Why did the Leprechaun cross the road?
Ok, ok, ok... this one started out with a mistake, my mistake, that left me with some 14k to play with, let set in the safe, or take a loss by exchanging it. I usually don't like 14k, because it is more of a casting metal than a hand fabrication metal. And, because it is only a tad under 60% gold to alloy, it is cheapish, and it is hard as hell to bend and fabricate by hand... and it gets brittle fast. But, it was a beautiful color. Anyways... instead of just tossing the shit into the garbage, I thought that I'd make something for myself.
I had the stummel made for me and sandblasted, and I casted the stem... I have a bunch of really crappy colored stems in the garbage trying to get a half decent swirl... trying to get this one. I stained the stummel in a combinations of stains to get this brown crusty look. I wanted natural colors to go with the gold and silver combo.
I've thought about making the polkadots from a band run off the band and onto the stummel for a while now, but I just didn't have the right pipe for the design. Then after making a few spigots, I thought that tipping it over the top would just what a spigot design would need. So, the band started with a sterling band as the base. The cap and the dots are formed and fabricated 14k sheet that I rolled out to specs. The dots were punched from the sheet by hand using circle cutters. And, I formed them to fit the curve of the band and stummel shank.
The ones that free float below the band have small 99.9% silver tubes in the back. I drilled a tight hole just 3mm into the briar, and put a small sterling spike into the hole, so that when I push the tubed polkadot down onto the shank, it flairs out the tubing, making it a very secure compression fit. I do put a tiny bit of an epoxy in there as just a little extra security. The briar will have to break away to remove the dots. The cap is compression set as well. Glue is very much frowned upon in the bench jeweler world, but when you mix materials like this... it's a small compromise, but I use it very sparingly.
When I was drawing up the plans, I was thinking "bubbly" like champagne, toasts to the better things in life, Gentlemanly effervescence, without the tooty fruity. There was a time when a man wanted a bit of flair, there were only three choices, plaid, stripes, or polka dots. A polka dotted tie, handkerchief, swimming trunks. Not that I am afraid of a tad bit of tooty fruity... it was just a thought. Besides teensy weensy bikinis, polkadots are manly.
Polkadots... planets in space, the atoms of creation, dots of half tone printing, connect the dots... the rising golden bubbles of the grape released from their cork with a pop...
I spend a lot of time looking at and comparing the colors of gold, matching gold alloys to ring colors for repairs, calculating the changes of colors adding a bit of copper, silver, zinc... calculating percentages and karats to keep the ring the same color AND at the same alloy. Math... And, I love the way it reflects colors. This was why I wanted to use a yellow tobacco tin to set the pipe on. Red is also beautifully reflected in gold, but... champagne.
The key to a good spigot pipe is the bond. No one wants their stummel to drop off of the stem as you smoke. The briar holds the metal on the stem, so I played around with making the cap ring thicker, but tapered in to give the illusion of setting into the metal cap.
I test mine by holding the stem and slinging the stummel a few times. If someone is going to do this, I suggest they do it over a bed or pillow, ha ha. Have faith, but have a safety net. But, this one sets tight.
I've also polished up the internals of the stummel and the stem, and I am looking forward to the inaugural bowl in this one.
So, is it over the top? too much? I did contemplate adding a few champagne diamonds to the design... but, I just didn't want diamond bling sparking glittery light as I smoke, ha ha. A ruby or sapphire, sure... just not a diamond.
Anyways... what do you think?
Ok, ok, ok... this one started out with a mistake, my mistake, that left me with some 14k to play with, let set in the safe, or take a loss by exchanging it. I usually don't like 14k, because it is more of a casting metal than a hand fabrication metal. And, because it is only a tad under 60% gold to alloy, it is cheapish, and it is hard as hell to bend and fabricate by hand... and it gets brittle fast. But, it was a beautiful color. Anyways... instead of just tossing the shit into the garbage, I thought that I'd make something for myself.
I had the stummel made for me and sandblasted, and I casted the stem... I have a bunch of really crappy colored stems in the garbage trying to get a half decent swirl... trying to get this one. I stained the stummel in a combinations of stains to get this brown crusty look. I wanted natural colors to go with the gold and silver combo.
I've thought about making the polkadots from a band run off the band and onto the stummel for a while now, but I just didn't have the right pipe for the design. Then after making a few spigots, I thought that tipping it over the top would just what a spigot design would need. So, the band started with a sterling band as the base. The cap and the dots are formed and fabricated 14k sheet that I rolled out to specs. The dots were punched from the sheet by hand using circle cutters. And, I formed them to fit the curve of the band and stummel shank.
The ones that free float below the band have small 99.9% silver tubes in the back. I drilled a tight hole just 3mm into the briar, and put a small sterling spike into the hole, so that when I push the tubed polkadot down onto the shank, it flairs out the tubing, making it a very secure compression fit. I do put a tiny bit of an epoxy in there as just a little extra security. The briar will have to break away to remove the dots. The cap is compression set as well. Glue is very much frowned upon in the bench jeweler world, but when you mix materials like this... it's a small compromise, but I use it very sparingly.
When I was drawing up the plans, I was thinking "bubbly" like champagne, toasts to the better things in life, Gentlemanly effervescence, without the tooty fruity. There was a time when a man wanted a bit of flair, there were only three choices, plaid, stripes, or polka dots. A polka dotted tie, handkerchief, swimming trunks. Not that I am afraid of a tad bit of tooty fruity... it was just a thought. Besides teensy weensy bikinis, polkadots are manly.
Polkadots... planets in space, the atoms of creation, dots of half tone printing, connect the dots... the rising golden bubbles of the grape released from their cork with a pop...
I spend a lot of time looking at and comparing the colors of gold, matching gold alloys to ring colors for repairs, calculating the changes of colors adding a bit of copper, silver, zinc... calculating percentages and karats to keep the ring the same color AND at the same alloy. Math... And, I love the way it reflects colors. This was why I wanted to use a yellow tobacco tin to set the pipe on. Red is also beautifully reflected in gold, but... champagne.
The key to a good spigot pipe is the bond. No one wants their stummel to drop off of the stem as you smoke. The briar holds the metal on the stem, so I played around with making the cap ring thicker, but tapered in to give the illusion of setting into the metal cap.
I test mine by holding the stem and slinging the stummel a few times. If someone is going to do this, I suggest they do it over a bed or pillow, ha ha. Have faith, but have a safety net. But, this one sets tight.
I've also polished up the internals of the stummel and the stem, and I am looking forward to the inaugural bowl in this one.
So, is it over the top? too much? I did contemplate adding a few champagne diamonds to the design... but, I just didn't want diamond bling sparking glittery light as I smoke, ha ha. A ruby or sapphire, sure... just not a diamond.
Anyways... what do you think?
