VOL. 2 —

MAKING THE BRAIDED GRASS RING

Before launching Behind the altar I did an open call to invite suggestions of topics for me to explore as part of this project.

Something that many of you were interested to know more about was the journey a piece of Ara adornment takes from start to finish.

For volume 2, I thought I’d walk you through the creation of the Braided Grass Ring.

THE CONCEPT

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The idea for the Objects of Ritual family was inspired by a handful of props I used to accompany my recycled gold Phase Fine shoot.

I decided to create a mini collection capturing three objects as wearable sculptures — a collection of protective amulets; miniature sculptures to adorn the body.

One of which was the braided grass ring.

CREATING THE ORIGINAL BRAID

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As this was a sculptural series, working with wax to sculpt and create the objects —to later be cast in recycled solid gold and silver— was the natural fit.

I toyed with the idea of carving the braided grass ring in wax too but I wanted the grass to look as authentic as possible, with the natural imperfections of actual grass.

Instead, I foraged some long grass growing locally and knotted it at one end before braiding the length fairly tightly to get an even braid.

The resulting braid was delicate and hollow with some small gaps — features which would not lend themselves well to the mould making process in which an object is surrounded with melted rubber. The braid would not have withstood the weight of the rubber, and the rubber would also have seeped into the gaps.

In attempt to make the braid more suitable for mould making, I let the braid air dry over several weeks before stretching the length out on my weaving loom and securing it with paper tape.

I gently painted the surface of the braid with melted candle wax, sealing any gaps and making a stronger form to withstand the mould making process⁣. I kept the wax as thin as possible, to retain some of the natural surface texture of the grass.

CREATING THE WAX

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As moulds have a size limit, I carefully cut the braid into three. Each unique in its own form, and long enough to make a ring band. I handed them over to my casting house to have a mould made of each - at that point we were unsure how each of them would translate once cast.

With a successful mould of each, the next step was to inject the mould with wax.

For this step, I measured out and formed the wax into a band shape, to size, and melted each end of the braid together using the flame of my oil burner.

Working away any excess way and smoothing the join so it blends in as much as possible.

LOST WAX CASTING

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Once happy with the wax, I sent it to my casting house who attach many waxes to a ‘tree’, to cast a full batch in recycled solid 925 sterling silver or recycled 9ct gold.

Over time, once I have made a ring in a particular size, I have a new mould made of the silver ring (which is ideal for mould making), so that future orders in that size can be cast directly by my casting house, without having to send the wax to me to shape into a band. This streamlines the process and helps to minimise carbon footprint.

REFINING AND RESIZING

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The silver or gold cast band is returned to me with a sprue still attached (where the metal flowed down the tree into the wax ring).

I saw off the sprue, file down any excess metal and then go through a phase of sanding to prepare it for polishing.

I also reshape and resize the ring at this point as the metal shrinks a couple of percent during the casting process.

POLISHING

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Only once the ring has been through every stage of sanding and buffing, I pop it into my polishing tumbler —more fondly known as ‘Celeste’ — with a little castile soap to lubricate the stainless steel shot. I leave the machine on for several hours with a batch of jewellery in it, using electricity powered by 100% renewable energy.

The polishing tumbler works great for pieces like the braided grass ring with texture, but for pieces with a curved or flat surface area that need a mirror polish, I take them though a hand polishing process instead.

Once out of the polishing tumbler I give the ring a gentle wash with warm water and polish with a soft cloth before tucking her into her hemp pocket to make her journey safely to her forever home.

I hope you enjoyed joining the braided grass ring’s journey.

If there’s anything you’d like me to explore as part of Behind the altar, let me know in the comments.

L x