Sand casting jewelry!

Because I can’t restrict myself to one kind of method of jewelry making and, because I am looking for a way to make multiples of some of my designs, I started sand casting.

For hundreds of years sand casting was the most popular of all casting methods. Sand casting involves using mold frames and wetted sand. Frames for small scale work are made of steel or aluminum and consist of a pair of almost identical rectangular frames; boxes with neither a top nor a bottom. Each has an opening cut in one of the narrow sides, usually enlarged by a range that creates a funnel when the frame halves are put together.

The sand is generally mixed with oil to keep the sand moldable. You fill one frame side with the sand and pack it in. Place your other frame side on top, lining up the frames to make a seal at the edges. place your model into the sand filled frame, slightly pressing it in. Then fill the top frame gently pressing the sand in. Once this is complete you can pull the frames apart, remove your model, make a sprue for the hot metal to funnel into during the pour and some narrow channels for gasses to escape. All of this needs to be done while assuring that no loose sand gets into your mold area. (This is a very summarized description!)

Once the mold is ready, you het your metal in a crucible and carefully and quickly pour the molten metal into the mold. This mold is not reusable, you have to remake the mold for each item poured. Therefore creating pieces that are similar but each unique.

One of my sand cast rings can be found here: Sand cast ring