solder Archives - Ashley Hackshaw / Lil Blue Boo

This was such a fun project. I made all of these cute little pendants using plain old plumbing solder! I think they resemble wax seals or old coins as stamped solder:

Basic List of Materials (a little goes a long way):

TS4000 Bernzomatic Trigger Start Torch
MAP Fuel Canister (yellow)
1 Roll of Sterling Plumbing Solder (lead free)
1 Roll of Copper Picture Wire (18 Gauge)
Non-Asbestos Soldering Block
Lead-free Water-Soluble Flux
Rubber Craft Stamps (Postmarks)

Optional but Recommended:
Parchment Paper
Bon Ami Powder

Each pendant only requires a tiny bit of solder and a few inches of copper wire making it a very inexpensive project:

Here’s my TS4000 Bernzomatic Torch. It ignites with just a push of the button so it’s not scary or hard to use. Once you start torching…it’s kind of hard to stop!

The pendants are primarily made up of metal from melting this sterling plumbing solder:

To created the base of the pendant I used 18 gauge copper wire. Using pliers I created this “8” shape:

I use a non-asbestos soldering block to fire against. It can withstand the heat:

Brush a little bit of flux onto the copper wire. This will help the solder adhere to the wire:

Using the torch, carefully heat the solder so that drops of solder begin to fall into and around the copper circle. It doesn’t have to be precise. Once there’s enough solder to fill the circle let the piece cool. I put parchment paper underneath because it will catch any extra beads of solder that can also be reheated to create pendants:

Use the torch to remelt the solder. If you burn heat in a circular pattern around the edges the solder will shift towards the center into a circular glob: