What can I do with a sheet of brass?

[jille]

I have a sheet of brass (I bought it thinking it wasfoil for glass inclusions), I am wondering what i can do with it. Can i patinate it, enamel it? Combine it with silver? Any suggestions welcome
thanks
Jill

[mizgeorge]

Texture it, cut shapes out of it (I'd use a platinum king blade though), rivet stuff to it, etch it, make stencils for putting through a rolling mill and much more. There are lots of ideas for brass in the Jinks McGrath Directory of Decorative Finishes.

I find it useful for making prototypes where I'd be using gold to get an idea of what the final piece might look like.

[jille]

thanks George, |i had been thinking of buyiing that book anyway so now I'm going to look on Amazon. i recently bought a rolling mil so the thought of stencils to use over and over might be a good one. Are there any examples of how this might look on the forum?

[mizgeorge]

I don't think so, but I'll try to remember to take some. I've etched brass sheet (saltwater and battery technique) to make stencils, and also pierced it (hard work!). They last a long time though.

You need to remember to reverse the image (yes, I did forget on one of them.....)

[jille]

can you tell me more about etching with saltwater and a battery, it sounds interesting

[mizgeorge]

Art Jewelry Magazine - Metals Project: D Battery + Saltwater = Cheap, Acid-Free Etching

There are a couple of free tutorials around if you google saltwater etching battery

[Jemart]

This etching technique sounds interesting. Presumably it would not work for silver though?

[daisychain]

The salt water and battery works brilliantly! I've been making texture sheets with my advanced C&G class and they've got some fantastic results. The simplest way of putting a resist on the brass is to use papercraft stickers!

[mizgeorge]

Rub-ons work even better Jo, and there are some really gorgeous images available. Just remember not to use text ones if they're for texturing or to use as stencils for the rolling mill!

[daisychain]

Rub-ons work even better Jo, and there are some really gorgeous images available. Just remember not to use text ones if they're for texturing or to use as stencils for the rolling mill!

The possibilities are endless!! It's so much safer than using nasty chemicals.