[Jewelry making - Article 00160] - Re: [Orchid] How often do you "start over"

[Mark Parkinson]

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    I think that part of maturing or seasoning as a metalsmith is
    knowing when to stop, throw it aside and start over. Best if you can
    do it without carrying the baggage of the lost time with you. Really
    those rejects are just failed prototypes, and it's as important to
    know what not to do as it is knowing what to do.

    What begins to separate experienced, fast smiths from less productive
    ones is that the longer you do it the fewer mistakes you make. I mean
    you can only make the same mistake so many times before you learn
    what not to do, and that just takes time at the bench...years. You
    begin to see several steps ahead. In the case of wax carving, you can
    see where your going, see the piece inside the hunk of wax. You begin
    to see it but almost don't realize it, you work intuitively.

    The beauty of working like that is that it sort of pushes everything
    else out of your mind. Whatever crap may be going on in your life is
    pushed a thousand miles away. And the next thing you know you're
    done and it looks great.

    As far as helpful concrete suggestions. The most frequent mistake I
    see people make is that they don't mark their waxes. It's critical
    that you at least mark you centers at all times, just a very light
    line with a divider. Best to mark your widths, heights and details
    and be sure you aren't filing away your markings before you use them.

Mark
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