Sterling silver Paris cuff

Inspired by the River Seine in Paris, the two magnificent islands in the middle of the river and all those bridges, Suzette started thinking about just how to show that in silver. The ever-reliable Paris Pratique A-Z of Paris came into it's own as she set about making a rough draft sketch.

 

 

Once the rough sketch was completed, a template sketch was produced. From this comes the overlay that guides her cutting out.

 

The silver that is removed is the river itself. What is left becomes the left and right banks, the islands and the bridges.  Who knew there were so many of them!

 

 

Cutting a length of silver that is longer than the 'throat' of the saw poses it's own problems - and breaking saw blades is inevitable.

     

Once cut out, the silver needs to be filed and sanded so the edges are smooth and the surface is unmarked. It then goes around a bracelet mandrel to be hammered into shape, using a rawhide hammer which doesn't mark the silver.

 

 

The resulting cuff was a Christmas present for a treasured friend in Melbourne who loves Paris as much as I do - possibly more. But I will be making more of these.  Keep an eye on the website.