Setting in the stones.

To flush set small round stones I'll start with a hole slightly smaller than the diameter of the stone. Then create a "seat" for the stone with a bearing bur the same size as or slightly smaller than the stone. Burnishers can be made from old burs held in a pin vise. I burnish with the side of the tip, moving it in a side to side motion, exerting enough pressure to upset the edge and move metal down toward the crown of the stone. Smaller diameters will move more metal and are useful for getting a stone tight, larger diameters might leave a smoother surface. It can be useful to have a couple diameters at hand.

14 Karat Bangle with Diamonds

To follow-up my previous post I thought I'd show a few photos taken while the bracelet was being made and comment on some of the techniques used. This piece was made for a jeweler whose customer had a link bracelet I had made. After being worn daily for many years it had simply worn out. They were considering having it remade, but decided upon resetting the stones into a hinged bracelet with a similar design.

As long as I'm on a posting binge ...  This may still be news to some here--it was news to me. There was an incredible discovery of Anglo-Saxon metalwork made recently, July, 2009. Over 1500 objects, 5kg of gold work and 1.3kg of silver. They've put up a nice site, http://www.staffordshirehoard.org.uk/, with over 600 images of items found. The image above is used courtesy of the Staffordshire hoard website.

The morning of the one day I wore a tux I realized I didn't have cufflinks. These are what I came up with. They are scratch finished, oxidized, sterling silver with 14 kt. yellow accents. The back side simply has my logo stamp for decoration.

This is a favorite piece.

14kt white gold and diamond sprinkles on a yellow gold block link bracelet.