I want to fuse silver wire between two pieces of glass. it sounds like i need to use sterling silver, it will retain a shiny silver look (hopefully???) i see in the catalogue i can order hard temper or soft temper, which one would be best? also there is something called sterling silver bezel wire, what is that?
does anyone do this and what do they use so there's no discoloration?
fine silver will stay silver. the others will need to be cleaned and polished after being exposed to fusing temperatures -- they'll darken. bezel wire is for making a bezel around a cabochon.
sterling silver is an alloy; fine silver isn't. Rio Grande and other places sell both. i don't fabricate with either one, but years ago i took a semester's course in silversmithing, and it was a terrific way to get the basics and access to a small-metals studio. working with silver and getting a professional result isn't a casual undertaking, so if you can find a class, i think it would pay off. meanwhile, there is a jeweler's resource on the internet: http://www.ganoksin.com/orchid. you can pose questions in this forum, and receive answers. it is a different set-up than this Board, but you might get some help from those experts. the members of that Board receive your inquiry via email, and they answer if they want to. it's not open threads like this Board. i got some help from Orchid when i was trying to learn about tumble vibes -- and found out later that one of my customers, who is also a small-metals artist, saw my inquiry -- small world. good luck with your projects. kitty.
so, you're thinking of making some little bent-wire designs which will be entirely imbedded in the glass? from what i've read at this forum, BE crystal clear is the clear that will not cause yellow discoloration with silver foils, and i presume the same is true with silver wire. i rather think that sterling wire will darken, even if encased. fine silver wire should remain silver in color. if you search "silver stain" in the old and new archives, you can read some stuff about silver coloring glass, and get some insight into that result. good luck! kitty.
jen