(no subject)
Jul. 16th, 2006 03:57 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
afmetalsmithThe interesting work I did today- for this journal's value of "interesting,", anyway!- is setting a lot more stones into the Confetti Rings. It was a bit more eventful that I really prefer!
The first of the 6 topazes was a bit big. After drifting the 1.75mm bur a bit and still not being able to get the stone in, I went all-out and moved up to the 1.8mm bur! Shocking, I know, but there you are. :) And as soon as I got the hole reamed out with that one, I put the stone in, and it fit... and flew out of the setting and into the Lost Stone Dimension (which I believe is located somewhere around the Missing Sock Dimension). Naturally, all the other topazes were correctly sized, and thus too small to fit into the hole now. Naturally. So I got out my parcel of a bunch of tiny sapphires and picked one of them, that fit the hole nicely AND adds a pretty touch of blue to the ring! Since the topazes are nominally pale blue but look white when set, this ended up being a Good Thing. Although a hassle.
I had some what similar luck with other stones, too, at least in the losing department. When I had the pack of peridots open I bumped it and lost 6, of which I recovered 4. And then a tool fell onto the Tray O' Sapphires and spilled several, of which I found some but I'm sure not all.
However, confirming my Law Of Small Stones*, corollary 2, I did find the amethyst I lost yesterday while looking for the first topaz.
To make this sort of thing easier on myself, I really need to vacuum under the bench so there are less sparkly metal scraps to distract the eye from sparkly dropped stones. Of course, this means vacuuming up the currently-still-lost stones, which is a perpetual and ongoing problem abut which I need to make a decision, and then start vacuuming more often! Also, I need to empty out the filings drawer of filings, and put them in some sort of bag or something to await refining. There's enough of a layer in the drawer that a small stone can effectively hide in the build-up in the corners- it's not like it takes much to hide one of those tiny things!
Anyway, I got 5 of the 6 topazes in (including the rogue sapphire), plus 1 each of the peridots and citrines in one of the rings. I'm not best pleased with the way I had the stones' positions planned, so started with an area where there were 3 holes right next to each other, obviously getting one each of a topaz, a peridot, and a citrine. I think I've got a rational layout for the remaining holes now, though there's one spot that's supposed to get a peridot in which I might stick a sapphire... (This is the ring that does not otherwise have a sapphire.)
The ring with the varying number of holes seems to have 18 again today. Tomorrow I may approach that in the same way as the other one: start with a defined area, place the various colored stones in it, then move around the ring laying out the rest.
*I don't think I posted that here; I will see if I can find it, or else re-create it, and post it in this journal**.
** I say "journal" because I LOATHE the word "blog". To me "blog" sounds like a plumbing problem.
The first of the 6 topazes was a bit big. After drifting the 1.75mm bur a bit and still not being able to get the stone in, I went all-out and moved up to the 1.8mm bur! Shocking, I know, but there you are. :) And as soon as I got the hole reamed out with that one, I put the stone in, and it fit... and flew out of the setting and into the Lost Stone Dimension (which I believe is located somewhere around the Missing Sock Dimension). Naturally, all the other topazes were correctly sized, and thus too small to fit into the hole now. Naturally. So I got out my parcel of a bunch of tiny sapphires and picked one of them, that fit the hole nicely AND adds a pretty touch of blue to the ring! Since the topazes are nominally pale blue but look white when set, this ended up being a Good Thing. Although a hassle.
I had some what similar luck with other stones, too, at least in the losing department. When I had the pack of peridots open I bumped it and lost 6, of which I recovered 4. And then a tool fell onto the Tray O' Sapphires and spilled several, of which I found some but I'm sure not all.
However, confirming my Law Of Small Stones*, corollary 2, I did find the amethyst I lost yesterday while looking for the first topaz.
To make this sort of thing easier on myself, I really need to vacuum under the bench so there are less sparkly metal scraps to distract the eye from sparkly dropped stones. Of course, this means vacuuming up the currently-still-lost stones, which is a perpetual and ongoing problem abut which I need to make a decision, and then start vacuuming more often! Also, I need to empty out the filings drawer of filings, and put them in some sort of bag or something to await refining. There's enough of a layer in the drawer that a small stone can effectively hide in the build-up in the corners- it's not like it takes much to hide one of those tiny things!
Anyway, I got 5 of the 6 topazes in (including the rogue sapphire), plus 1 each of the peridots and citrines in one of the rings. I'm not best pleased with the way I had the stones' positions planned, so started with an area where there were 3 holes right next to each other, obviously getting one each of a topaz, a peridot, and a citrine. I think I've got a rational layout for the remaining holes now, though there's one spot that's supposed to get a peridot in which I might stick a sapphire... (This is the ring that does not otherwise have a sapphire.)
The ring with the varying number of holes seems to have 18 again today. Tomorrow I may approach that in the same way as the other one: start with a defined area, place the various colored stones in it, then move around the ring laying out the rest.
*I don't think I posted that here; I will see if I can find it, or else re-create it, and post it in this journal**.
** I say "journal" because I LOATHE the word "blog". To me "blog" sounds like a plumbing problem.
