I was thinking earlier today that life is a string of disasters of varying proportion. The thought was actually tongue-in-cheek since I really don't believe that. I'm actually able to laugh at some of my experiences and find myself more accepting of "what is" than I was capable of a few years ago. Live and learn . . .
And so this evening, while I was living, I learned. It should have been an easy project: form and solder a fine silver bezel, solder it to a sterling back plate, add a couple of prongs and a bail. I was happy with my progress when I chose to stack a few nickels and a penny to balance the ring I wanted to use as a bail. Somewhere in my tiny dinosaur brain I had filed away that strategy and it surfaced just in time for me to solder on the bail. The last piece, and then on to the finishing steps.
Who knew the fucking penny would melt? Obviously not me. And stick to my sterling? Not me. Ack! I tossed the piece into the pickle pot and minutes late when I went to check on it a cloud of bubbles was rising. Not a good sign. Pulled the wannabe pendant out of the pickle and here's what my nice hunk of silver had turned to:
For anyone not acquainted with a pickle pot snafu like this, generally the liquid in the pot contains many suspended particles of copper. When steel (or apparently whatever the hell is in a penny) is introduced into the pot, any silver item is immediately copper plated by some magic juju. Alchemy?
Fear not, I fully intend to salvage this piece. Check back.
