Tuesday, May 1, 2012

Rainbow heart charm bracelet anodized aluminum with adjustable silver chain

This cute, little bracelet took sooo long to make. Working with anodized aluminum is fun, but actually constructing the pieces is very time consuming.

Perhaps it would help if I had proper tools. For the past few weeks, I've been using a center punch (a took that you punch to make a little dent, marking where you'll drill) AS a drill. It worked... for the most part, though I'd have to punch about a million times to carve a hole through copper and silver. Punching through the aluminum was easier, but still took quite a bit of effort.

Then today my punch broke. I'd noticed that it was getting less, well, "punchy" so I took it apart to see if I could fix the spring ... and everything fell out. Once I put it back together, it was no longer doing its job. But it wasn't me, I swear! I think it just got worn down since I was overusing and misusing it.

I managed to finish my heart bracelet by hammering a sharp file into the metal to create the hole, but that's not really the way to do it either. So I ordered a little hand drill and we'll see how that works out. I'm looking forward to being able to create a hole in a matter of seconds and to not getting my hands blistered while doing so.

Meanwhile, I'm happy that I finished this bracelet. I have an idea for a whole line of colorful bracelets and I'd like to get a bunch finished by this weekend so I have them for the craft fair. I think their rainbow colors wll attract customers -- which is what I want.

I'm becoming such a geek about jewelry tools and supplies. How weird is it that I'm so excited about a DRILL?


To purchase my jewelry, head to Naomi's Designs on Etsy.

2 comments:

  1. I'm not surprised it took you such a long time to make those jewelry pieces. That's because anodized aluminum is harder than most materials. At the very least, you’ve finished your creation, and it turned out just fine. Perhaps you can create another one and add one more piece to make it seven. That would give it a close resemblance to rainbows.


    Paige Low

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  2. That's a great idea -- I think I will try a seventh link the next time around.

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