News and information regarding Hammer & Hand Hobart.

#forged , and  #Fabricated #Mild Steel #StainlessSteel #Sculpture #Metal

This little swallow was carved first in wax.. then a bronze sand cast taken from that .. then made that cast into a master and cast 3 more.. “Oh what FUN! he said, waving his wooden leg” 

The bottom bird of the three is the Wax..the left hand top bird on the brick is the ‘master’ and the other the first cast and there is one in the ‘boxes’ (just poured)

Got the hang of the ‘Tattoo Heart n’ Scroll’ ..

Anchors are somewhat more tricky but with a bit of clean up… (he understates)

I have cast larger bronze pieces in the past using #Lostwax and #SandCasting in #Greensand and after running out of  #Cuttlefish I thought I might look into small scale Jewellery castings in sand… Julian had mentioned a casting system using a product called #Delft Sand but the price of the sand (an Oil sand) is a bit steep for me so I went hunting up some fine sand and Bentonite to make a greensand.

I acquired some fine #Zircon sand and #Bentonite from a ceramic supply place … Mixed it at 5% Bentonite and made a couple of flasks out of square steel tubing.. (Thanks Ben Beames for the method from years ago !)

So I want to make a few Brooches based on classic Tattoo Art and I’v shaped a ‘master’ using “Sculpy” .. a polymer clay ..

Well !! .. Steep learning curve ..Again!.. and the last 3 of 8 attempts have been successful !  The pictures here include a bit of the process.. and the finished brooch will be able to be engraved with a message.. ie:   MOM…. TROO LUV … ROVER… KEVIN… ABBOT .. MURDOCH..????

#Cuttle-fish cast  #Thylacine  #TasmanianTiger / 925 Sterling silver  …

and .. messy Friday bench…

#AnvilBroochesPins

Cut an #anvil master from a piece of 1.6mm mild steel sheet and Cast in silver using #Cuttlefish bone/shell

These will be brooches I think…

Good day in the wkshp discussing conceptual jewellery/sculpture/adornment and straight-up derivative works, motivation/intention and merit/satisfaction … with a bit of quantum physics/beholding-eye chucked in for good measure ..

Thats how it can roll with Lucille !!

Two little ‘Pods’ ..Just home from the foundry .. wee wee wee wee ..

A couple of older pieces recast in ‘maleable steel.. Now for a bit of clean-up..

Mergatroid-Boid was spotted yesterday behaving in an ‘explicitly’ Girlish way with Nervous-Nelson … I was assured by Max that Mergatroid is definitely a girl !! So .. if there remained any ember of a doubt as to her sexuality .. It has been quenched.

Also ! Carl Quirk, fish-skin tanner from Hobart paid us a visit at the workshop !

Meanwhile .. while I await the arrival of my new Acetylene Regulator I have begun some ‘self liberating bird men” and completed a couple more  ‘girls in shoes with butterflies’…

And !!… drum roll ..’rat-a-tat-a-tat-a-tat… Today is the first day of the ‘Illuminated Flashing OPEN sign’ !!

So come on in .. ..what else is there to do in Byron Bay anyway ? Jen Banks is at the bench today .. Have a look at her new pieces !

Well this Fallow year started with the Hammer&Hand Van doing a bit of  ‘Mercury Retrograding’ (??) in the very wet morning , requiring moisture dispellent and copious amounts of paper towel to get it going … I maintained a Sunny Outlook and Calm Demeanour  and drove (spluttered!) it to the auto electrician to replace a cracked starter coil I had previously Araldited ..(aka Jewellers cement)  Then….  Play Time !!.. This may be a Dinosaur Critter with a Ukulele Playing Behatted Rider ..as in the ‘Ten Bulls’ .. ‘Catch Horned Veloceraptor at Four’ !  …  Images are   ‘play in progress’  Fused mild steel.