I like to carve my gemstones

[TownsendRockworks]

So...  having just discovered this thread and all of the beautiful artwork flowing from within it, I am now inspired to break out my sparkly wow in amazement of your superb talent.  :)



Thank you for sharing your work with us, it really is a pleasure to see it!

[ScarlettoSara]

Ack....  help me I am blind...
Love and missed that big old WOW Gina girl:)
Daniel when Gina whips out the BIG WOW that means you are really good:)

[lonelygems]

So...  having just discovered this thread and all of the beautiful artwork flowing from within it, I am now inspired to break out my sparkly wow in amazement of your superb talent.  :)

Thank you for sharing your work with us, it really is a pleasure to see it!

Thank you for appreciation Gina.....

Ack....  help me I am blind...
Love and missed that big old WOW Gina girl:)
Daniel when Gina whips out the BIG WOW that means you are really good:)

 ......I'm not sure i'm really good....just trying all my best.

[mehoose]

oh my look at you GO!!! 
Adore the earrings, sweet sweet butterflies and that agate carving is darn superb!

[lonelygems]

Thank's mehoose............

[3rdRockFromTheFun]

I continue learned to use my new carving equipment and tools, challanged my self to made something more curved and small but still have a problem to polish them right, I don't know anything about diamond polisher....so I used only rolled 1000 grid abrasive paper for finishing.

And also I tried to apply a small buterflies into my silver ring. You won't believe how those silver ring carved by....each hole expanded with 0.2mm metal saw until it got the shape, and detail carved by small chisels. Unfortunately the man who's did that job, was old and didn't worked anymore so I learned his technique to improve my self latter.

Daniel, that is gorgeous! Can you explain how you roll up your abrasive paper and maybe give a sentence or two description of your general technique? I'm wanting to learn carving - pre-polishing is what's stopping me. I have a pre-polish gump and seldom have good results.

Looks to me like you could just hit that thing with 14K diamond paste on a dremel or foredom felt wheel and go lightly and not very long (experiment - find out where the orange peel line in the sand is). If it's soft enough Zam should work from what I hear. I have some - been meaning to try it on a hazy piece or two I have - I hear it's good for that too.

[lonelygems]

Well, actually now i can made diamond paste my self but not sure wich grid i used because it is no clue on my diamond powder plastic tube, it is "Syndia" 1-5 and 0-2. Before that...you won't believe what i used for experiment.....high sillica tooth paste, rocks dust on my floor, Kit...that is two years ago. No available diamond paste or "zam" ( what is it? ) or tinoxide or cerium oxide here....

I used bamboo for my cabs for many years. I'm walked blind to reached my skill until now i found so much thing in this forum.

Carving polish is a big challange, i performed pre-polishing by smoothing carved surface with my old diamond bits or used a higher grid, sillicon carbide powder 150 grid with palm oil on pointed stainless or bamboo bit and than rolled on stainless or bambbo 1-1,5cm abrasive papers started from 150, 240, 360 .....1000, diamond paste for the last. There is many variations of grid used, sometimes i just jump from 150, 360, 1000, or 150, 400, 1000 its depand on how good each grid done. Some of my carvings finished just in 360 to avoid over reflection of light. There is another tip... to start a pre-form to carve, i cut off or grind off as much as possible until i got a good shape pre-form......Hope this will help.

[lonelygems]

I'll post a picture how i rolled my abrasive papper later.....I would please to post a video, but it's a pain for me because last tried i took 3 days to uploaded my video to youtube....

[3rdRockFromTheFun]

Well, actually now i can made diamond paste my self but not sure wich grid i used because it is no clue on my diamond powder plastic tube, it is "Syndia" 1-5 and 0-2. Before that...you won't believe what i used for experiment.....high sillica tooth paste, rocks dust on my floor, Kit...that is two years ago. No available diamond paste or "zam" ( what is it? ) or tinoxide or cerium oxide here....

I used bamboo for my cabs for many years. I'm walked blind to reached my skill until now i found so much thing in this forum.

Carving polish is a big challange, i performed pre-polishing by smoothing carved surface with my old diamond bits or used a higher grid, sillicon carbide powder 150 grid with palm oil on pointed stainless or bamboo bit and than rolled on stainless or bambbo 1-1,5cm abrasive papers started from 150, 240, 360 .....1000, diamond paste for the last. There is many variations of grid used, sometimes i just jump from 150, 360, 1000, or 150, 400, 1000 its depand on how good each grid done. Some of my carvings finished just in 360 to avoid over reflection of light. There is another tip... to start a pre-form to carve, i cut off or grind off as much as possible until i got a good shape pre-form......Hope this will help.

When you use bamboo or stainless steel or old bits - do you do it by hand or insert these into your rotary tool? I've been trying diamond at 200 and 400 grit with olive oil on bamboo inserted in my dremel tool. The diamond just goes flying and nothing else happens. I have diamond and sic powders and diamond pastes as well.

[3rdRockFromTheFun]

So far everytime I've seen it come up - nobody seems to know for sure what Zam is - only that it's great stuff and that the particle size is about 14K (like vanilla diamond polish).

[lonelygems]

Frank....i used Foredom SR or Proxon micromotor, low speed ( i thought is 500 rpm ) for the first time than higher when i got all oil sticked to carved surface, here's some pistures of what i used for finishing.....I also used baby oil with diamond/ sic powder as well as my diamond paste ( try to mix diamond powder with plain vasseline ).

For final touch i used bamboo and facial cotton with Syndia 1-5 and 0-2

[ScarlettoSara]

Thanks for the information on what tools to use Daniel:)
What is that you are working on in the picture please?
Looks pretty neat:)

[lonelygems]

Hi Sara, that is one of my carving projects which is unfinish yet, i want to make a flower with that for fashion ring..........i did a lot of cabbing for last weeks.

[ScarlettoSara]

I am like a dog sitting at the door for you to come home and show me some new stuff:)

[lonelygems]

Lolololol Sara.......