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Engineering and Fabricating Wire Settings and Captures
In this demo-focused virtual workshop, students will be challenged to think outside the box of traditional stone setting to design and fabricate innovative settings and captures out of wire.
Our class emphasis will focus on basic engineering, problem solving, and measuring, as well as basic and intermediate techniques for fabricating forms in wire. Students will be challenged to problem solve ways in which to set unconventional shapes and/or traditional shapes in unconventional ways. Bringing specific objects to be considered during the brainstorming session at the end of demos is encouraged.
This is the first in a two part series Engineering Wire Settings and Captures 2.0, which is being offered in November, will take knowledge of wire fabrication one step further with an introductions to more complicated design and fabrication problems in wire.
Meet the instructor
Taylor Fentz is an artist and metalsmith inspired by the nature of perception; how it is formed and experienced. She has over 12 years of experience in fine metalsmithing, but considers herself largely mixed media.Taylor completed a studio residency at Contemporary Craft (formerly the Society for Contemporary Craft) before spending a year developing a line of art jewelry lockets. She currently teaches Fine Art and Metalsmithing at Ball State University part-time while continuing her thesis work.
Materials & Tools
The following supplies will be used for course demonstrations and objectives. A suggested item and/or vendor has been provided below for reference. Click the vendor name to be redirected to a page where you can view the item. The quantities needed for each item are listed first. If ordering, please be aware that some items may come in larger quantities than needed for this class. We recommend not opening an item's packaging until the day of the workshop. Student participation during or in-between class sessions is not required - observers are welcome.
Metal/raw materials (note that multiple sizes of wire can be used for the entrapment techniques covered in this class - choose the size you prefer):
- 5ft. approx. x sterling silver round wire - 20g to 16g (Rio Grande)
- 5ft. approx. x sterling silver square wire - 20g to 16g (Rio Grande)
- 1 pack x double sided separating disks (Rio Grande)
- 1 pack x fiber wheels - course, medium, fine (Rio Grande)
- 1 pack x snap on sanding disks (Rio Grande)
- 1 pack x snap on mandrel (Rio Grande)
- 1 pack x silicone polishing wheels - course to fine (Rio Grande)
- 1 pack x cup burs - size appropriate for your wire gauge
Hand tools:
- 1 x round nose pliers (Rio Grande)
- 1 x chain nose pliers (Rio Grande)
- 1 x flat nose pliers (Rio Grande)
- 1 x snips / flush cutters (Rio Grande)
- 1 x jewelers saw (Rio Grande)
- 1 x pack saw blades - 2/0 (Rio Grande)
- 1 x burlife / bee's wax (Rio Grande)
- 1 x bench pin (Rio Grande)
- 1 x half round hand file - #2 cut (Rio Grande)
- 1 x rotary tool - flex shaft, micro motor, etc. (Rio Grande)
- 1 x set of needle files - #2 cut (Rio Grande)
- 1 x center punch (Rio Grande)
- 1 x scribe (Rio Grande)
- 1 x rawhide / plastic mallet (Rio Grande)
- 1 x steel block / steel surface (Rio Grande)
- 1 x small steel ruler (Rio Grande)
- 1 x sheet of sand paper - 220 to 600 grits (Rio Grande)
- 1 x calipers (Rio Grande)
- 1 x dividers (Rio Grande)
- 1 x parallel pliers (Rio Grande)
- 1 x planishing hammer (Rio Grande)
- 1 x ring mandrel (Rio Grande)
- 1 x bezel mandrel - 1mm to 5mm (Rio Grande)
- 1 x dapping set - steel or wood (Rio Grande or Rio Grande)
- 1 x miter cutting vise (Rio Grande)
Torch setup:
- 1 x fireproof area - steel sheet, tiles, etc. (Amazon or Home Depot)
- 1 x torch - micro-mini oxy/acetylene with #3-#7 tips (Rio Grande)
- 1 x striker or lighter - Silversmith system has one (Rio Grande)
- 1 x soldering tweezers (Rio Grande)
- 1 x soldering pick (Rio Grande)
- 1 x 3rd arm (Rio Grande)
- 1 x cross lock tweezers (Rio Grande)
- 1 x paste flux (Rio Grande)
- 1 x copper tongs - for pickle (Rio Grande)
- 1 x 6” silver solder - hard (Rio Grande)
- 1 x 6” silver solder - medium (Rio Grande)
- 1 x 6” silver solder - easy (Rio Grande)
- 1 x tinted soldering glasses (Rio Grande)
- 1 x pickle - sodium bisulfate or citric acid (Rio Grande or Amazon)
- 1 x crock pot or lidded glass container (Rio Grande or Amazon)
- 1 x tempered glass container or sink - for quenching and rinsing
- 1 x small brush - for flux
- 1 x liquid hand soap - for cleaning metal
Other/miscellaneous items:
- particulate dust mask
- eye protection
- fan / open window, ventilation, or outside
- pencil, pen, paper
- masking tape