Lemons to Lemonade
by Judy Larson
Have you ever designed a project in your mind and knew EXACTLY how it would turn out and couldn't wait to get started? Then BAM, something did not go the way you thought it would and your perfect idea and plan went down the drain. That is exactly how this project started. Thankfully, many new ideas and designs can be had along the way in saving a project.
I picked up a piece of arborvitae on the street one morning on a walk. It was pressed in a book for several weeks and then put in the dehydrator for several days, just to be safe. I decided on the finished shape I wanted and cut the template, decided how large each piece of silver needed to be, and where the arborvitae needed to be placed on the silver. These earrings were going to be FABULOUS!
Judy Larson's Lemons to Lemonade - , Wire Jewelry Design, Cutting, Cutting Tool, Cutters, Filing, Finishing, Texturing, Butane Torch, Soldering, Solder, Design, lemons to lemonade
Judy Larson's Lemons to Lemonade - , Wire Jewelry Design, Cutting, Cutting Tool, Cutters, Filing, Finishing, Texturing, Butane Torch, Soldering, Solder, Design, lemons to lemonade
Judy Larson's Lemons to Lemonade - , Wire Jewelry Design, Cutting, Cutting Tool, Cutters, Filing, Finishing, Texturing, Butane Torch, Soldering, Solder, Design, lemons to lemonade
Because I was making earrings, I wanted mirror images. I placed the arborvitae between the two pieces of silver and sent it through the rolling mill. Mind you, I had done this before with great results. I was SO disappointed in the results-the impression was a smooshed mess! I used too much silver to throw the pieces into the scrap box so had to come up with a way to salvage it. I thought the same shape in a smaller size on top of the larger one might look nice. So, I drew out a new shape and made the template for it. Both sizes were then drawn on the silver rectangles.
Judy Larson's Lemons to Lemonade - , Wire Jewelry Design, Cutting, Cutting Tool, Cutters, Filing, Finishing, Texturing, Butane Torch, Soldering, Solder, Design, lemons to lemonade
Now it was time to texture the two shapes that had been cut apart. After starting to texture the corner of the larger shape, I realized I had better see if that was really the texture I wanted since I was using my new untried Wubbers Hammers. I straightened the edge of a piece of copper-love that little curl-and then cut a strip. I labeled the hammer handles and the strip after each hammer texture was done. I decided on the square faced hammer that I labeled as #2 on my practice strip. I used the large side on the larger piece of silver and the smaller side on the smaller piece of silver.
Judy Larson's Lemons to Lemonade - , Wire Jewelry Design, Cutting, Cutting Tool, Cutters, Filing, Finishing, Texturing, Butane Torch, Soldering, Solder, Design, lemons to lemonade
Judy Larson's Lemons to Lemonade - , Wire Jewelry Design, Cutting, Cutting Tool, Cutters, Filing, Finishing, Texturing, Butane Torch, Soldering, Solder, Design, lemons to lemonade
Judy Larson's Lemons to Lemonade - , Wire Jewelry Design, Cutting, Cutting Tool, Cutters, Filing, Finishing, Texturing, Butane Torch, Soldering, Solder, Design, lemons to lemonade
Judy Larson's Lemons to Lemonade - , Wire Jewelry Design, Cutting, Cutting Tool, Cutters, Filing, Finishing, Texturing, Butane Torch, Soldering, Solder, Design, lemons to lemonade
Judy Larson's Lemons to Lemonade - , Wire Jewelry Design, Cutting, Cutting Tool, Cutters, Filing, Finishing, Texturing, Butane Torch, Soldering, Solder, Design, lemons to lemonade
The four pieces were cut out and laid out in a variety of ways. I even thought of using that curl of copper. However, none of the layouts looked right to me. Back to the drawing board.
Judy Larson's Lemons to Lemonade - , Wire Jewelry Design, Cutting, Cutting Tool, Cutters, Filing, Finishing, Texturing, Butane Torch, Soldering, Solder, Design, lemons to lemonade
Judy Larson's Lemons to Lemonade - , Wire Jewelry Design, Cutting, Cutting Tool, Cutters, Filing, Finishing, Texturing, Butane Torch, Soldering, Solder, Design, lemons to lemonade
Judy Larson's Lemons to Lemonade - , Wire Jewelry Design, Cutting, Cutting Tool, Cutters, Filing, Finishing, Texturing, Butane Torch, Soldering, Solder, Design, lemons to lemonade
The pieces were laid sideways for one of the final earring layout ideas. I thought they looked like fish. They seemed too large for earrings, but it was a cute idea. So down the rabbit hole I went and started sketching ideas to maybe use later.
Judy Larson's Lemons to Lemonade - , Wire Jewelry Design, Cutting, Cutting Tool, Cutters, Filing, Finishing, Texturing, Butane Torch, Soldering, Solder, Design, lemons to lemonade
Judy Larson's Lemons to Lemonade - , Wire Jewelry Design, Cutting, Cutting Tool, Cutters, Filing, Finishing, Texturing, Butane Torch, Soldering, Solder, Design, lemons to lemonade
Finally, I made it back to the problem at hand. I decided to make open "triangles" with each of the pieces. So, another template was made. An ultra fine point Sharpie marker was used to transfer the interior lines onto each shape.
Judy Larson's Lemons to Lemonade - , Wire Jewelry Design, Cutting, Cutting Tool, Cutters, Filing, Finishing, Texturing, Butane Torch, Soldering, Solder, Design, lemons to lemonade
Judy Larson's Lemons to Lemonade - , Wire Jewelry Design, Cutting, Cutting Tool, Cutters, Filing, Finishing, Texturing, Butane Torch, Soldering, Solder, Design, lemons to lemonade
I really wanted to use the parts that needed to be cut from the interior of each piece. I used my disc cutter hole punches to find largest size that could be cut inside each of the pieces. It was hard to center the piece in the disc cutter. Using the tip of a solder pick to move the piece into place helped.
Judy Larson's Lemons to Lemonade - , Wire Jewelry Design, Cutting, Cutting Tool, Cutters, Filing, Finishing, Texturing, Butane Torch, Soldering, Solder, Design, lemons to lemonade
Judy Larson's Lemons to Lemonade - , Wire Jewelry Design, Cutting, Cutting Tool, Cutters, Filing, Finishing, Texturing, Butane Torch, Soldering, Solder, Design, lemons to lemonade
Judy Larson's Lemons to Lemonade - , Wire Jewelry Design, Cutting, Cutting Tool, Cutters, Filing, Finishing, Texturing, Butane Torch, Soldering, Solder, Design, lemons to lemonade
After the discs were cut, the excess metal was sawn away. I decided that an extra plain disc in a size between the two cut ones would look nice. Holes attaching ear wires and jump rings were punched in all the pieces. All the edges were smoothed and finished.
Judy Larson's Lemons to Lemonade - , Wire Jewelry Design, Cutting, Cutting Tool, Cutters, Filing, Finishing, Texturing, Butane Torch, Soldering, Solder, Design, lemons to lemonade
Judy Larson's Lemons to Lemonade - , Wire Jewelry Design, Cutting, Cutting Tool, Cutters, Filing, Finishing, Texturing, Butane Torch, Soldering, Solder, Design, lemons to lemonade
The pieces still lacked a bit of pizazz. They were all domed texture side down in a wood dapping block to protect the texture. After tumbling, the pieces were ready to be made into earrings. The one pair of LEMON earrings turned into components for three pairs of LEMONADE earrings-to me that is a WIN! Now back to that cute fish!
Judy Larson's Lemons to Lemonade - , Wire Jewelry Design, Cutting, Cutting Tool, Cutters, Filing, Finishing, Texturing, Butane Torch, Soldering, Solder, Design, lemons to lemonade
Judy Larson's Lemons to Lemonade - , Wire Jewelry Design, Cutting, Cutting Tool, Cutters, Filing, Finishing, Texturing, Butane Torch, Soldering, Solder, Design, lemons to lemonade
The template used for the components is marked in ΒΌ" increments. Enlarge or reduce to the desired size.
Judy Larson's Lemons to Lemonade - , Wire Jewelry Design, Cutting, Cutting Tool, Cutters, Filing, Finishing, Texturing, Butane Torch, Soldering, Solder, Design, lemons to lemonade

Materials

22 Gauge Dead Soft Fine Silver Sheet - 6 Inches
H9-22SM6
  • Lesson Quantity: 1.00 pieces
  • Purchase Quantity: 1.00 1 Inch
  • Price: $39.45
  • Gold Club Price: $29.58
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Tools

Small Disc Cutter, 7 Pieces
DAP-400.10
  • DAP-400.10
  • Lesson Quantity: 1.00 pieces
  • Purchase Quantity: 1.00 each
  • Price: $46.95
  • Gold Club Price: $35.21
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Wood Dapping Block with 2 Punches
DAP-128.00
  • DAP-128.00
  • Lesson Quantity: 1.00 pieces
  • Purchase Quantity: 1.00 each
  • Price: $6.97
  • Gold Club Price: $5.23
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French Shears, Straight, 7 Inch
SHR-530.00
  • SHR-530.00
  • Lesson Quantity: 1.00 pieces
  • Purchase Quantity: 1.00 each
  • Price: $17.44
  • Gold Club Price: $13.08
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7 Piece Mini TruStrike Hammer Set with Stand
HAM-520.70
  • HAM-520.70
  • Lesson Quantity: 1.00 pieces
  • Purchase Quantity: 1.00 each
  • Price: $140.54
  • Gold Club Price: $105.40
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Blazer Big Buddy Turbo Torch, Black
TRCH-8010
  • TRCH-8010
  • Lesson Quantity: 1.00 pieces
  • Purchase Quantity: 1.00 each
  • Price: $40.00
  • Gold Club Price: $30.00
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  • Category: Design
  • Technique(s): Cutting, Filing / Finishing, Texturing, Butane Torch Techniques, Design