IMPRESSIONS

Impressions

Chrysocolla & Sterling Silver Ring

This ring is special to me for a lot of reasons.  I was prevailed to be one of the first ‘complex’ metal projects for Step by Step Wire Magazine.   They’re now defunct – I hope it wasn’t me…

Moving on, another reason this is a special ring is the sum of the parts is greater than any individual part.  The chrysocolla is Mexican, the stamps are Navajo, and the silver is, well, silver is fungible, so who knows? While I don’t think this ring shows us we can all get along, even if we come from different places, I do think it shows that life is more interesting when you mix it up a little bit.  But on to impressions.

I love stamping metal. There is something satisfying about getting a good hammer strike on the stamp and leaving a discernable impression in the metal.  When you put a bunch of different stamps together, you can really be creative.  You can get factory-made stamps, or handmade stamps like the ones I used on this ring.

I love the organic feel of the handmade stamps. I’ve made some stamps, and its hard work!  So I really appreciate a good stamp.  Handmade stamps aren’t always exactly perfect, which leaves the observer with the impression that this was made by hand and not mass-produced in some sweat shop.  And I think it’s a big part of their charm.

When you have lots of stamps, you can create all kinds of patterns by mixing and matching, and the piece becomes uniquely you.  There are some tricks to good stamping and it takes practice. I’ve ruined a few pieces by mis-placing the LAST impression.  Why is it always the last one? In spite of that, I think the results are worth the effort.  I get to leave MY impression on a piece of jewelry that will probably out-live me, and I think that’s really cool.

We all leave impressions in our life, on people, places, businesses, etc.  And just like stamping, sometimes we don’t leave good impression.  But we can usually make it right.  So what impressions will you make today? Will you create, tear down,

The Silversmithing Learning Library

The most comprehensive library of jewelry making instruction, education, and classwork... no matter if you're a complete beginner or really advanced.

favicon-removebg-preview

Masterclasses

These masterclasses are filled to the brim with content, leaving no stone unturned. Whatever the subject, you will come out a pro.

favicon-removebg-preview

Skill Set Courses

Looking to learn a specific skill, or want some practice doing projects? Then diving into one of our skill set courses is exactly what will take you to the next level.

favicon-removebg-preview

eBooks

Our ebooks cover a wide range of topics, getting right to the point and giving you exactly what you need in order to advance your skills.

CONTACT DETAILS

info@artistjefffulkerson.com

Chattanooga, TN

Copyright © 2022 Artist Jeff Fulkerson
Web Design by FroBro Web Technologies

info@artistjefffulkerson.com

Chattanooga, TN

Copyright © 2022 Artist Jeff Fulkerson | Web Design by FroBro Web Technologies