here is a brief tutorial of basic soldering:
(DISCLAIMER: my skills are rudimentary and all self-taught. i am not a professional, just a girl who wanted to learn, made a few mistakes along the way, and learned a bit)
step 1)
hunt and gather your supplies. they are:
copper tape - can be found at hobby lobby
flux (i prefer gel) - i bought mine online
solder (lead-free) - hobby lobby
solder iron - most craft stores
something to hold your project in place (everything gets extremely hot!!)
step 2)cut your copper tape to the appropriate size of your glass
place half on, and wrap the other half to back
step 3)apply gel flux to copper tape.
this will act as the bonding agent between the solder and the copper tape. without it your solder will not adhere (a lesson learned the hard way)
step 4)with the solder iron, melt the solder onto the copper tape.
it takes a bit of practice to get a smooth line...mine are still in the "rustic" phase.
here is the finished product! quite satisfying...give it a try!
6 comments:
Fun! Nicely done! :D
That's really cool! I'll have to try it sometime. :)
you amaze me, my friend. i love my pendant, as with all the other pieces you've made me - you are my own personal smolderer!
I have always wanted to try this! What do you use to hold the picture between? Is it glass? Where do you get that?
to olivia:
it is glass. you can get it at Michaels or online. at Michaels it's by the stamp supplies.
let me know if you need help...i would be happy to show you how.
Just wandered by today - very nice post! My Dad was an electronics and ham radio guy. The smell of solder always takes me back to childhood, and hanging around his workbench with him while he fiddled around with stuff. I had a solder collection - the cool splatters that a rogue solderball would make as it hit the workbench.
More than you cared to know, I'm sure ... ;)
Thanks for the memories! I enjoyed my visit.
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