Learning how to solder is wonderful!
It opens up a whole new world of jewellery making
and it is something that you can set up easier, and most importantly, safely at home.
In this blog post I'm going to show you my soldering set up in my studio and the equipment I use with my students.
This is my soldering area - a bit bigger than you need, but then remember that I usually have students with me so we need room to move! At most I will have 4 students soldering around the table, with two soldering stations on each side of the table, fewer at any one time if they are beginners. The fifth space at the front of the picture is my space for demonstrating, and I'm the only one soldering then.
It's actually looking quite clean and tidy for it's photoshoot - soldering isn't exactly the cleanest part of making jewellery!
First of all, the table itself. It is important that you solder at a height that allows you to get a good view of your jewellery as it is being soldered without having to hunch over it. Some people like to have a soldering station set up on one side of their jewellery bench and tend to solder while seated. I prefer to keep things a bit more separate and have a table at which I stand. As such, I have a taller, workbench-style table. I've used two of these tables from Ikea as they also provide some nice storage underneath. An upcycled second-hand table or workbench would do the job just as well - just make sure that it is sturdy and of a suitable height.
Let's have a look at just one of the soldering stations and the equipment there
Next up are the tools I use to hold or move my work as I'm soldering
And of course you need something to heat your work with!
The next two pictures shows my soldering materials - flux and solder in various forms
A few more bits and pieces for you:
If you've read through that you might be worrying that it's a lot of equipment,
but do remember that some of it (the solder picks and different soldering surfaces for example) are optional,
and what you do buy will last you for years and be used for many many soldering projects!
Essentially all you need are something fireproof and heatproof to work on, tools to safely move your work, solder, flux, something to melt the solder with and a way of cleaning the silver afterwards.
If you have room for a permanent set up then that's wonderful, but many of my students set up temporary soldering stations in their kitchens.
A baking tray with soldering blocks makes a great soldering area!
I've linked to the main supplier of jewellery equipment that I use here in the UK, Cookson Gold, but have a look at this blog post for more ideas of suppliers in the UK and the US.
Learning to solder silver (and copper and gold!) opens up a whole new exciting world of jewellery making, but sometimes all the different terms can be a bit daunting when you're first getting started!
Read on and I will explain it all!
Start your soldering adventure by learning all you need to make simple hammered rings. Soon you'll be adding stones as well!
Find out how to make beautiful earrings from scrap silver and how to solder stud earring fittings securely in place.
Learn how to turn a length of wire into a beautiful chain bracelet, and practise your soldering at the same time!
And for weekly jewellery making tips and a place to share your work and ask for advice join The Jeweller's Bench Café facebook group!
The Jeweller's Bench is run by Joanne Tinley. She has been making her own jewellery for as long as she can remember and left her first career as a school teacher to set up business as a jewellery designer and tutor nearly 15 years ago. She is self-taught and like many people started with wire and beads. Learning how to solder, however, opened up a whole new world of jewellery making, one that she is keen to share! There is something so magical about watching solder flow through a seam, joining two pieces of metal together smoothly.