Recently, I was lucky enough to be offered some well loved tools. A lovely lady who lives locally offered them to me as her husband, a fantastic silversmith and teacher, is unable to use them any more. I am taking my time restoring them, starting with the hammers (old hammers are the best!).

Amongst the tools, there was a certain amount of scrap silver. I was intrigued by a box full of misshapen pieces and asked about them, discovering that these were remnants from a cathedral commission her husband once undertook. The commissioned piece incorporated a surface made entirely from these small individual forms.

Although I have never experimented with this process myself, I recognise these twisted, organic forms as water cast silver. Yesterday I chose a few pieces from the box to make a pin brooch for her and a pair of earrings for her daughter in law.

They turned out well … the high polish is wonderful and I’m not sure my amateur photography does the shine justice. The form of them makes me feel like they come from under the sea or outer space.

Like snowflakes, no two pieces of these water cast silver will ever be the same. Today I am inspired and am going to water cast some silver myself.