Giving Your Jewelry a Contrasting Textured Look

I was working on a piece a couple of days ago and I just wasn’t happy with the piece and how it was looking. When I finally realized what it was, just too “bland” looking, I knew just the recipe for it, CONTRAST!

I have mentioned it before, but I am a huge fan of “contrasts”. Contrasting colors, contrasting textures, and contrasts in life. I was getting ready to polish this earring and I knew exactly what was missing. I have showed a texturing process before in Day 22 and Day 23 about “Contrasting Textures”. In this instance I was using an Electric Engraver with a modified bit and a diamond bit. Today I will be using a 0.5mm Ball Bur (005) and my Foredom Flex Shaft.

First I use a Foredom and a small 0.5mm Ball Bur to add a dimple texture to the “borders” of the piece. Be very careful and slow in this part, since if you slip, you will mark the area you want polished.

Once you have the outline of the area textured, you can start filling in the area you want textured. I try to overlap the “dimples” made so there is no “un-textured” shiny areas. Start at one corner and just continue texturing, making sure you use a good amount of Bur Lubricant, I use Pro-Cut for this.

If you have been around for a while, you will remember on Day 38, I did a tutorial on “How to Make Round Beads or Balls in Silver”. Well, I am resurrecting one of these pieces, adding a silver loop to it, and hanging this piece from it….. and you thought I was making beads for fun.

There you go, another step in the jewelry making journey, I hope you are enjoying the ride. By the way, if you are looking for something in particular as far as a tip, in the upper right hand corner of this site (www.JewelryMonk.com) is a search bar, type in any word, and it will “magically” take you to any article that mentions that word. Hope that helps.

Now go dazzle someone with your abilities and talent.

Take Care

Doug