DIY Network

Silverware Sculpture Take the flat out of your flatware! From "B. Original" episode DBOR-403

Solder up a sweet vase.

It doesn’t have to be mealtime for silverware to beautify your home – it also can become fun sculptures you create with this how-to from Michele Beschen. The B. Original host shows how to cut, bend and solder silver-plated cutlery to make whatever your imagination can devise.

Scroll down to see how Michele Beschen sculpted a charming bud vase from serving spoons. She also gives tips for how to use those odd silverware remnants from your metal-working adventures.

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Silverware Bud Vase

Materials:

large silver-plated serving spoon
silver-plated knife with a thick (hollow) handle
rotary tool (with cutoff wheel) or hacksaw
pliers (regular and channel-lock)
vise
soldering iron with flux and lead-free solder
propane torch
heat-resistant work surface

Safety Alert: Do not substitute gold-plated flatware for the silver-plated flatware. The gold plating can disintegrate and even explode when heated.

	Figure A
	Figure B
	Figure C
	Figure D
	Figure E
	Figure F

• Secure the serving spoon in a vise with the handle sticking out. Don’t tighten the vise so much that it distorts the bowl of the spoon.

• Wearing safety glasses and gloves, cut off the spoon handle about 2-1/2" to 3" from the bowl of the spoon (figure A). Michele Beschen uses a rotary tool with cutoff wheel for this; a hacksaw also will work.

  Safety Alert: Always wear safety glasses and gloves when cutting metal. Also, don’t touch freshly cut metal – it can be extremely hot.

• Use pliers to remove the spoon from the vise and place it on a heat-resistant surface such as cement or cementboard.

• Wearing safety glasses and gloves, use a propane torch to heat the spoon until it is cherry red. This heating will make the spoon much easier to bend.

  Safety Alert: Wear eye protection and gloves when using the torch, and don’t handle the hot spoon or the hot end of the torch. Follow all fire-safety precautions, and keep children and pets away when heating the metal.

• Let the spoon cool to room temperature naturally – don’t try to speed up the cooling process.

• Once the spoon has cooled, begin shaping it as the base of the vase. With the spoon face down, grasp the cut handle end with pliers and curl the handle up so that the spoon sits flat. Place the head of the spoon in a vise and use channel lock pliers to continue bending (figure B) until the cut end touches the base of the spoon (figure C).

• Use a wire brush attachment on the rotary tool or a small wire brush to remove discoloration caused by heating the spoon.

• Choose an old silver knife with a thick handle. These handles are often hollow, making them a perfect choice for the vase.

• Secure the knife in a vise. Wearing safety glasses and gloves, cut through the knife handle 2" from the bottom (figure D).

• Smooth the cut end with a rotary tool, using a grinding wheel attachment. You also can sand it by hand. Use a wire brush attachment on the rotary tool or a small wire brush to remove any discoloration cause by heat.

• Determine where to position the closed end of the knife section on the spoon to form the base.

• Apply flux to the spoon and the knife handle where they will attach, then use a hot soldering iron to melt a few drops of lead-free solder onto the spoon at that spot (figure E).

• Holding the knife handle cut side up, set it firmly in the melted solder and hold it in place until the solder cools (figure F).

• Complete the joint by soldering all around the connection between the two pieces.

• Sand the solder once it cools, then use the rotary tool with a wire wheel – or a small wire brush – to polish the whole piece.

Figure G

Creating with Silverware Remnants

Don’t throw out those odds and ends left over from your silverware projects! You can bend, drill and modify them to create a world of keychains, pendants, ornaments and more (figure G).