Sterling Silver Portrait Buttons

I am home, having had a wonderful week in the mountains. The fall colors were magnificent! I see I have a lot of catching up to do with my blog reading.

I was asked by a friend if I would make some portrait buttons of her five children. They will be on a sweater she wants to knit. I asked her if she would mind if I sculpted them sleeping. I hate the look of vacant eyes in metal. She said she rather liked it when they were all asleep. LOL I also thought it would be kind of creepy to have five sets of eye balls staring out from a sweater.

The first two have had the shanks soldered to the backs and have been polished and oxidized. The third one is dull because it hasn't been polished yet and still needs a shank on the back of it. The sculpting was done in wax with a hot tool. Most of the small details had to be done with a needle. They were built up rather than carved out of hard wax. Then of course lost wax cast in sterling silver.

I am delighted that my (at home) bench is finally together. I am going to love having a place to work at home on some miniatures.