Jewelry with content: "Sprout" celebrates new beginnings
I have been working with my newest collection "Sprout" for a while. It is based on the notion of a seed on the brink of bursting and letting out the already juicy and impatiently waiting sprout. The amulet symbolizes a future promise of becoming something great! Be it a new job, new year, new relationship or a new life forming inside the belly of a lucky woman...
The original version, which I still sell in my shop, was very simple and just tied into a lace of leather. However lately, I have transformed it into a collection of unisex pieces, featuring necklaces in 3 different sizes (2,6 cm, 2,2 cm and 1,5 cm) hung from a bail as well as bracelets. The large Sprout is a bold statement piece, mostly meant for men, while the middle size suits men as well as women. Both are held in place around the neck with a sturdy leather cord (smooth or braided) with a beautifully flowing S-hook to lock it into place. The smallest version however, is much more delicate ornament, and hence hangs by a slender silver chain.
The bracelet is based on the medium size and like the two larger necklaces fastened to the arm by a smooth or braided leather cord. Find this new collection of hope talismans at my homepage
Sprout necklace medium pendant, with smooth leather cord
1200 kr.
Wednesday, August 22, 2012
Oh the arts...
Artists create all sorts of art: paintings, sculpture, literature, jewelry and… music. Inspired by recent musical encounters, this issue is dedicated to thoughts on being an artist and especially how music and jewelry creators have certain traits in common
“I create, therefore I am” Michelangelo said, and I think this is true for every person who is creating any kind of art. Most of us aren’t famous and wealthy, and would probably do a lot better financially if we were doing other kinds of jobs, but I daresay, that any person who is doing art in any shape or form “for a living” is doing so, because he or she just can’t NOT do it. It’s a strange urge that drives us into constant refinement and exploration of our respective fields and when we manage to achieve something close to what we consider perfection, all is well – the heavens open, the angels sing, we smile and are calm, energized and happy.
At least that’s how it works for me, but I have been wondering lately, if that is the case for all artists. I know, that I create the best pieces when I am happy and feel good – often they come to me in the morning, just after waking up. Something I have seen in the days before that particular night has apparently crystalized into a new and very much Karin shape. See an example of that process here :
Others, however, use their pain and frustration as fuel for creation. The philosopher (okay, now I am taking the notion “art” onto another level completely) Kierkegaard said: “What is a poet? An unhappy person who conceals profound anguish in his heart but whose lips are so formed that as sighs and cries pass over them they sound like beautiful music. People crowd around and say to him, "Sing again soon"- in other words, may new sufferings torture your soul.”While I understand the urge to create when being unhappy – freeing yourself or at least making some sense of your misery by expressing it - I am however unable to work like that myself, though it would be terribly bohemian, wouldn’t it?
Jewelry inspired by elven harp music
I call this issue the musical issue, because I have lately been very inspired by music when creating my own art. As you might have noticed, I was so fortunate as to host a small concert with the brilliant harp player Kim Skovby in my gallery at midsummer. If you weren’t able to join, here is a video:
The upcoming of this event spurred me into creating four pendants and a ring, all featuring the cool and opaque green chrysiophrase:
The harp pendant inspired by the shape of the Irish harp. I love both the shape and the sound of this instrument, and created my own silver version with a small chrysioprase and – of cause – strings of gold. 3100 kr.
The Lyra ring inspired by the ancient harp of antiquity. This symmetrical harp is naturally lending its shape to my love for curls. A large oval chrysiophrase is featured as the centerpiece, while small golden balls dance non-symmetrically along the lines of the instrument. As an extra little treat, I have cut out a tiny artwork at the back, which will become the personal secret of the future bearer. 2800 kr
The G-notes inspired pendants are right up my alley: elegant and curly shapes created with wire. All are adorned with small chrysioprazes and the smallest with happy golden balls. This will look good on a shorter chain, while the two larger ones I think are best on 70-80 cm chains. 2800 kr - 1400 for the larger ones made of only silver
By the way: Kim will be performing at the gallery again later this year. We are fondly playing with the idea of a Tolkien inspired concert leading up to the launch of the new Hobbit movies this winter. I’ll keep you informed on the exact date as we get closer!
Your gift to me as an artist
Kims lovely and calm music in the somewhat private setting of my gallery was a complete contrast to “Kløften Festival” – a music festival in my hometown Haderslev in Southern Jutland. I haven’t attended this festival for 20 years and it was definitely a very interesting trip down memory lane when I finally joined the fun this summer.
However, unlike previous concert experiences, this time I found myself identifying with the performing artists on stage. Our media is different for sure, but as I watched the small and still rather unknown indie/rock band Öberg on one of the smaller stages, it occurred to me, that both of us strive for perfection. What I also realized was, that while we are totally engulfed in each our art, being absolute experts on it, we will probably never be completely satisfied with what we create. I listened to a band, which I judged very professional and talented, but I am sure, that they themselves constantly heard each other play a chord slightly off or being just not quite on track with the others.
In the same way I am almost never 100% satisfied with my pieces and always find some larger or smaller fault. I have accepted that most of my customers will never see these “flaws” or just perceive them as a part of a perfect whole and that, in fact, is a gift from you to me:
Just like I was able to enjoy the concerts by the many musicians at the festival, thereby telling them, that their work is great and seems like a perfect work of art to me, you are able to see and appreciate the whole of my pieces and not the tiny details that I, as a somewhat nerdy professional tend to obsess about.
My work looks perfect as it is mirrored in the eyes of you, my wonderful customers.
My jewelry is very much inspired by fairytales – or at least looks like it could have emerged from one. Once in a while I like to create something which refers directly to a specific fairytale. I have made a Snow Queen brooch and a Rapunzel full – body adornment and now I felt like paying homage to the Little Mermaid, another story by the Danish author Hans Christian Andersen, which he wrote in 1836.
Actually I have been dreaming about creating this necklace for the last two years, when I happened upon a lovely facet cut aquamarine heart. I have made countless sketches, which I have abandoned again, because they just didn’t work.
And so I went back to square one and started pondering on the story: What was it that happened in the end? The text says, that as the little Mermaid dies, her body dissolves into foam, but instead of ceasing to exist, she feels the warmth of the sun; she has turned into a spirit, a daughter of the air. The other daughters of the air tell her she has become like them because she strove with all her heart to gain an eternal soul. Especially since she refused to kill the prince in order to regain her fish tail. Now she will earn her own soul by doing good deeds for 300 years; for each good child she found, she would obtain one year less while, for each bad child, she would cry, and each tear would mean one month more and she will eventually become an angel.
Well, I would like to believe, that the physical heart of this tragic figure, which so valiantly dies for love, petrifies into an aquamarine during this cleansing process. This beautiful facet cut stone eventually washes ashore to be found amidst the glittering seaweed on the beach.
Right. Seaweed. That’s some black stuff that smells bad when it dries up, but while still fresh it is actually rather soft and glittering from the water.
I chose to do a combination and went for a design made of two layers of seaweed cut from a sheet of 1 mm silver, adorned with balls of 14 k gold and 5 diamonds set in some of these balls for glitter. The silver was to be oxidized for contrast. The pearl? Well, it looks pretty and has a natural sea-touch to it, right?
So, here we go:
A sketch, the stone and the outer layer of seaweed. I have already filed the edges of the silver into soft, 3 dimensional shapes to give it the organic grown texture.
Bent together, it already seems to frame the heart beautifully
Then the back layer. I cut out the part of the seaweed which was going to shape the hoop and folded it down over the finished silver part.
Then I started sketching: Where would it be most harmonious to have the back part peeping forth? Balance was very important!
This was the result. No symmetry (I hate symmetry) but balance – absolutely!
The back layer is cut, filed and bent into place. Does it fit? Yes it does!
Now the golden balls. Again: Symmetry is out, but balance paramount.
After setting the heart and the diamonds (a total of 0,09 carat W/VS), I carefully oxidized the piece and attached the pearl. I have to say, it looks fabulous! Not exactly a lightweight piece of jewelry, but oh so sumptuous!
In the gallery I have created this little display for the necklace, explaining it and giving it the perfect backdrop. The blown glass bell gives a lovely rippled effect as the light shines through – just like it would had the sun been shining through shallow water.
On the 23rd of January the Chinese New Year marks the beginning of the year of the dragon. I am not very much into astrology (western or otherwise) myself, but I am very much into dragons, and so I had to check out what this supposedly means – this year of the (water) dragon. Turns out, that I want to believe it this year! And so I have of cause made a special version of my Dragonling pendant with a smooth blue topaz drop.
The Chinese zodiac is divided into 12 animals and each of these animals come in 5 different elements (Read much more about the Chinese Zodiac here)
The last Year of the Dragon, which occurred in 2000, was fraught with fear. There was a lot of hand wringing about the collapse of our technological world, the Y2K bug and other millennial prophecies that turned out to be more hype than bite.
The Year of the Dragon is again just around the corner and fear and trepidation are once more an issue. This time it’s the Mayan Calendar and the alleged 2012 Armageddon prophecy. Is the Chinese Year of the Dragon, which comes around every 12 years, truly something to be feared?
Unlike the wicked, fire-breathing dragons of Western mythology, China’s celestial dragon symbolizes potent and benevolent power. Dragons are ancient, majestic, wise, and intelligent, and Dragon years are considered particularly auspicious for new businesses (hooray! That means my gallery!), marriage and children. Dragon years also tend to boost individual fortunes and the world economy (we surely need that and as I write this, there seems to be a SLIGHT improvement going on. Perhaps the dragon is starting to kick in?)
It’s also true, however, that all five of the Chinese Dragon years — Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal and Water — tend to magnify both success and failure. So while they can mark huge achievement, disasters can be equally immense. The Year of the Fire Dragon (1917, 1976, and 2036) typically wreaks the most havoc.
However, the Year of the Water Dragon (1992, 1952 and 2012) is noted for its calm, visionary intelligence, and balance of right brain creativity with left brain logic.
So, what influence might the Water Dragon, which rules from January 23, 2012 to February 9, 2013, have on the powerful energies already anticipated at that time?
Like all Dragons, the Water Dragon is an innovative, fearless leader. But the Water Dragon is also far more sensitive to others’ needs, and is more likely to be progressive and diplomatic, as well as socially and environmentally conscious (and we surely need that badly too!) Because Water bestows a more peaceful disposition, this Dragon will act wisely and intelligently, and unlike his fellow Dragons, is willing to set aside his ego for the good of all.
This Dragon is a successful negotiator, and while he is adept at marketing, he also knows how to apply force skillfully when necessary. On the down side, the Water Dragon sometimes forgets to build a solid foundation for his grand plans, and he can hold on too long to pet ideas and projects, and thus create a famous Dragon-sized disaster.
If you subscribe to the dawn-of-a-new-era theory of 2012, then it’s easy to see how the influence of the Water Dragon will increase the likelihood of success for progressive movements gaining momentum all across the globe (I am sure the Occupy movement reads this with interest). Energy conservation and green energy-producing technologies, curtailing Global Warming, challenges to multinational corporations, attention to world hunger and the renewed health of the oceans and sea creatures will all likely fare well (more cheering).
If your expectations tend more toward disaster, then you might expect tsunamis, hurricanes, monsoons and other weather extremes to be in the headlines (so we elegantly jump over this prediction).
But of all the Dragon years, the 2012 Water Dragon is most likely to bestow the Chinese Five Blessings of harmony, virtue, riches, fulfillment and longevity, adding even more weight to the growing belief that 2012 will be about breakthroughs, not disasters.
Oh we like this prediction, don’t we? I do – let’s celebrate and keep focus by wearing the dragon! Go get your very own 2012 water dragon and have a stunning 2012!
On Saturday the 14th of January our beloved Queen Margrethe II celebrates her 40th jubilee as a monarch of Denmark. There will be balls, concerts etc and of cause all will be covered extensively by the two national TV stations DR and TV2.
Inspired by this event and the fabulous jewelry of the Russian Zar family, I have created a new tiara. This is my most regal looking so far and I am completely in love with it. I wanted a very crown-like style, though still keeping a certain non-symmetrical look. I created the tiara of almost 2m of 1,5 mm sterling silver wire and adorned it with a large facet cut quartz crystal and 14 smaller white topazes.
This tiara has, together with my small princess crown, been lent to TV2 to be worn by the hostesses throughout their coverage of the events on the 14th of January. So, tune in on Saturday and see some of the Castens tiaras live!
Read more about the royal family and the anniversary here. Psst: 14th of January is my birthday. Funny to have all Denmark celebrate ;-)
How did I create it?
Okay, back to the tiara: I spent my Christmas holidays in Finland at the home of my boyfriends family. When not eating or walking in the snow (yep – we had a white Christmas) I worked on my newest tiara design. I wanted the look of the regal tiaras, which, as I learned from the program on the Russian splendors, is based on a traditional Russian adornment for women: the kokoshnik. Take a look at these pictures of royal kokoshnik style tiaras to get a drift of what I wanted to accomplish (though with substantially fewer stones).
My technique to get the right dimensions was to work with paper models. Actually it took me quite a while to reach the right shape and size, cutting, testing and cutting again. My Finnish family watched in wonder ;-) Finally I was ready to create the design itself and I drew quite a few versions
Eventually I chose this one over the others. It's not symmetrical, not too high on the head and has a nice even distribution of stones. I was still unsure about all the balls, but I knew that this was the basic shape I wanted. Then I started testing with stones and ended up using mostly white topazes. I wanted a large white topaz at the center too, but couldn't get my hands on one large enough right now and hence settled for a quartz crystal.
Okay, off we go shaping all the swirls and waves of 1,5 mm silver wire. It took quite a while and I have to admit: my fingers were quite sore once I was done!
As allways, I wanted to hammer part of the swirls in order to get that whiplash effect. Here I have marked the areas to hammer with a black marker.
Chiming on the amboss is over and now the tricky part: soldering. A tiara is large and hence I have to heat everything which requires a big flame. But the hammered details are much thinner than the rest and risk melting if I'm not careful.
Eventually I managed to do the entire soldering in only 3 go’s, making disaster much less likely during the process
I decided not to add all the balls – maybe in a later design, but this one I wanted simple.
I had a little space issue: my pickle pot it too small! I need a bigger one, most definitely!
Right, all the soldering is done and initial renovation too. Now of for setting the stones.
After a last finish this is the end result. I am quite satisfied I have to say and hope, someone will wear this tiara with joy! See more pictures of the Zarina tiara at my homepage
I have a wild imagination when creating jewelry. I love curvy and romantic shapes and sometimes, sheet and wire just doesn't cut it as a medium. If I for instance want to create a little dragon, I need true 3D and the only way to get that is through casting.
You can cast in a number of ways, for instance sand casting, which I often use as a quick solution. However, noting beats ”cire perdue” or ”lost wax” casting when it comes to 3 dimensionality. And that requires really large and expensive equipment in your workshop or help from professional casters. Luckily I have the latter and so in august I threw myself into creating the ”Dragonling” plus a number of other elements I had wanted for a long time.
So, in order to end up with a lovely piece of jewelry, I started with wax. Very hard, non-yielding wax, which can be cut into very thin and delicate shapes. I had been working with it before, but on a much smaller scale. Now I got ambitious. I wanted a whole collection of leaves and flowers to play with, some settings for drops and of cause the little dragon I had been dreaming about for over one year.
When you work with wax you become a true sculptor. This is the same process Michelanngelo uses when he starts with a piece of marble, knowing that inside of it the perfect David is hiding.
So here is an example of my process: I wanted to create a pendant featuring large drops of stone or pearl and hence needed the settings for the drops. Therefore I started out by carving the seat for the stone intended to go there – in this case a drop-shaped and very lovely amethyst. I use my trusted Foredom flex shaft motor (yep, this is basically the drill they use at the dentist. The sound is also the same ;-)
Then I roughly cut the shape I wanted for the setting and sat back, turning it between my fingers. Was this right? Was this what I wanted? Maybe a tad deeper here and this one a bit to the left?
Slowly I worked through the various stages, constantly refining the shape...
Until I used a scraper (how very non-power-toolish in the old school and very nice way) to shape and smooth the surface until I was satisfied. This will do – for now.
Same drill with the Dragonling, the flowers and leaves. In the end I had a nice collection of stuff to be cast and hence collected the various elements on branches for the caster to work with. Here are some of them:
So, what happens at the caster? Well, he glues the branches onto a stem of wax together with other items to be cast, thereby creating a whole tree. The tree is fixed to a rubber base and after finishing, a iron tube is slipped over the whole thing, resting on the base. Then he fills the tube with plaster and puts it into a vacuum in order to remove any bubbles (which would create some very unfortunate shapes on the finished casts).
When the cast has cured and dried, it is put into an oven where it is heated up to a very high degree – melting the wax out of the tube. Now the wax is truly ”lost”. In the meantime, he starts up the centrifugal casting machine by melting the metal needed. In this case silver. At the right moment, when all has the right temperature, he inserts the very hot tube into the machine and starts it. Automatically it shoots the liquid metal into the tube, pushing it into all the nooks and crannies.
When I receive the casts they look dull and almost white. Nothing resembling the shiny silver to eventually come out of this.
Now, this is when I could just cut out the pieces and use them. They would be true one-of-a-kind items. However, I wanted more – I wanted to be able to use the same shape in a number of different ways and so I had to have replicas made. Oh dear... the process isn't over yet – at all!
Back at my bench, I shaped (some were a tad too thick) and renovated everything as well as possible. Renovating means smoothing and shaping it into how exactly I wanted it to look in future – all of the future copies that is, because whatever flaw will be on that ONE little flower, will be replicated at all the following copies. Hence being really anal about your finishing process is due!
Then they were all put together in new branches. Flowers on one branch, leaves on another, drop bezels on a third and dragons on the side.
Off to the caster again to have made rubber moulds. Why rubber? Doesn’t silver melt rubber? Yes it does and no, silver is therefore not cast into these molds. Wax is. So, out of these moulds I had 10 wax copies made, each featuring one of each flower, leaf etc.
Back to my work bench. Now I took all the branches apart and reassembled them into branches featuring identical wax flowers.
And off to the caster for the 3rd time.
One week later I had silver versions of the branches with all the identical flowers etc. Why that many identical ones? Partly because it is a way to produce several of your favorite pieces, enabling more than one to get it, partly because I will use these as part elements in jewelry. These will still be one of a kind, just with lovely, 3D flowers for instance.
So, one final renovation and then off to the caster for the 4th and last time in order to have moulds made of each of the branches and cast silver versions of them.
Here we are: several months of work has finally paid off and I feel like a dragon on its treasure. Mine! All miiiiine! Now off to play with it. Here are some of the finished pieces that have come from this batch and I am nowhere near done!
This amethyst pendant is the result of the carving process pictured in the beginning of the article. Purchase this amethyst art nouveau drop necklace at Etsy.
Here is a version in pure, polished silver with a black onyx drop.
Once again, the slender version now with an opaque purple heterosite.
Here is the chubby version of the drop necklace with a matte surface, gildet with 18 carat gold and holding a pearl
Most of the casts can be used as part elements. I have as a starter created 8 different rings with flowers.
There could be many more variations. For instance with bigger stones in the middle, cast in gold or just combined differently. This is where your imagination kicks in: What would you like? What combination and colors would make your heart go boom?
Its november and the last stubborn leaves desperately cling to the trees here in Copenhagen. Their light and golden colors serve as quite a contrast to the gray surroundings. We love the color GOLD...
In Latin, gold is called Aurum –what a beautiful name! We like gold jewelry, as gold is aesthetically beautiful – but also because gold symbolizes wealth. In the Danish Welfare Society it is not crucial to have a lot of gold, however, in India it is. Actually it’s estimated that around 25 % of all the gold ever extracted from the entire planet is currently held in India. “More is more” seems to be the parole – which is also the case in this overwhelming (and quite representative for the taste) commercial:
In Scandinavia, we seem to prefer silver over gold. Nordic women like this metal, because it seems to fit their light skin tone better. I, myself, often wear silver – but I do love the glow of gold, too. Therefore I often add gold elements to my silver jewelry. The two metals – especially if the silver has been oxidized – in my opinion compliment each other beautifully. However, I make gold jewelry as well. How about these little beauties:
14 k gold in the shape of a slender, culy ring with a champagne colourd diamond. Find this curly gold ring at Etsy at 650$
Delicate earrings made of 14 k gold. Find these golden curly hoops and their exchangeable pendants at Etsy at 210$
Sumptuous and very romantic 14 k gold ring with Wesselton diamonds. Etsy holds this feminine gold ring too at 1152$
So what’s this “carat” exactly about?
Gold is usually not just gold, but alloyed with a number of other metals. Carat tells you how much of the metal at hand is actually gold. There are several reasons as to why gold is not completely pure. First, it is expensive; to lower the price, the gold is diluted with other metals. Second, pure 24 carat gold is really soft – and must thus be extremely thick to keep its shape. When mixing gold with other metals the gold gets harder (and also harder to work with) than silver.
If you own a piece of gold jewelry, take a close look at it. It will have a stamp inside – if not, it is not gold. It is stamped with a number, often 750, 585 or 333.
Custom made engagement rings made of hammered silver and polished 14 k rose gold
This indicates the purity of the gold:
• Pure 24 carat gold contains 1000 BAC gold
• In 18 carat gold, 750 units of the 1000 are gold – approx. 2/3
• In 14 carat gold, 585 of the 1000 are gold – approx. ½
• In 8 carat gold, 333 of the 1000 is gold – and thus only a third of this metal is pure gold
Not just yellow!
How do you dilute gold to a cheaper and harder metal, while keeping its golden color? Most typically copper and silver is used as alloy metals. Copper adds a warm and red color to the gold – and silver ensures that it does not get too red. Copper is actually quite hard compared to gold and silver and thus the gold gets harder the more copper you add to it.
You might have figured out by now that red gold or rosé gold is made by alloying gold with (almost) clean copper. This creates a pretty rose color and is really hard, which has caused a lot of swearing in the workshop, whenever I used red gold for my jewelry. Yet, the end result is quite enchanting and beautiful.
When mixing gold and silver it gets a green nuance. I have not been working with “green” gold yet – however, I will do one day, as green is my favorite color.
White gold is alloyed with palladium and silver. In the USA, nickel is often used. In Europe this is prohibited because it tends to provoke a bad rash, so keep this in mind if you buy white gold in USA. By the way, white gold is not as fine and light (almost looking like po-lished silver), as you might think. Appearances can be deceptive, as white gold – unless it is a very expensive alloy – almost has the same light gray color as a deer. As such a delicious and luxurious color that goes well with diamonds – however, a lot of people prefer the completely white look.
So what to do in order to get the light color? You cover the white gold with a layer of the extremely expensive but also very hard metal rhodium. Such a rhodium plating is very durable on necklaces and earrings. However, when it comes to rings, it will eventually be worn off. That is why many who have bought e.g. white gold wedding rings will find that they look darker and matte after a couple of years. In order to make your rings look new, take then to your goldsmith and have them rhodium plated once again (I offer this service, and it costs some hundred DKK each time).
The Infamous Blue Stamp
In Denmark, as in most of the world, gold and other precious metals MUST be stamped. It is simply illegal to sell it without a stamp. This way the industry attempts to avoid fraud. To produce and sell gold, you have to have a name stamp – mine is CAS – and in order to get such a name stamp, you are to be signed up at the FORCE Institute.
Friendly representatives from the FORCE Institute regularly and unannounced visit goldsmiths to test if they abide by the rules. If your alloys turn out to contain less gold or silver than you stamp it, it is a very serious matter and in the worst case scenario you might end up in prison. Hence, as goldsmiths we make very sure to stamp our jewelry with name and correct carat.
How Expensive is Gold exactly?
Gold is expensive, that is a matter of fact, but to put it into perspective, I can tell you that 14 carat gold is roughly twenty times as expensive as silver. These gold prices are ever changing in relation to the World Market and the world situation.
In earlier days, gold provided a guarantee for the value of money – and theoretically it still does. One assumes that 50 % of the gold in the world is used for jewelry, 40 % for in-vestments (this gold you find in gold bars stacked around the world in national banks) and 10 % for the industries. At the moment, gold is very expensive. As a consequence of the recession, people place their money in “safe” values instead of “unsafe” shares. People trust in gold and therefore the price of gold has risen since 2008. In September this year, the gold prices reached their all time high.
Why does a PC want gold?
We like gold in the shape of jewelry – and due to aesthetic reasons. However, what makes gold special is its ability to effectively lead heat and electricity and not corrode. Gold simply does not change. Even after thousands of years, it still shines as beautifully as the day it was forged into a piece of jewelry.
Imagine archaeologist Howard Carter’s reaction in 1922, when he pushed a candle through a narrow opening in a sealed door, and here found Tutankhamon’s golden treasures in the scorching Valley of the Kings in Egypt.
Carter fell completely silent at the sight of the golden surfaces lit up by the candle in his hand. The treasures had remained there for over 3000 years, before Carter found them, and yet glittered like they had just left the hands of gifted goldsmiths. When the people behind him impatiently asked him what he saw, he answered: “I see wonderful things.”
Because gold has this ability to stay completely clean, as well as being a superior conductor, it is often used for surfaces and cables in the electronic industry.
A Dirty Affair
Unlike lead, gold is not toxic. Unfortunately one of the most common ways to mine gold is very toxic. A lot of goldmines extract gold from rocks by crushing the rocks and rinsing them with cyanide. The cyanide dissolves the gold, which is thus extracted by this toxic fluid.
The process and the ways in which the toxic waste is handled obviously is extremely taxing on the environment and the people, who work in this industry. If you want to know more about this part of the gold industry, follow this link
Recycled Gold
Considering the above, buying gold has suddenly lost a bit of its shine. Luckily, you do not have to wear gold from such mines. There are, in fact, other more sufficient and sustainable ways to extract gold – and gold that is already extracted can be recycled again and again.
When a goldsmith works, waste is created – often in the shape of little pieces of metal that has been filed off from a larger piece of gold. These scrap pieces are then sent off for refinement, where its rinsed, melted and recast, to be sold again to me at my providers.
However, I never send off my gold for refinement, since I always reuse my scrap gold for new jewelry. Likewise, if you have gold that you want transformed into new jewelry, I can create a brand new piece from your old gold. I either cast the shape directly in sand, or else in a thick sheet or stick that I mill thinner or pull down in order to create wire.
It aint all gold that shines...
Sometimes it is too expensive to have a piece of jewelry made of pure gold. Fortunately, there are other methods to obtain the beautiful and warm look of gold. You can for instance electroplate your jewelry with a thin layer of gold. However, eventually this layer – especially when it comes to rings – will wear off. The process can then be repeated as long as the piece does not feature delicate stones such as opals, pearls, corals etc.
You can also gild jewelry by using a technique called keum-boo, where you merge gold foil onto the jewelry and a while ago, I tried this technique with a very good result. Furthermore, there is also gold leaf – the thinnest and finest material after silk thread.
To illustrate just HOW thin it is: If you take a little piece of gold with a diameter of 5 mm and hammer it until it gets flat, it will measure 0,5 square feet. It is so lightweight that you have to turn your head when exhaling in order not to blow it away.
By the way - It is said that the rich Shoguns of ancient Japan sometimes committed suicide by inhaling gold leaf. The gold leaf covered the insides of the lounges strangling the person from within. Well THAT is a stylish way to end your life, if you have set your mind to so!
Now you are a lot wiser about gold or aurum - number 79 of the Periodic System… For the geeky reader of this newsletter, you can read more on gold and its physical and chemical properties and also its significance for the world economy here.
If you are more interested in the jewelry, come see other pieces in the gallery – not least of Signe Njust, who is our resident gold expert.
