Two titanium pendants

I carved these a while ago and was waiting to anodise them electronically but decided to use heat instead.

Stuff from instagram

Seems I've posted to instagram what I should have included here as well.

The lighthouse was more to see if I could engrave titanium and how successful the colouring would be.

The two fish were for my mom's birthday, she's a Pisces and goldfish or koi are featured often in sumi-e.

The silver piece is still a work in progress, a slightly deeper relief with no colouring to help define anything. I'm finding this one more difficult, although as I learn more I return to it. Tiaan suggested I use a lightly textured punch on the background to flatten and separate it from the carved flower so the next stage is making a punch.

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Titanium and tagane

It seems titanium is more demanding on the points of the tagane (tagane are the collective name for the types of chisels I am using) I may have to re-heat treat these or find a better material to make them from. The ones I have are high carbon steel but if I want to chisel titanium I may have to get some high speed stainless blanks. Tungsten I think would be too brittle.

Art Deco Haircomb Process

Faced with an Art Deco themed exhibition, I decided to do something which would allow me to try inlay. I thought of a hat pin at first but then found a picture of a hair comb which looked beautiful and which would translate well into the more modern medium of titanium.

I chose to use titanium as it is light which is ideal for something which must stay in the hair. Titanium can also be coloured using heat which would provide the type of contrast to the fine silver inlay I was looking for.

Here is a step by step explanation



design layout and drilled

Most of the piercing done

Piercing complete

Start of the carving, using a carborundum disk

Pattern grooved out and undercut with ball burrs and setters HD burrs

Using masking tape and pencil to transfer the shapes of the voids

One lot in, the next lot cut out and ready inlay

The fine silver piece I cut the small inlays out of

One half done

Completed piece, titanium heat coloured with fine silver inlays