Pottery Shards - Pendants - Help

Hi All

I've got some really lovely eroded smooth pottery shards that I've found on the beach and I want to make some pendants from them. I know I could easily just drill a hole into them and attach a jump ring and hang them from a chain, but I want to do something a little more challenging.

I'd like to use bezel strip around the edges - like setting a stone, but with no back. This way the silver goes all around the edge and you can see the front and the back of the pottery.

Can I just use normal bezel strip for this? I'm got 3mm and 5mm in stock.
What can I attach to this to make a hoop for a chain to go through?

Any advice much appreciated.

Thanks

E

He he I have the same question about Sea Glass. I am going to use bezel strip with a jump ring or bail soldered on before mounting, but it is the setting process that I am a bit confused about. I have heard about pitch pots and how to embed the edge of the silver into it so the pitch can be used as a temporary back so you can set one side, then you take it out of the pitch and flip it over and set the second side. But is there another easier way of doing it for smaller pieces?

Milo you could also wrap it round with silver wire like a little parcel - easier with seaglass as it's all one colour usually, but pottery may have designs on it you don't want to obstruct?

I'm crap at wire wrapping - tried it and never know where to go with the wire and how to finish it off either - always looks a complete mess. Would love to know how to do it nicely as I've got a whole drawer full of lovely sea glass that I'd like to use. I've not got the means to drill holes in glass, so it just sits there gathering dust.

I've tried to wire-wrap things like moldavite pieces and sea glass and I can never, ever get it right. Moreover, it never looks or feels awfully secure to me.

Is there somewhere you can send off your bits of sea glass to get drilled?

I just found this example of drilling through sea glass and I'm going to try it...going off the topic of pottery shards and bezels here, but nevermind.

I also just found a load of stuff on flickr - this is what I mean with regards to the pottery chards - I wouldn't want my bezel folding so far over the edge like it does in this example. Just enough to hold the pottery in place. I think I'm juts going to experiment a little tonight and see what I come up with.

Is there a type of bezel you can get with a lip on one side - so this would go on the insde and hold the pottery in place as you worked on this top of the piece, before turning over and working on the back?

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Milomade

Is there somewhere you can send off your bits of sea glass to get drilled?

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It's quite easy to do if you have a flexshaft - diamond drill bits are cheap. I blutak the object in the bottom of a plastic container and cover it with water. I'll frequently mark my drilling point with a diamond ball burr, then go in with the drill nice and slow. Takes a while, backing out the bit frequently to flush any grit out of the hole and breakthrough is generally not too bad - you don't use much pressure (it doesn't help the thing along) so any spalling of the back face of the hole is minimal. I'll usually go back in with a decent size ball burr to countersink & clean up the hole edges. Keep it slow, keep it well flushed with water (and therefore cool) and it'll be fine.

Works on stones too.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Milomade

Is there a type of bezel you can get with a lip on one side - so this would go on the insde and hold the pottery in place as you worked on this top of the piece, before turning over and working on the back?

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Solder a wire onto the bottom edge to act as a shelf?
Epoxy the bezel strip in place before trying to work the edges over?

Quote:

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this is what I mean with regards to the pottery chards

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Nice, very nice indeed.

soldering wire to the inside of the bezel - what thickness of wire? By doing this won't it change the shape of the bezel around the pottery on the back?

Whatever works. I'd been thinking in terms of 1mm or so - which will raise the shard up by that much, naturally. If the shard isn't flat it's going to be more fun bending the bezel to fit (but you'd hit that anyway)... Fun, but not impossible.

The last irregular bezel I did I wrapped paper around to get the outline of the stone, added a couple of mm either side then cut that out of .5mm sheet. Soldered the ends, added a bail, then formed it to fit the stone. I used a drop of superglue to hold the bezel while I got the cardinal points of the bezel formed on either side, then carried on as normal. The superglue came off after a dunk in acetone - but I probably didn't really need to.

what you term as a 'bail' is what I need to figure out next - what's the easiest thing to use? and the best way to attach?

have you seen the work by Gesine Hackenberg:
http://www.gesinehackenberg.com/data.../ringLLrot.jpg

I've just discovered her website and I love her stuff!

"Easiest" for certain values of easy - I'd say a jump ring would be about the simplest. Soldered edge on for a chain to pass through.

Was someone using a diamond core drill on that plate? :)

I don't know what she uses, but the rings and necklaces she makes from plates are amazing!

pretty. clever to use the plates with holes to give it context too.
Em

apparently the next issue of art jewelry is going to have an article called

Genuine Sea Glass: How to Bezel-set an Irregular Stone ....may be of interest

I have a subscription but havent received this one yet

I get that too Trudy so I 'll be interested to see that article!!

Milo - the flickr photo is how I would like to do mine, with the bezel over the edge. What you and Peter say about the lipped bezel is a good idea too it hadn't occurred to me to use something like that.