Bead Table Wednesday--Fold Forming

If you look at Monday's post you'll see my review of Kim St. Jean's DVD--Metal Fold Forming.  Here's my first fold formed cuff made using her tutorial:





After the first dip in the liver of sulphur the cuff came out a mauve-taupe-gray.  I stopped there.  Usually I go darker but this color matches a lot of clothes I have. I used a 3600 grit sanding sponge to hit the highlights. It will finish up in the tumbler a few more minutes for a little extra polish and hardening, then I'm coating it with ProtectaClear to keep the finish just like it is. 


The two etched brass sheets in the background are my other items on the bead table this week.  I etched them a while back, along with a third piece, then annealed them. They came out with large pink splotches from the torch. This is because the heat caused the copper in the brass to come to the surface. After a lot of elbow grease and tedious time with steel wool I got one sheet clean.  I put the others away until I had more time--and fortitude--to clean them.  


Recently I stumbled across a recipe on the net for cleaning the pink off brass. It's 3 parts white vinegar and 2 parts hydrogen peroxide. I used the grocery store versions and it worked like a charm.  No more pink and very little elbow grease! If you do this don't go off and leave your metal in the solution.  It takes just a few minutes and then you should remove the items.  I rinsed them well and put them in a baking soda wash also. It is not safe to store this in a closed container so dispose of it immediately. One report said it could explode.  Maybe they were talking about industrial strength versions but I'm not sure. 


Here's what the cuff looked like before antiquing:





I like the bright look as well.  This is after steel wool and 30 minutes in the tumbler.  I will probably do a couple of cuffs and keep them bright as well a some antiqued ones.


This was so much fun.  I plan to do some more fold forming.  Tonight.


Don't forget to check out the other Bead Table Wednesday photos and blog posts.