Earrings Etched Sterling Silver Arrows

Etching is a fun, but time consuming process. You start out with sheet silver. You choose your pattern, and print it on special paper. You burnish the design on to the heated metal and then peel off the paper. The silver sheet is then floated on an acid bath. The exposed metal gets etched with the selected pattern. The metal is neutralized in a bath. The blue paper is scrubbed off with a solvent.

 I used a design from my Japanese pattern book. After sawing both out with a jeweler's saw, the earrings were filed, sanded and the edges were refined till they were smooth. I heated the piece several times to bring the pure silver to the surface. I burnished 24K Gold Foil onto the circle in the center and the lines that formed a cross. This process is called Keum Boo. I painted parts with patina for definition and color.

These earrings are a stunning statement piece.

Dimensions: Diameter 1 and 1/2 inches. Sterling silver ear wires. These can be changed to comfortable sterling silver clip ons for an additional charge.