It's a total fix

I've not made many brooches and the ones I have, have been in copper. I don't even wear brooches that often, although I do find them rather beautiful - and it's a rare type of jewellery that sits on clothing rather than the body.

The brooch that I do wear with any regularity is a gift I received several years ago, an amethyst set in silver. I've worn it on a hat for years now, and it's stayed firm, never coming loose. This summer, when I decided to wash the hat, I naturally removed the brooch. That was fine. When my hat was dry and I went to reattach the brooch... it broke.

Breaking jewellery is not a nice feeling. The pin at the back came away from the main part of the brooch and as I looked down at the two pieces I immediately assumed something had disastrously snapped, delicate and difficult soldering would be needed, I wouldn't be able to protect the amethyst and, essentially, it was game over for my brooch.

When I looked a little closer I saw that the pin, which I'd never thought to examine before, had simply pulled free from the pressure setting it was normally enclosed within. Five minutes with a pair of pliers and the brooch was fixed and I was suitably pleased.

Photographic proof above. Including wonderfully-aged tarnish on the back of the brooch...

Copper wire brooches

As often happens, a birthday crept up on me at short notice (how do they do that?) and I wanted something quick to make and give, that looked good, and was practical.

I called upon my stash of copper wire, much of it still only half-stripped after being pulled from the house during rewiring, and did some hunting in books and much searching on the net for inspiration (as well as some gazing out of the window aimlessly).

I came across the idea of creating a brooch from one piece of wire, no soldering, just some planishing, some filing, and lots of bending. Yippee.

I was not overwhelmed by my first attempt -

But preferred the second brooch I made, finding the catch more organically a part of the design, and the curves more pleasing to the eye.

I got quite a kick out of creating something that, it turns out, is going to be worn on a winter jacket for the next few months, something bold and striking, that took some planning and a bit of strength (wire is always less bendy than you think, especially if you go the wrong way and need to re-bend...), and which made someone smile when they tore off the wrapping paper.

I'm even starting to look forward to winter evenings now, curving that wire and creating bright jewellery.

Copper in Autumn

Last weekend I spent a few hours with a friend in her workshop, tucked away against the chill weather outside, surrounded by silver, copper, polishers, rolling machines, and enough tools to make anyone who makes metal jewellery rather happy.

Copper ring, with a rolled pattern. Like a leopard's spots, or a honeycomb.

We chatted about the price of silver (slightly decreased), the fact I've most definitely missed the final posting date for the Diamond Jubilee hallmark (boo), and that assay offices will now hallmark silver and gold even if they're attached to metals such as copper, something they didn't previously do (interesting).

Another ring through the rolling mill. This time the pattern is more abstract.

We drank a lot of tea, finished off a jar of hot chocolate, and ate too many biscuits and chocolates (very naughty in a workshop, I know).

Oh, and we also made some jewellery.

More roller textured copper, a little crown-like...

Crown-like also, but in a slightly more-committed curvy-way.

Unfortunately, I don't have any photos of the beautiful silver locket my friend finished, nor of the silver and copper owl she was working on, but I have included a few snaps of the four copper rings I made, and of the copper owl I did some work on (and no, we didn't converse beforehand, just coincidentally were both working on owls...), and which may well turn into a brooch. Or a pendant. Hmm...

The two crowns fit together, just, and make a wider ring.

Nothing I started is finished yet, the rings needing some more filing and polishing, and  the owl either needing more work on the detail, or me discarding it as a prototype or experiment.

A brooch in waiting. Or a pendant. Or just a copper owl.

But, still, not a bad way to spend a Saturday in autumn at all.