seconds of light, the next 30, then 45 seconds etc. 7. Wash the plate as described below, you can now judge the perfect time for your light source. 8. Look for very smooth, crisp edges and a complete wash out, right to the metal. ** Over-exposed areas will not wash out, or would be very hard to wash out. ** Under-exposed areas will wash away too much, leaving softer, rounded edges and wider lines than the original design, or they might even wash away altogether. 9. My own UV exposure unit, with 2 UV tubes, takes 1 minute and 5 seconds for a thin plate. Experiment with your own unit to get the correct exposure, a few small test plates will soon give you the correct timing How to Make Fingerprint Jewellery ~ 30

31 MAKING THE PLATE 1. Prepare your artwork on overhead projection film. 2. Cut the plate to size using metal shears, if necessary. 3. Remove the cover film from the surface. These cover films could contain small amounts of photo polymer residue and should be discarded. 4. Place the transparent image onto the plate and put both of them on the exposure frame. Make sure the transparency goes in reverse if you are working with text. Clamp the glass in place with bulldog clips. 5. Expose the plate, use the timing you have determined previously from your test strip. 6. Wash out the plate in a shallow tray of hand-warm water, scrubbing with a soft nail brush, in a circular motion if possible. 7. Keep brushing until you can feel clean metal, any photo polymer left on the metal will feel a bit slippery. 8. If you are using very thin lines, it might be better not to wash out the plate as deeply, leaving a little bit of material on the base to hold the line: thin lines have a tendency to lift off the metal base if left by themselves. 9. When washing out fingerprints, use a medium hardness toothbrush, only washing out the very top layer, fingerprints should not be too deep. Use a little polymer clay to test the results and wash out more if necessary. 10. Wipe excess water off the plate with a chamois or soft sponge and dry the plate surface in front of a fan heater set on medium, with the plate on its edge about 30 cm (1 ) away from the heater for about 5 minutes. A hair dryer can also be used. The plate is dry when it feels clean and smooth without any stickiness. 11. Expose the plate once more, for the same amount of time you used for the initial exposure. This will harden the plate all the way through, including everything that was exposed during the washing out process. Brush a little vegetable oil over the whole plate, this stops it from drying out and prevents cracking: your plate is now ready for use with Metal Clay! There are lots of other things you can use Photo polymer plate for: Embossing paper - very nice for tags etc. Printing (of course, that is what they were designed for!) Use a small roller and block printing ink How to Make Fingerprint Jewellery ~ 31

32 Other materials such as Polymer clay, Potters clay, Wax etc. Embossing and printing looks very nice for handmade tags, fabric or paper bags. If your logo is not too complicated you could print it as well. Make the artwork in various sizes for different things you might want to personalise How to Make Fingerprint Jewellery ~ 32

33 Section II Let s Make Some Keepsake Jewelry! 8 Metal Clay Basics - Tools & Materials Tools & Materials for Metal Clay Metal Clay is easy to set up at home, no expensive tools are required. Although you can use a kiln to fire your work, a torch works just as well to get started. Your Metal Clay start-up tool kit: Acrylic Roller Spacer Strips in different thicknesses, 1 mm mm - 2 mm (Playing cards would work as well, if you prefer them). Small clay storage jar Brass Brush Burnisher 4 square of hard plastic such as Plexiglas Craft knife Toothpicks, skewers & drinking straws Small, fine tip paint brush - nylon hair Needle tool Ring sizer Wooden Ring mandrel Silicone or teflon cookie sheet, cut into smaller pieces about 2 x 4 each Needle files Vegetable oil How to Make Fingerprint Jewellery ~ 33

34 1 mm drill bit Shape Cutters Wet & Dry sand paper Emery boards Baby wipes Small butane torch Fire proof surface Optional: Rotary Tumbler with stainless steel shot. Not strictly necessary but very nice to have! I m sure you ll add to this starter kit as time goes on, but this list will get you going. Materials: Metal Clay of your choice Metal Clay Paste Metal Clay Syringe Kneadable mould making rubber (optional) Small block of Polymer clay to test designs and depth of photo polymer plates Photo polymer Plates Tools & Materials If you are going to make children s artwork into jewelry, maybe do names in original handwriting, or do hand & footprints, or fingerprints you would also need to set up the tools and materials for that. Photo polymer plates; buy thin to medium ones, on a steel backing. A steel backed plate holds the finest detail Soft nail brush or medium hardness toothbrush, don t use very hard bristles, they are too aggressive for very fine detail plates like fingerprints. Chamois or sponge UV Exposure unit (See Chapter 7 for more details on the exposure unit) Well, there you go, now you are set up, it s time to get some metal clay out and get started How to Make Fingerprint Jewellery ~ 34

35 9 Metal Clay Basics - Working with Metal Clay Making jewelry from metal clay is much easier than working with sterling silver, and although the materials are more expensive than traditional metals, this is more than compensated for by the reduced production time. This becomes more important when you are thinking of scaling up your hobby and setting up a home jewelry business. Safety Basics Avoid making a lot of dust, the metal clay particles are very small and you do not want to breathe them. Keep your work area clean, wiping with a damp sponge after finishing work for the day. Keep collected sanding dust in a sealed container for recycling. Wear a dust mask if you have a lot of sanding to do Work in a well ventilated area when torch, or kiln firing Wash hands after working with metal clay or patinas Metal Clay Basics When first opening a packet of metal clay you ll find the material a little stiff at first, just kneading a few times it will make it soft again. Use only as much as you need, keep the rest wrapped up with plastic wrap and stored in an airtight container with a small, damp sponge in the bottom, to prevent it from drying out. Use a little vegetable oil on your hands, work surface & any stamps you want to use, to prevent the clay from sticking. Make sure the clay is well kneaded without air trapped in between layers. Form it into a smooth lump without creases showing on top. If there are a few creases, try and manipulate it so they go to the side and can be removed when cutting the final shape. Try and make your initial lump a little like the shape you want to end up with: eg. a flatted ball for a round charm or pendant, a small fat coil for a shape like a dog tag How to Make Fingerprint Jewellery ~ 35

36 Flatten the lump a little before starting to roll it down. To control the thickness of the clay when rolling it out, use spacer strips or 2 stacks of playing cards to the required height on both sides of the clay. Roll the clay gently at first, using a PVC or acrylic roller. Lift the clay up in between rolling, this prevents the clay getting stuck to the work surface and ensures a nice, even shape. Now is the time to make any impressions, fingerprints, kid s art, or a name from a photo polymer plate. Cut to your desired shape: you can use shape cutters or a fine needle tool with a template. If you are going to hang the finished piece with a jump ring, you d need to drill a hole when the clay is dry. For now all you need is to make a small hole with a toothpick to guide the drill later. Resist the temptation to try and smooth things too much at this very soft stage, cleaning up is much easier when the clay is dry How to Make Fingerprint Jewellery ~ 36

37 There are many ways to speed up the drying of the clay piece: A dehydrator is probably the best: the heat and air can get to all sides and will dry the piece evenly all around, avoiding trapped moisture inside the clay. A warming plate or a sausage sizzler - set to a low heat and turn the clay over frequently to avoid clay warping or moisture getting trapped inside, while the outside is dry. Air dry on a piece of baking paper or silicone sheet When perfectly dry, drill the hole if required, then sand the clay with a small piece of 400# sandpaper. After sanding, check over carefully for imperfections and sharp edges. Small cracks can be filled at this stage with a little syringe clay: dampen the area where the repair is needed, then apply the syringe clay. Dry again and sand again with your 400# paper. Final smoothing out can be done with a baby wipe: this removes any dust left on the surface and eliminates very fine scratches. Let the clay dry again before firing. Firing Your Work Follow the manufacturer s instructions for the type of clay you are using. I generally use the torch to fire my own work: Place the work on a heat proof surface such as a fibre kiln shelf or a soldering block. Use the little butane torch to heat the clay evenly and slowly at first, until you See smoke and then some flames as the binders burn out. Heat the work until it glows a soft orange pink. Be careful not to heat it too much and let it get too red, you don t want to melt the piece! How to Make Fingerprint Jewellery ~ 37

38 Keep the metal clay at this pink colour for 3-5 minutes, it is generally better to fire longer and making sure the piece is properly sintered. Let cool by air drying if you have set a stone, or you can quench it in cold water if it s an all silver piece. You will notice that the piece is white straight after firing, this is normal for all fine silver, sterling goes black, fine silver goes white. After firing, a soft burnished shine can be produced using a brass brush with soap & water. Brush over the whole surface using circular motion if a general soft finish is required, or in straight lines if you want to See a very minimal texture from the brush. A patina can be applied at this stage, it will show off any textures, names and art. (See Chapter 20 - Applying a Patina) Lastly, give the edges a high shine by rubbing hard with a burnisher and give the piece a final polish with a good quality polishing cloth for extra lustre. If you re a metal worker, it is also possible to polish the fired piece like any other silver work, brass brush it first, then polish the same as you would sterling. You can save lot of time and effort if you use a tumbler. The finished look of a tumbled piece is very shiny all over, it does not give you the option to leave areas matte for contrast. (See Chapter 21 Polishing & Tumbling) ~ Let s make some Jewelry! ~ How to Make Fingerprint Jewellery ~ 38

39 10 Making a Simple Hand or Footprint Charm A small, simple charm with a hand or footprint is a quick and easy start for someone who s just beginning to work with metal clay. It is also one of the easiest ways to get a nice strong impression for a baby, or a young toddler, who do not yet have clearly defined fingerprints. For this charm we are going to use a photo polymer plate to make our impression (See Chapter 7 How to make a Photo polymer plate ) Prepare artwork as usual, reversed and printed double on overhead transparency, cut apart and doubled up ready for the plate. (See Chapter 2 Preparing Artwork for a Photo polymer plate) Experiment with different sizes before you make a charm for a client. Once you have made your first one you will have a better idea of how far the artwork should be scaled down to fit your cutters, or the preferred size for your the final charm. Materials: 9 gr. Low fire metal clay such as PMC3 or Artclay Silver (this amount of clay will make 3-5 charms, depending on their size and thickness) How to Make Fingerprint Jewellery ~ 39

40 Method: See Chapter 9 - Metal Clay Basics - Working with Metal Clay for detailed instructions 1. Prepare and roll out your metal clay to 3-4 cards thickness 2. Oil the Photo polymer plate and press the clay onto the plate: work from one side to the other to avoid a double impression 3. Cut the charm using an icing cutter, or a shape template. 4. Use a needle tool whenever you cut around a shape, or inside a template. 5. Make a small hole with a toothpick, this will be drilled out with a 1 mm drill bit when the clay is dry. 6. Dry the piece, then drill out the hole, sand and finish the charm as usual. 7. Fire the charm as per manufacturer s instructions. 8. Apply a liver of sulphur patina. Polish back to silver using 1200# sandpaper, leaving the impression dark. 9. Polish or tumble to a shiny or matte finish as desired. 10. Fit a 0.9 mm ( 20 ga.) jump ring or use 0.7 mm (22 ga.) to wire wrap it to the chain. 11. Attach to a chain or bracelet, pack it up in a pretty box or bag, attach a card and it s ready to go to the customer. When a client orders another charm to add to a bracelet they How to Make Fingerprint Jewellery ~ 40

41 have bought previously, ask them to give you the bracelet, so you can attach the new charm to the bracelet for them, as an extra (free) service. It s a quick job for you, but a difficult thing for people who do not have the skills or tools required to do it themselves, people will appreciate your thoughtfulness. A Family Bracelet is a delightful way to have keepsakes for the whole family together: these could include fingerprint charms of Mum & Dad, added to that the hand or foot prints of the children, with a date on the back of each recording when the print (not the charm) was made. A birthstone could be incorporated for some colour, either set in one of the charms, or as a small wired crystal that can hang off the same jump ring as the charm it belongs to How to Make Fingerprint Jewellery ~ 41

42 11 Use Your Child s Art to Make a T-Shirt Pendant There s nothing as cute than a young child, coming home from kindergarten, proud and eager to show what they ve painted at school! Nothing else is important, you have to come and look now!! And although these drawings might vary in quality, the best ones are often worth framing! However, using these raw drawings for silver jewelry can be difficult, unless you have a good working knowledge of Adobe Photoshop or a similar image manipulation program. All the filled in colours would have to be removed, then the lines would have to be made solid black and probably thickened as well. It would be a lot easier, and save you hours of work, to encourage the child to create a drawing that will suit the jewelry you have in mind. (See Chapter 5 - Turning Children s Drawings into Jewelry) After the best drawing has been chosen, you will need to make a transparency, ready for use with a Photo polymer plate. (See Chapter 7 How to make a Photo polymer plate) Materials 16 gr. Low fire metal clay such as PMC3 or Artclay Silver (this amount of clay will make 2 dog-tags or similar sized pendants) Photo polymer Plate Use your standard set of metal clay tools See Chapter How to Make Fingerprint Jewellery ~ 42

43 Method: See Chapter 9 Metal Clay Basics - Working with Metal Clay for more detailed instructions. 1. Cut the pattern shape out of manilla or light card to make an inside template. 2. Prepare and roll out your metal clay to 3-4 cards thickness. 3. Oil the Photo polymer plate and press the clay onto the plate - working from one side to the other to avoid a double impression. 4. Lay the template on top of the clay, making sure all of the drawing is within the opening, leave a little extra space at the bottom if you want to stamp a name later. 5. Cut the clay with a needle tool, running along the edge of your template. 6. Make a little divot with a toothpick to allow the drill an easy way in after the tag has dried. 7. Dry and sand to get rid of any scratches and sharp edges, then drill the hole with a 1.5 mm drill bit and clean up the hole. Wipe with a baby-wipe for a very fine finish. Let the surface dry once more. 8. Fire to manufacturer s instructions, cool, then brass brush with soap & water. 9. If you are going to stamp a name in the metal, now is the time to do it. (See Chapter 16 for more detailed instructions) 10. Apply a dark Liver of Sulphur patina. See Chapter 20 for more detailed instructions) 11. Remove all the colour off the surface, leaving only the grooves dark, using very fine emery or polishing pads. 12. Polish and hand-finish with a brightly burnished edge, or tumble. Now all you need to do is to put the tag onto a heavy jump ring and hang it off a ball chain! How to Make Fingerprint Jewellery ~ 43

44 12 Heart Pendant with Fingerprint The fastest and easiest way to make any finger print jewelry is without a doubt making it with metal clay. This works best when you have the person to be fingerprinted right there with you and you can supervise the whole process and control how the print comes out. This is especially good when taking children s finger prints. Materials: 16 gr. Low fire metal clay such as PMC3 or Artclay Silver (this amount of clay will make this Heart pendant and 2-3 charms, depending on their size and thickness) Method: See Chapter 9 Metal Clay Basics - Working with Metal Clay for more detailed instructions 1. Draw a nice heart shape 12% larger than the size you want to make, this allows for the shrinkage of the metal clay. (See: Shapes - page 32 for some popular shape templates) How to Make Fingerprint Jewellery ~ 44

45 2. Cut your heart shape from thin card, manilla folders work very well for this. For a more permanent template, use thin plastic, like the material used for report bindings. If you have metalworking skills, a more permanent template can be made from thin brass or copper sheet, in which case you would use the inside hole as your template, allowing you to see how things are lined up inside the opening. Use the template below and scale it to the size you want. Another option is to use icing cutters. These are available in many shapes & sizes, See which ones might work for your purpose. 3. Prepare the finger to be printed: it should be clean and wiped with a little olive oil, then wiped off again, leaving enough oil on the skin to prevent the metal clay from sticking, but not too much to prevent a nice clear print. 4. Roll out your conditioned clay at least 4-5 cards thick, you can make your heart thinner if you want to, but a thicker pendant takes a fingerprint better and looks nicer and more substantial when it is finished. 5. Press the clay into a PPP with the name of the child, the name could have been done on the computer, or handwritten by the child or Mum. 6. Put your heart template on top of the clay, then press the finger exactly where you want it. If you are taking the print of a child, hold their finger and press it gently, but firmly in place How to Make Fingerprint Jewellery ~ 45

46 7. Push the finger straight down and firmly into the clay, do not rock side to side. Check and trim if needed. 8. If you are planning to set a stone you can do so at this stage, or when the clay is dry. (See Chapter 14 - How to Set a Stone in Metal Clay) 9. Dry the heart, then cut a small heart shape as a hole for the jump ring. 10. Sand and finish the heart with a wet wipe, avoid wiping over any stones. Let the surface dry again for a few minutes. 11. Torch fire the pendant for 5 minutes: start timing when the binder has burned away and the metal glows a soft pink, and then keep it glowing pink for the entire time. 12. Cool the pendant, then brass brush it with soapy water. 13. If you would like to apply a Patina you can do that now, then remove most of it, leaving just enough to highlight the texture of the fingerprint and any writing you may have done. (See Chapter 20 Applying a Patina) 14. A high shine can be achieved by burnishing and polishing with a silver cloth. If you have access to a tumbler you can use that instead: tumble for a minimum of 2 hours How to Make Fingerprint Jewellery ~ 46

47 13 Birthstones & Firing Stones in Metal Clay There is a lovely symbology around Birthstones which makes them an interesting addition to your jewelry. Meanings vary in different cultures, all have their own significance for each stone, some modern ones, and some ancient. Look into these meanings yourself and pick one that resonates with you and your customers. I have included some guidelines here about their suitability to be fired in metal clay. Remember to always let your work air-cool after firing when you have set a stone of any kind. January ~ Garnet Garnet is the gem for Faith - Truth - Loyalty & Friendship In ancient times Garnet was thought to be connected with the blood and protection in the dark. Garnets come in the familiar deep red colour, but there are many other varieties available, rich browns, golden yellows and even green. Garnets can be fired in metal clay, test-fire the stone without setting it to be safe. February ~ Amethyst The name Amethyst was taken from the Greek Not Intoxicated Amethysts are thought to protect against drunkenness, and are believed to give tranquillity and peace. Amethysts come in many shades of purple, from very deep to lilac colours. Citrine is heat treated amethyst. Amethyst cannot be fired in metal clay: it has to be set after firing How to Make Fingerprint Jewellery ~ 47

48 March ~ Aquamarine Aquamarine is linked to friendship, affection, love hope & health. Aquamarines are a beautiful pale turquoise blue gem. There are natural varieties available in different shades of this colour. Aquamarine cannot be fired in metal clay, it has to be set after firing April ~ Diamond Diamonds are linked to love, eternity & strength. Diamonds are strong and the hardest stone on earth. Although there are colours available, the traditional white diamond is the stone for April. Even though it is such a hard stone, Diamond is not safe to fire in metal clay and is better set after firing. May ~ Emerald Emeralds are thought to be associated with health & healing and with clairvoyance. The best Emeralds come in a beautiful deep green, variations are found from mid green to yellow green. Emerald cannot be fired in metal clay: it has to be set after firing. June ~ Pearl Pearl is linked to purity, chastity & modesty, They are also thought to make happy marriages. Pearls come in many colours and although traditionally the white pearl is the stone for this month, in modern times any colour can be worn Pearls cannot be fired in metal clay: they have to be set after firing How to Make Fingerprint Jewellery ~ 48

49 July ~ Ruby Ruby is linked with harmony & protection. Rubies come in varied shades of red, from the best quality, deep fiery red, to shades of lighter red and deep pink. Rubies can be fired in Metal Clay, test-fire the stone without setting it to play it safe. August ~ Peridot Peridot is thought to protect against evil and nightmares. Peridot is generally a lime green colour Peridots can be fired in Metal Clay, test-fire the stone without setting it to play it safe. September ~ Sapphire Sapphire is linked to Faith, foresight, purity & honesty. Sapphires come in a colour range from deep blue to pink. Sapphires can be fired in Metal Clay, test-fire the stone without setting it to play it safe. October ~ Pink Tourmaline Tourmaline is said to enhance energy and attract the attention of others. Tourmaline comes in a wide range of colours from pink to crimson, green & yellow. Tourmaline cannot be fired in metal clay: it has to be set after firing How to Make Fingerprint Jewellery ~ 49

50 November ~ Topaz Topaz is associated with sanity, healing & strength. Topaz comes in a huge colour range, beautiful blues, ambers & browns, and even orange & reds Some Topaz can be fired in metal clay, some change colour: always test fire before setting in silver. December ~ Turquoise Turquoise is thought to bring happiness good fortune & luck. Turquoise comes in an enormous range of colours, the best ones are the famous turquoise blue green. There are also green and yellow/brown varieties. Turquoise cannot be fired in metal clay: it has to be set after firing. Bezel setting is a good option for Turquoise How to Make Fingerprint Jewellery ~ 50

51 14 Setting Stones in Metal Clay There are many ways you can set a stone in metal clay. The first choice you have to make is the kind of gem you want to set: some stones can be fired, others will have to be set after firing. If you look at the list of birthstones in the previous chapter, you will See that some of them can be fired in place, but others can t. It all depends on their ability to withstand the extreme heat we are going to subject the metal clay to. It would be wise to test-fire any gem before setting it into metal clay, even those that are thought to be safe: there could be inclusions, or tiny imperfections, that may not be directly noticeable to the naked eye, but could affect the stone under heat, changing the colour, or even causing it to crack! This is not only the case with natural stones, but also those that are man-made. Cubic Zirconium can be fired into metal clay, but not all the colours are stable. The blues are particularly prone to changing their colour. Test fire them before setting into clay. Tiny stones, like the ones we use on charms etc. can be test fired in the kiln as they are: fire to the schedule you would use for the type of clay you are working with. Larger stones should be covered with a piece of thin fire blanket to protect the kiln in case of the stone exploding How to Make Fingerprint Jewellery ~ 51

52 Setting a facetted stone directly into the soft clay can be as simple as making a hole with a toothpick and twirling the toothpick around, at an angle, to widen the top of the hole. This is the method I generally use when I have clay that is at least 3 cards thick and a stone no larger than 2.5 mm in diameter. Another method is to dry and sand the clay, then drill a small hole all the way through, following up with a drill the same size as the stone, and drilling halfway into the clay. Test your stone and make sure it is sitting low enough to be captured by the clay as it shrinks. If it sits too high the shrinkage will push the stone up and out, when the piece is fired. The larger the stone you want to set, the thicker the clay base should be, because the point of the stone will have to be accommodated. This can be achieved by building up the front or the back, just where the stone will be positioned, with some extra clay. One way of doing this is by drilling the hole as before, then making a small circle of syringe clay, just a little bit smaller than the diameter of your stone and pushing it carefully into its perfect position. Any tidying up can be done with a soft, damp brush and then by sanding after drying. Small cabochons can be set in a fine silver bezel-cup matched to the size and shape of the stone, a bezel cup can be fired into the clay and the stone set into it after firing How to Make Fingerprint Jewellery ~ 52

53 As an extra precaution, I like to drill a small hole in the bottom of the bezel cup, squeeze a little syringe clay into the hole, push the bezel cup into the soft syringe clay and let it squish up through the hole. Neaten the inside with a damp brush and dry. Fire your piece to suit the clay you are using, but also consider whether your stone can be torch fired, kiln fired, or has to be set after firing. Do not quench the piece in water if it has been fired with a stone set into it, but leave it to cool naturally. Brass brush as you normally would: if you prefer using a stainless steel brush, avoid the stone as much as possible, as a steel brush can scratch some stones. Apply a patina and hand polish as usual. Large stones should not be tumbled unless they are very hard, like sapphires. Some types of smaller stones would be better not being tumbled, stones like turquoise and opal are too soft and can be damaged by the steel shot. If you want to be absolutely sure about the safety of tumbling a piece set with a stone, check the Moh s scale of hardness: if your stone is substantially harder than the stainless steel shot, It should be safe to polish in a tumbler How to Make Fingerprint Jewellery ~ 53

54 15 Key Ring with a Fingerprint & Handwritten Name Key-rings are a great gift for various occasions, a child s fingerprint for Dad, or Grand dad, who might not want to wear jewelry but would love a key ring, or for a teenager who just got their first car, with Mum or Dad s fingerprint. The size to make a key ring is a personal decision, if you are using metal clay, just consider the cost! There can be a lot of silver in a large key ring. The ring itself, the one that holds the keys, is available from jewelry supply houses, there are the dog-clip ones that look very nice, but the one I picked for this project is more like a traditional key ring, but made from sterling silver. Materials: 16 gr. Low fire metal clay such as PMC3 or Artclay Silver (this amount of clay will make the key ring and a few charms as well) Sterling silver key ring Photo polymer plate - Optional Method: See Chapter 9 Metal Clay Basics - Working with Metal Clay for more detailed instructions. 1. Take a clean fingerprint, prepare it on an overhead transparency and make it into a Photo polymer plate. (See Chapter 1 - Taking a clean Fingerprint ) How to Make Fingerprint Jewellery ~ 54

55 2. Cut your shape out of light card to make an inside template, or use a commercial oval drawing template. 3. Prepare and roll out your metal clay to 3-4 cards thickness. 4. Press in a finger for a direct print, or use the fingerprint photo polymer plate you made earlier. 5. Lay the template on top of the clay leaving a little extra space at the bottom for the name. Take a moment to position the template nicely around the fingerprint. 6. Cut the clay with a needle tool, running it along the edge of your template. 7. Cut a large hole with a well-oiled cocktail straw. 8. Now you can set a birthstone, if you were planning to use one, or make the initial hole and set the stone after drying. (See Chapter 14 - Setting Stones in Metal Clay) 9. If you have a steady hand you can write the name with a needle tool at this soft stage. Otherwise you could let the clay dry for a few minutes before writing the name, as the clay is firmer at this semi-dry stage. Test different tools before you make a piece of jewelry, to See which one you prefer and gives you the best results. I use a sharp darning needle set in a pin vise, for the initial writing, then follow with another needle tool that is slightly blunter to widen the lines a little more. If you don t like writing directly in clay, or you find you are not very good at it, make a photo polymer plate of the person s own handwriting instead. This will look great and might be even more appreciated by the recipient. Take an impression of the name and How to Make Fingerprint Jewellery ~ 55

56 sand down a little after drying to make the writing sharper. Try it and See which way works best for you. 10. Dry the tag, then sand to get rid of any imperfections, don t forget to clean out the hole. 11. Wipe with a baby-wipe for a fine finish and let the surface dry again for a few minutes. 12. Kiln-fire to manufacturer s instructions, or fire by torch, making sure to fire for a full 5 minutes, remember to keep the piece at the salmon pink colour all the time, to achieve a good sintering process and get full strength for the metal clay. Key rings get a lot of abuse and need to be very strong. Let the piece cool naturally if you have set a stone, then brass brush with soap & water. 13. Apply a patina to accentuate the fingerprint and writing, then polish back to silver everywhere else. 14. Hand-polish for a soft finish, or tumble if you want a very shiny look. 15. Fit a heavy jump ring to connect the ring with the tag How to Make Fingerprint Jewellery ~ 56

57 16 Stamping Letters in Fired Metal Clay It is a good policy for any jewelry business to have some easy to produce, lower priced, stock articles for people that don t want to spend too much money. It is very easy to produce a line of less expensive jewelry, charms & pendants, simply by making a small range of blank stock items in different styles and sizes, which you can then simply stamp with any name your customer requests. There is also the added benefit that anyone can order this type of personalised jewelry online, as there is no fingerprinting involved. An easy way to personalize a charm or pendant is to take a stock blank and just use metal stamps to personalise it. Commercially available jewelry blanks come in many sizes, shapes and metal types. Most online jewelry suppliers have them. They are generally polished and ready to use, all you need to do is stamp them, put on a jump ring and that s it. Charms like these are great for people that don t want to spend a lot of money, or might want them as an extra to fill a bracelet. It is also possible to stamp your metal clay jewelry with metal stamps after firing. This looks great on pieces with a fingerprint, as well as on items with kid s drawings. The stamping doesn t have to be totally perfect - there is a charm about slightly irregular letters. There is a large variety of stamp sets available online, just search for Metal Stamps and See what comes up. There are many letter types available these days and even sets of symbols, like little love hearts, available in different sizes to suit whatever you want to personalise How to Make Fingerprint Jewellery ~ 57

58 How It s Done To stamp the jewelry piece, start by drawing a line that you can use as a reference baseline for your letters: this will help you to produce a neater and more professional looking result. Use a fine CD marker, or any other marker that will write on metal. Practice on some copper first: this will help to avoid ruining a good silver piece because of a letter wrongly placed through lack of experience. Try some straight lines, then curves, and finally experiment with some names in a circle. Hold the stamp perfectly straight and upright, if you hold it at an angle the letter will only be partly stamped. Strike the stamping tool with a firm blow of a leather mallet or a nylon hammer. If one of the letters is partly missing, carefully put the stamp back in the letter, you can wriggle it around until you feel it drop into the letter space. When you re sure the stamp is placed correctly, give it another sharp blow and the letter will usually come out right. You ll feel much more confident working on your good pieces when you know exactly how and where to place the letter stamps. Spacing your letters is a matter of personal preference, there are many examples on the internet, Google Hand Stamped Silver Jewelry and you ll find some excellent examples to inspire you How to Make Fingerprint Jewellery ~ 58

59 Also have a look how people are handling longer names: some are very closely spaced with the letters not on one line, but up & down a little from the baseline so they fit into each other more tightly. When your letters have been stamped you can make them stand out more by applying a black patina, then take off all patina using 1200# sandpaper to bring the piece back to silver, leaving the black only inside the stamping. Polish or tumble it and your piece is finished! Once you get comfortable with stamping you ll find it is a quick operation How to Make Fingerprint Jewellery ~ 59

60 17 Making a Fingerprint Key When looking for pieces that look good by themselves, but also work well when hung in a cluster, few things will work as well as this little key. It is an unusual piece for fingerprint jewelry and it is bound to please the person who is going to receive it. Locks & keys are intriguing, they are the keepers of secrets, and we want to know what those secrets are. The hidden meaning in this key is of course the fingerprint of a loved one. Full of significance to us, but discreet and beautiful at the same time. Method: See Chapter 9 Metal Clay Basics - Working with Metal Clay for more detailed instructions. 1. Make Key shape & Fingerprint photo polymer plates. Although I made my key with a photo polymer plate, you could just as easily make a template out of thin card and cut around that with a needle tool: the choice is yours. 2. Roll the clay 4 cards thick and cut to shape, or press into photo polymer plate and cut excess from the main shape. A very fine needle tool to cut around the shape can be made by setting a sewing needle in some polymer How to Make Fingerprint Jewellery ~ 60

61 clay and baking to cure it, a tool like this makes cutting very precise. Trim around the key shape roughly at first, then go back and trim very precisely, taking care not to distort the key shape while cutting. 3. Dry the key thoroughly, then smooth the edges, including the inside hole of the key s top. Unbaked metal clay is fragile: be careful to support the dry clay while filing & sanding. 4. Roll out more clay to 2 cards thickness and press into the fingerprint plate (alternatively you can press a finger directly into the clay) 5. Dampen the back of the key s top, apply some paste, then place the fingerprint, face down, onto the back. Press gently, but firmly, to make sure the soft clay will adhere to the dry clay, be careful to support the key while you apply pressure. 6. Turn the key over and trim the excess from the sides. Use a damp paintbrush or a wet finger to smooth the edges. Let it dry without heat for 15 minutes, to allow the moisture to be absorbed and redistributed into the dry clay, then continue to dry as you normally would on a heating tray or in a dehydrator. 7. Extra decoration can be applied at this stage by using syringe clay. Dampen the area where the extra clay will go with a little water, then pipe the design onto the key How to Make Fingerprint Jewellery ~ 61

62 Use a wet, fine paintbrush over the applied syringe clay, making sure that it adheres to the base layer. 8. Dry the key again, then check for any scratches or faults, and then fire to your clay manufacturer s instructions. 9. Brass brush with soap & water and apply patina. 10. Remove most of the patina with some polishing pads or very fine sandpaper # to reveal most of the silver again, leaving enough patina to enhance the textured areas. Now all you need is a jump ring to attach your finished key to its chain How to Make Fingerprint Jewellery ~ 62

63 18 Keepsake Bracelet Bead Bead bracelets are yet another way to start a collection of keepsake jewelry. They make the perfect grow as you go piece, starting with a few store bought beads, then adding personalised ones as you wish. Family and friends can give beads as presents to add to the bracelet. A single bead can look great on a simple necklace chain as well, and extra beads can be added to make a small collection here too. Make beads with fingerprints, with a birthstone crystal dangling from the bottom. Try another with a name and make a little fingerprint charm dangling below the bead. Small stones could be set into the bead, or in the dangling charm. When you start looking into the possibilities of these large holed beads, you will find endless inspiration for other embellishments. Materials: 16 gr. Low fire metal clay such as PMC3 or Artclay Silver (this amount of clay will make several beads with charms) A 6 mm (¼ inch) dowel or knitting needle. Small piece of 0.7 mm Fine Silver wire Photo polymer plate for the name and the fingerprint - both can be on the same plate How to Make Fingerprint Jewellery ~ 63

64 Method: See Chapter 9 Metal Clay Basics - Working with Metal Clay for more detailed instructions. 1. Make your Photo polymer plates, one with a name on it and one with a fingerprint (See Chapter 2 How to prepare the artwork and Chapter 7 How to make a Photo polymer plate ) 2. Prepare the dowel by wrapping a strip of paper around it to prevent the metal clay from sticking to it. Measure the circumference with another strip of paper, allowing for some overlap, if you want to make sure of the length of clay required. 3. Roll out a thin layer of clay, 2 cards thick, 10 mm (½ inch) wide and approx. 30 mm (1 ¼ inch) long. 4. Press your finger on the ends to thin them a little where they will overlap. Then put the strip of clay on the dowel and join with paste. 5. Let it air dry for 5-10 minutes, not on a heater, to leather-hard (firm but not totally dry) 6. Roll out another strip of metal clay. Press it into the Photo polymer plate with the name on it, trim to 7 mm (¼ inch) wide and 35 mm (1 ½ inch) long. This strip should be narrower than the first one, to give a nice stepped effect. Apply paste all around the first band and gently press the second, narrow band to join over the wider one. Neaten the join with a damp paintbrush. 7. Find a place where the dangle loop can go, this is usually at the join. Cut the tip off a toothpick with a sharp craft knife, then press this blunt end into the soft clay where you want your dangle loop to go. Use a drill bit roughly the same size as the toothpick and gently drill into the bottom How to Make Fingerprint Jewellery ~ 64

65 layer - stop the second you feel the timber dowel. 8. Make a wrapped loop out of the Fine Silver wire (be very sure not to use Sterling silver wire) and trim to a small wrapped stub that will hold well in the clay. 9. Dab some paste into the hole, then place the wire loop into it with a pair of tweezers. Push the clay against the wire loop and clean up with a damp paintbrush. 10. Gently take the bead off the dowel and dry it on the warming plate or dehydrator. Turn it over a few times while on the heating plate to ensure even drying. If you re using a dehydrator you don t have to worry about that - all sides will dry at the same time. 11. Sand the bead when completely dry. To sand the inside, roll up a small piece of #400 sandpaper and put it around the end of a paintbrush. Sand the inside in a smooth, sideways motion, fill the join inside with some clay and check for any imperfections filling them if necessary. Dry the bead again, then sand all over to a fine finish and wipe with a baby wipe. 12. Make the dangling charm by rolling out a little clay, press a finger into it or use a fingerprint photo polymer plate to texture it. 13. Use a pretty shape icing cutter or cut a shape freehand. Make a hole with a toothpick, not too close to the edge. Let the charm dry, then sand and finish as usual. 15. Fire both pieces to manufacturer s instructions. 16. Apply patina to both pieces, remove excess colour with some #1200 sandpaper to leave only the textures dark. 17. Join the dangle to the bead with a small but sturdy, sterling silver jump ring. I used 0.9 mm wire: don t use a thin gauge jump ring, unless you are soldering it closed. 18. Tumble for a beautiful shiny polish. Instead of making the top strip with a name, you could use fingerprints instead, made with a photo polymer plate, or pressed directly into the soft clay (dry the bottom layer first) The dangle could be a pearl, or a Swarovski crystal in the birthstone colour of the child, wire wrapped onto the dangle after tumbling How to Make Fingerprint Jewellery ~ 65

66 19 Fingerprint Ring Once you have made some of the basic pieces, you ll be ready to make a ring! This ring is a simple round band with a shape on top, I used a butterfly, just to be a little different, but a small round disc or a small heart would look equally delightful, just make sure there s enough room for the fingerprint. A 3 mm Aventurine is set in a small bezel cup, this stone can t be fired, but the bezel cup, which is made of Fine Silver, can be fired into the clay. Please note that Sterling silver cannot be fired into the clay when you torch fire your work, sterling has a copper content which cannot handle high heat over a prolonged firing time and would become brittle and break. Even the 5 minute torch firing required to sinter the metal clay, would be too long for sterling silver. Fine silver bezel cups are available from all major jewelry suppliers who usually stock some cabochons to match. The one I used here is a 3 mm Aventurine: shop around, there are many different stone types available in that size. Materials: 16 gr. Low fire metal clay such as PMC3 or Artclay Silver (this amount of clay will make the ring and a few charms as well) Metal Clay Paste Photo polymer plate for the Fingerprint 3 mm Cabochon & Fine silver bezel cup to match Note: you will need a ring mandrel & ring sizer for this project How to Make Fingerprint Jewellery ~ 66

67 Method: See Chapter 9 Metal Clay Basics - Working with Metal Clay for more detailed instructions. 1. We ll start by making the ring itself, known as the shank, and then make the top part as the shank is drying. 2. Use the adjustable ring sizer to get your actual ring size. The ring should not be too loose, but still comfortable to take off. Read the size and increase it by 2 full sizes - eg. if you are a 9, your metal clay ring should be made to size 11. This accommodates the shrinkage of the clay when it is fired. 3. Put the ring sizer onto your mandrel and mark the spot with a pencil. 4. Tape a small piece of paper to the mandrel where the mark is, put the ring sizer back onto the mandrel (not too tight) and mark its position on the paper. Scribe a line on both sides to make it easier to See where the ring should be positioned while you are working on it. 5. Take a narrow strip of paper and wrap it around the mandrel at the marks and add 1 cm (½ inch) overlap. This strip of paper will give you the length you ll need when you re rolling the coil that makes the ring. 6. Take about ½ of the 16 gr. packet of clay and roll this into a coil about 3 mm thick. To make the coil nice and even, thin and very smooth, roll it under a piece of acrylic or glass sheet, or you can use a CD case, which will work just as well. NOTE: Don t use any extra oil on your work surface when you roll a coil, it will make things too slippery Roll firmly until you See the clay smoothing out and thinning further. This is a very nice way to make coils, the resulting snakes are very strong as the material gets compressed while rolling. Roll a coil that is at least as long as the strip of paper you made previously. 7. Cut the coil to the right length and press down with your fingertip on the very end of it, this will keep the join from being too bulky. Wrap it around the ring mandrel, in between the lines marked. Be very careful to keep the ring at How to Make Fingerprint Jewellery ~ 67

68 that exact spot, a little off the mark either way, will result in a ring that doesn t fit. Have the flattened end down on the mandrel, apply a good dollop of paste, then place the other end over it and press down gently to join. 8. To make the join strong and thin it at the same time, press on it with a modelling tool, but be careful to hold the ring on each side of the join, so it can t stretch and grow to a larger size. 9. Cut the coil to the right length and press down with your fingertip on the very end of it, this will keep the join from being too bulky. Wrap it around the ring mandrel, in between the lines marked. Be very careful to keep the ring at that exact spot, a little off the mark either way, will result in a ring that doesn t fit. Have the flattened end down on the mandrel, apply a good dollop of paste, then place the other end over it and press down gently to join. 10. To make the join strong and thin it at the same time, press on it with a modelling tool, but be careful to hold the ring on each side of the join, so it can t stretch and grow to a larger size. Apply pressure from side to side, then trim the bulged out portions evenly using a craft knife or scalpel. 11. Make sure the ring is nicely positioned on the mandrel, square and straight, then set it to dry. Don t be tempted to fiddle with it at this stage: any tidying up will be done after drying. Dry it on a heating plate or dehydrator. Place the end of the ring mandrel on something that will keep it raised and stop the soft clay ring from getting squashed. While the shank is drying we will make the butterfly top. 12. Make a template of the butterfly or whatever shape you re going to use for the top of the ring. 13. Drill a small hole in the bottom of the bezel cup - don t worry about any burr that forms, it will help anchor it in place How to Make Fingerprint Jewellery ~ 68

69 14. Roll out the clay to 3-4 cards thickness, a little chunkier looks better than a very thin top, and it will also be stronger. 15. Oil the fingerprint photo polymer plate and press the metal clay into it. 16. Using a pair of tweezers, press the bezel cup where you would like it to be placed, then cut the shape of the butterfly. Smooth the clay that squeezes up through the hole with a damp brush, but don t thin it out, this clay will anchor the bezel cup firmly into the clay when it is fired. Put the butterfly aside to dry thoroughly. 17. When the ring shank is dry, sand it and smooth the join on the inside as well. Be careful not to sand away too much on the inside: this could increase your ring size. Sand a flat area on top of the join - we will put the butterfly there later. 18. Sand and finish the butterfly when it s dry, rounding over the edges so they can be polished to a shine later. 19. Put the ring back onto the mandrel. Apply a little paste to the flat area and to the back of the butterfly top. Put a dollop of syringe clay on the ring and gently, but firmly, press the top in place. Clean up any clay that has squeezed out underneath using a damp paintbrush, pushing this excess into the join to make it stronger still. Once the top is set in place, do not touch it again, but let it sit undisturbed for at least 15 minutes, I like to leave mine for a minimum of half an hour. This is good practice when joining any dry clay pieces together: it makes the join stronger by allowing the moisture to redistribute into the surrounding dry clay. 20. Leave the ring on the mandrel while drying on the heating plate or in the dehydrator. Turn it upside down, so the join gets most of the heat. Take the ring off the mandrel when touch dry, usually after about 10 minutes, and lay it down to dry further by itself How to Make Fingerprint Jewellery ~ 69

70 21. Check the ring for any imperfections, then fire to your clay manufacturer s instructions. I fire my rings with a torch, keeping them to an even light orange colour for 5 minutes. 22. Brass brush with soapy water and apply patina to the top only. When applying a Lime sulfur patina to a single piece of jewelry I take a shortcut by heating the metal - not the patina. I put the ring in a cup of boiling water and let it get hot. Then I paint a little pure Lime Sulfur on top and let it work in for a little while. Dip it into the hot water again (the top only!) to reactivate it, until you are happy with the colour. 23. Remove the patina using 1200# sandpaper, just leave enough in the texture to make it stand out. 24. Set the stone into the bezel cup and push over the edges to hold it firmly. If you don t have any metalworking skills, you can just glue the stone in place, using a good quality epoxy glue. 25. Burnish and polish the ring and the edge of the butterfly to make it sparkle. Be careful if you are going to tumble the ring, make sure your stone is hard enough to handle the stainless steel shot How to Make Fingerprint Jewellery ~ 70

71 20 Applying a Patina The final step for your finished work is to decide whether to apply a patina. Some people love the way names and textures are enhanced by the black patina, others prefer a clean bright silver look. Let s have a look at what a patina is, different types of patinas you can use, and finally, how to apply them. ** Please be careful when working with chemicals: read the instructions, wear protective clothing, safety glasses and gloves. Work in a well ventilated area or outdoors** A patina is usually a chemical that will rapidly tarnish the metal it is applied to. The type of chemical and the kind of metal will determine the colour that s possible. Most chemicals work faster or more intensively when either the chemical or the metal is hot. The most commonly used patina is Liver of Sulphur. It comes in small lumps which are dissolved in hot water until you get a light straw colour. Liver of Sulphur is very sensitive to moisture and a whole container of the lumps can be useless if it gets water into it. There are a few alternatives; I use the liquid form, which is much more stable. This type is sold in gardening stores as Lime Sulphur and is inexpensive. Another form available now is Liver of Sulphur Gel, which is reported to be very stable as well How to Make Fingerprint Jewellery ~ 71

72 Use an eyedropper to add the Lime sulphur to the hot (not boiling) water until you get a pale yellow colour. Test the strength of your mix by dipping the silver into it. Add more chemical if it s too weak and does not colour, or add more water if it gets too dark, too fast. Before you start, make sure you have everything ready: your patina, mixed up and ready to go - a container of water to rinse the work in between dips - a pair of tweezers and a small brush for touch ups. Method: Work outside, or in a well ventilated area, wear safety glasses and protective clothing & gloves. Hold the silver object with tweezers and dip into the mixture, then rinse immediately in clean water. Keep on dipping & rinsing until you get the colour you want. The colour will start off a golden shade, then brown, then become darker and darker until you get to near black. A Sulphur patina can give amazing colours, deep blues and purples for instance, but for our purposes black is probably the best colour. When you ve got the colour you want, rinse the jewelry thoroughly and brush with a little soap to remove and neutralise any residue. This process applies patina to the whole piece. You can also apply the patina with a brush, limiting it to the area that you want to colour, this will save a lot of time in cleaning afterwards. Other patinas available from jewelry suppliers have different requirements for their application. Read the instructions and follow them to the letter for the best results. Cleaning the patina off the areas you want to bring back to silver is easy: Use a small square of very fine wet & dry sandpaper or a fine sanding sponge 1200#. Gently rub until you have taken off all the black, except for inside the fingerprints or textures you want to keep dark How to Make Fingerprint Jewellery ~ 72

73 Fingerprints are a very shallow texture and care should be taken not to remove too much patina: rub these areas very gently until just the highlights are silver, revealing the pattern of the whorls of the fingerprint. Deep impressions with larger open areas, such as footprints etc. can be brushed with a stainless steel, or a brass brush & soapy water. This will remove the patina off the whole piece and most of the inside of the print as well, leaving just enough in the outlines & edges to make the prints stand out. Finally you can polish the jewelry by using a good quality silver cleaning cloth, such as a Sunshine Cloth. Alternatively you could tumble it to a high shine for a few hours. More about finishing techniques in the next chapter! How to Make Fingerprint Jewellery ~ 73

74 21 Polishing & Tumbling We re hitting the home stretch: the final step in the process is probably the most important one! Polishing & finishing! This is where your work gets judged, especially if you re selling your jewelry. Your designs may be great, everything else looked after, but if the finish of the jewelry is not a professional one, people will judge the final pieces on that factor alone. When you present your samples for people to select, this is where the sale is made, the jewelry will just about sell itself. if it is beautifully presented and finished. A good polish on metal clay starts even before it is fired, at the dry stage. It takes practice to See the scratches and imperfections in the dry clay, that show up so clearly on the polished silver! So this is where your first focus should be. The dry clay piece needs to be very carefully checked for holes and scratches. Using magnifiers helps, fill them if you find anything. Next, the work has to be sanded to a very fine finish, starting at 400# and ending up with 1200# grit, wet & dry sandpaper works well, or you can get some of the colour coded micro finishing sheets: they are on a plastic base, last longer and go down to an extremely fine grit. Finish by wiping with a wet-wipe to get rid of any dust. If this pre-finishing is done well, there s hardly any work after firing, just brass brush it with soap & water, then polish with a good silver cleaning cloth if you want more shine. I love the Sunshine cloths and they are the ones I use. Finally the edges can be burnished to a higher shine than the rest of the piece, this adds a subtle sparkle when the wearer moves How to Make Fingerprint Jewellery ~ 74

75 Once you have fired your work and you find the finish is not as smooth as expected, all is not lost. If you have access to a flex drive, a Dremel or something similar, you can find a great array of finishing brushes and tips to use with them. These can take out scratches if used carefully, or they can polish: it depends on the type of polishing tip you choose. I use a set of Radial brushes with my Micro Motor, these start at 80#, which will take out scratches, and go down to 8000# for a fine finished polish. The best thing about these brushes is their ability to get into tight spots and crevices where it would be a challenge to get in with other tools. These brushes are set in a screw-in mandrel, have them stacked 3-4 on top of each other. The downside is the cost, they are not cheap and wear out fast if you use them all the time. There are other finishing points available for the flex drive (or Dremel) have a look at the online catalogues from the major tool suppliers to See the vast assortment. The best suppliers will tell you exactly what different types are best suited for. The best strategy is to finish things as perfectly as you can before firing. Because the dry clay is soft, it is easy and fast to accomplish and does not require any expensive tools How to Make Fingerprint Jewellery ~ 75

76 Using a Tumbler Much time and effort can be saved if you have access to a tumbler. Tumblers polish by rumbling the silver pieces in a barrel for several hours or even overnight. A small rotary tumbler is a good investment if you make very shiny jewelry or make lots of small charms, which are difficult to hold for hand polishing. Setting up a tumbler is easy! Brass-brush the work to be tumbled and put into the barrel with the shot. Add some sort of lubricant. This could be a proprietary material sold by the suppliers of tumblers, or you can use a pinch of pure soap flakes, or even baking soda. The polishing is done by the steel shot, not the additives. Pour on hot tap water to about 1 cm (½ inch) on top of the shot & work. Close up the rubber sealing lid, cover with the outside lid & tighten the screw. ** Make sure the outside of the barrel is clean and has no soap on it, this could cause it to slip on the rollers ** Place on the rollers with the groove in the nut, sitting in the guide. Tumble for a minimum of a few hours or overnight. Drain the content of the barrel in a sieve, rinse the shot and the work. Dry the jewelry with a soft towel. That s it, you re done! Nice shiny jewelry with a minimum of effort. Tumblers really pay for themselves when you are setting up making Keepsake jewelry as a home business. A little more about that in the next chapters! How to Make Fingerprint Jewellery ~ 76

77 22 Changing a Hobby into a Business When you ve been making fingerprint jewelry for a while you could get to a point where you are making a few sales to friends, then you get some referrals, and before you know it you have the beginnings of a business! Setting up a home-based jewelry business is easier to do with keepsake jewelry than with other types, it just seems to sell itself! Getting started is easy to, it just involves what you do already; networking with your friends! When they buy one of your custom made pieces, they will show it to other friends, and people they meet in their daily life and before you know it, the whole thing snowballs! You could help this along by offering some incentives for people to spread the word about your work, discount vouchers for instance, for any referrals they send your way. This could be a flat amount, or a percentage of what you sold to their friend. People can then redeem these vouchers for more jewelry for themselves. Think about these things carefully before you offer them, they can help build your business very fast, just make sure not to overdo the amount of money you offer. 5 or 10% of the sale value, is probably enough and can be costed into your retail prices. Another way to network with your friends is through a Facebook Fan page, not a personal profile page, but a business one, I m sure you ve seen many of these. They work very well when you interact with the people that Like your page. Every time they do something while on your page, push the like button, make a comment etc. they are interacting with you and your business, and. here comes the best thing about that this interaction shows up on their wall and is seen by all their friends! If some of those friends are curious what it s all about, then go to have a look at your page and Like it, the ripples spread like in a pond, the size of which is enormous! Make sure to set up a blog or small web site and put the link to it on your Facebook page, this gives people a chance to find you and to get in touch with you How to Make Fingerprint Jewellery ~ 77

78 If you do your marketing right, you never have to sell. people will just come to buy! I don t think there is anything more powerful at this time than Facebook, in terms of people that go there daily, hourly!! it is the 4th largest country on earth and growing every day! Do yourself a favour and get it to work for you too! When you first set up a Facebook page, don t tell anyone about it until you have: At least 5-6 posts (status updates) on there. Upload more than 4 photos together. Facebook will show 3 of them and then tell people to See more People are naturally curious and will want to see more, so as soon as they click on it they have interacted with you and are engaged and are more likely to come back. You ll need to keep interacting with them to keep things alive, but for most people that s an enjoyable part of the business! Have a video on that first page, make your own or put just a YouTube video relating to something your friends will enjoy, it doesn t even have to be about jewelry, it could be about kids and their antics, anything that will get their attention and keep them looking around for a bit. Make sure your page s profile contains all your vital information, especially the link to your website or blog and of course a great profile picture, maybe one of your nicest or most popular jewelry. Keep it simple, too much detail will get lost in a photo this size. Having a web site or blog is a good thing to show people what you do and to give the extra information people might be looking for, here are some essential pages any jewelry site should have: An About me page, people love to find out more about each other and who they want to do business with. Keep the tone light and chatty, as if you were talking to a friend, the informal, relaxed approach works very well in this type of business. Gallery, this is your premium showcase, all you other marketing should lead people back to this page. Here you can link to: Individual product pages that tell people more about the design, the materials you have used, and the price of the individual pieces. This is also where you Buy Now button would be, Paypal provides any easily setup checkout service, check it out and compare it to other checkout solutions. Contact page, provide your address in a form if you know how to, this will minimise spam How to Make Fingerprint Jewellery ~ 78

79 Ordering - terms & conditions - Privacy policy etc. Because all this type of work is custom made, make sure you have a page for your ordering information and your non-return policy. Make sure people understand that you can t resell their fingerprints to other people! This is standard practice in the industry, Keepsake Jewelry is sold only on those terms and people have to agree to your terms when they pay the deposit and before you start the job How to Make Fingerprint Jewellery ~ 79

80 23 Setting Up a Home Business - Checklist Set up the right way from the start and avoid becoming a statistic! The number of new businesses that fail in the first 2 years are staggering! Getting things right from the start is the most important thing for your survival as a business. Working from home gives you an advantage cost-wise: - No overheads - No staff, you can run a lean machine. But. working from home also puts you at a disadvantage: Your time gets taken up by children, home duties etc. This makes it very hard to concentrate on your new business, just at a time when it needs you most! To get the balance right is a very individual affair, every home has different challenges. If you have a room for spare, set up your business in there and make sure everyone knows to leave you alone when you re working in that room. Of course this is easier said than done, but you do need to set well considered boundaries and make sure you enforce them. Look at a block of time during the day that could be set aside just for your business, this would be the time you go to work the same as if you were employed. If you are like most people, you do not have a whole room to set aside, but you might be able to set up the biggest part of your business in a well designed home office. If you select one that can be totally closed up, it would blend in just like any piece of furniture, but it can quickly convert when clients visit or you have work to do. So, you ve got the skills & the room to work, now it s time to check what needs to be looked at when you are ready to start. The following list is a guide to most of the points to consider: Tax number (check what s required in your country) Business license or registration Accountant & bookkeeping system Business bank account Merchant account - if you plan to offer a credit card facility Business name - make sure you can use the name you ve picked - even if it s your own name How to Make Fingerprint Jewellery ~ 80

81 Stationary - Business cards - Promotional materials - Invoices Web site or blog Insurance - Public liability for people visiting your premises and product related insurance Copyright - how to protect your work Display case Tools & Equipment Computer How to Make Fingerprint Jewellery ~ 81

82 24 Conclusion So here we are at the end of this book. We ve looked at the basics of setting up for fingerprint jewelry making. Some projects might have been easier than others, but if you had problems with some techniques, just stick to it and try again! You ll be one of the 20% of people that can teach themselves new skills and profit from them. There is a huge market for keepsake jewelry of all kinds, not just fingerprints. You have a great opportunity to ride the wave of popularity to success, if you are planning to set up as a business. Fingerprints might be Flavour of the Month but think about pets, and the money that s spent on them, you d have the makings of an evergreen business just with that! The pet s market is easy to access, just think of all the shows held for breeds of dogs, cats and horses, there are thousands! And these people are nuts about their animals, they would love the right kind of jewelry, made just for them, with their animal s print on it! Find out the societies and advertise in their newsletter, ask the vet if they would let you have some leaflets there, you ll be astounded at the size of that market if it was handled well. Another area that could be a great one is bridal jewelry, the possibilities for incorporating keepsakes there is huge. Jewelry for the bridesmaids, with a small fingerprint charm worked in would be a gorgeous gift that will be treasured by the recipient. Think also of best friends, charm bracelets or a pendant cluster of charms would mean so much when distance separates them. And not only women, look at how to apply fingerprints to men s jewelry, there is a hole in that market that could be filled with the right designs.keep women in mind as well when designing for men, very often men s jewelry is bought to be given as presents by women. When you are looking for new designs to make your jewelry stand out from the crowd, think of fingerprints as texture. Any jewelry piece that catches your eye could be made with finger How to Make Fingerprint Jewellery ~ 82