Reticulated and Recycled Silver

It's been a while since I played with reticulation silver. Reticulation silver is a combination of sterling and copper so that when you heat the metal, the different melting points of sterling and copper create a tiny network of wrinkles in the surface of the metal. I like to layer the reticulation silver with little melted beads of recycled sterling silver that I heat fuse to the surface.

sterling silver, reticulation silver, blue chalcedony, and patina

I had forgotten how much I like the effect until I recently saw one of my customers wearing this one-of-a-kind ring that I had created for her in 2010. It's actually one of my favorite pieces to date!

Last week, I created a handful of new pendants and earrings using the reticulation technique. Some of the pendants already sold at the Arts Around the Lake show at the University of Richmond last Sunday, but the remainder will be available this weekend at Occasion for the Arts show in Williamsburg, VA.

I hope you can make it to the show!