Adobe Sol Designs ~ the BLOG ~

A new design… with a Polka Dot Agate cabochon. This stone reminds me of lava flow, under the sea. It is truely a beautiful stone, one that the camera has a hard time showing the real depth of.

I put this stone in a bezel setting with fine silver embellishments. It seemed to go with the “flow” of the percieved lava. This necklace is nice and heavy. Nearly 22 inches in length, patinaed and accented with high quality, very clear quartz crystal.

Now available in my Etsy Shop:

Lava Flow Necklace

Lava Flow Necklace

Back View ~ Lava Flow

Lava Flow Necklace

OMGoshhhhhh I am having so much fun setting some of the most beautiful stones I’ve ever seen. Each and every one of them give me a unique inspiration that I  use to make  one of a kind pieces.

Right now I’m designing a necklace using an Owyhee Jasper cabochon. It is polished on both sides so I’m considering a cutout on the back. It will have flowers… of all sorts! I’ll be blogging it very soon.

Here’s a few pieces I’ve made recently.  Available in my Etsy Shop:

Ocean Jasper, Fine and Sterling Silver

Wild Horse Magnesite, Sterling Silver

Vintage Button, Sterling silver

Carved Bone, Silver

I got some of the most amazing cabochons last week. I purhased them from The Agate Works, an etsy seller who cuts his own cabochons and does a tremendous business on etsy. His work is top notch and you can always count on some really nice and unusual cuts.

One of my favorites is a TeePee Canyon Agate cab with magnificent color. I made a necklace with it and took a few pictures of the work in progress…

 It is currently available for purchase in my etsy Shop.

Here is the first step in the process… After careful measurement and soldering of the bezel, I soldered the bezel to the back plate.

 Next I made  fine silver balls of different sizes and soldered them on the back plate to accent the stone.

Next step… sawing. I wanted the back plate to be winding and non-uniform like the pattern of the stone.

The back…

Soldered on the ring for the toggle closure. I put the stone on top just to check the design.

After completing the toggle, attaching to a double chain and oxidizing, here is the finished necklace:

Notes:

The piece must be pickled after every solder session to remove fire-scale and flux.

Different solders must be used for each solder session so that the previous solder doesn’t run (melt) eg: Hard, Medium, Easy and Very Easy.

The last thing that is done, besides polishing, is setting the stone.

I prefer using sheet solder as opposed to wire solder. With sheet I can cut pallions that lay flat.

I like to solder, for the most part, on a charcoal block as it reflects the heat for a fast and uniforn flow.

Thanks for reading!