Many of us have a piece of jewelry that has been ‘engraved’. We label wedding rings and class rings with dates, initials and messages to mark special occasions. Many of these are made using a machine tracing a template or programmed to draw the mark. Many jewelry stores use this method.
A rare class of jewelers offer a different kind of engraving – hand engraving. Every cut into the metal is created by hand. Every swirl introduces a piece of the jeweler-artist’s personality to the metal under his or her hands. A hand engraver is painting in metal by removing metal at varying levels in the metal to provide shadows, textures and lines to reflect light to create the desired picture. It takes intensive training and years of practice for a jeweler to develop the specialized skill of engraving.
For a jeweler who offers hand-engraving, engraving is about creating artistic marks rather than just dates and initials – although there is nothing wrong with creating artistic initials! Almost all engraving is performed using gravers held in the hand. These come points of different shapes to provide different affects. Gravers allow the jeweler to dig deeper into the metal as well as vary the angle of the lines he draws. Light reflect off the metal at different angles; it gives each line character.
Engraving can be used to change the appearance of a piece of jewelry you haven’t worn for years. This ring used to have a family crest. The owner wanted something new. Now the top sports the owner’s initials displayed with flair!
And don’t limit your thinking to jewelry! Something as simple as a pocketknife can become spectacular when you personalize it with engraving. Here, a combination of techniques including cutting, shading and an engraved initial so no one can ‘borrow’ it from you!
Many antique lockets and pocket watches were decorated with engraving. The art is rarely taught anymore. Yet, you have found yourself on the website of one of the best engravers in Austin, Tx. See what other hand engraved items Philippe has created by clicking here.
It begins with your idea. This is an example of a custom design created for one of Philippe’s clients who had several stones she wanted to wear in stackable rings. To keep costs low, the final design used 14k gold over sterling silver instead of solid 14k gold. Watch how we do it.
Philippe uses computer-aided design (CAD) to accurately design the rings. Here, three rings are shown together. Philippe can see what all three rings will look like, how they will look when they are stacked together on your finger. This is something that isn’t possible without CAD. CAD also allows Philippe to ‘place’ the stones (here, represented by the blue color) before ever using any sterling silver or gold. If you, the client, wish to make changes, Philippe can make adjustments here, in CAD, before spending money on metal.
Next, the CAD design is milled in wax. The CAD system creates a special file that is read by the mill to accurately cut the wax precisely as designed.
Waxes are sprued in preparation for casting. These sprues will allow the molten metal to flow to the rings during casting. The wax is buried in a special plaster called investment. This investment is dried and heated in a kiln to a very high temperature. When it is at the proper temperature, the wax has melted away leaving a hollow area the shape of the rings. This technique is called lost-wax casting. The molten metal will fill this area to make the rings. It’s time to cast!
Metal is measured based on the amount of wax used. It is melted in special bowls called crucibles using a torch. When the metal reaches the correct temperature, it is slung into the vacancy left in the investment (usually via a centrifugal casting machine). Once it has cooled, the cast piece can be removed from the investment.