Any reliable online store is ok too.
Also, is there any course now available? Please state the location.
Thanks.
Chinatown sells a lot and cheap beads and items for jewelry making. However, i forgot thename of the shops.. :/ but, there are sevral shops selling them. (; You can check it out! (; but, I’m sorry. I’m not sure if they have courses available.. :/
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I’m curious if it’s safe (and acceptable) to melt something like copper wire or silver wire and use it to fill a ring mold. I am curious about the jewelry making process (beyond wire-jewelry, more towards bench jewelry), and where the metals to make the jewelry come from - is wire an appropriate source, etc.
Thank you! 
Yes, thank you! I know it probably would take a lot to fill a mold. I was just curious because when I was trying to search online for where self employed jewelers get their metals from, mostly ads about "sell us your scrap gold!" came up…and when I looked into actually buying gold or silver, it was either for stocks or for buying bars.
I was indeed wondering if it would be cost effective for a beginner to use wire.
I’m a bench jeweler by trade.
I get my metals from a variety of sources.
Some of my customers sell me their old or broken gold and silver jewelry, and, using a technique called "parting" I separate the alloys from the pure gold and silver, and then alloy (or not) before I make new castings (lost wax).
You certainly can cast with copper and/or silver wire, but if you want to mark your piece with a karat stamp, you must know its karat. That’s why it’s best to either buy karat gold from a supplier or refine your own like I do.
Parting, and acid refining are both very dangerous procedures using nitric and sometimes hydrochloric acids (aqua regia)
Here’s a link to a tutorial: http://www.ishor.com/AquaRegia.php
If you want to learn more about jewelry making, I suggest you join the Orchid email list on Ganoksin:
http://www.ishor.com/AquaRegia.php
It will never be cost effective to use wire if you bought the wire from a refiner or findings house.
You’ve paid a premium for someone to put labor into the metal in the form of alloying and wire-making.
A company that will sell you casting grain is a refinery. Here’s a google search for refiners who sell casting grain: http://tinyurl.com/7kyxr63
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I have used sterling silver wire to make jewelry in the past, but it tarnishes much too quickly. I am making the switch to non-tarnishing wires. What are some good brands of silver wire that maintain their original color? It does not have to be genuine sterling silver. Thanks!
Are you looking for beading wire that drapes?
As in a wire that you would bead and wear as a necklace or bracelet? We carry a beading wire plated with sterling silver and then coated with nylon to protect the silver to keep it from tarnishing.
http://www.softflexcompany.com/CategoryProductList.jsp?cat=Soft+Flex+Extreme
Or are you looking for craft wire that can be work hardened to retain its shape?
We carry a craft wire that is made of copper and then plated with silver and it will not tarnish or fade.
http://www.softflexcompany.com/CategoryProductList.jsp?cat=Soft+Flex+Craft+Wire
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