Reticulated Earrings, Oxidized

Jeff McKenzie is a craftsman, goldsmith, silversmith, jeweler, designer and graduate gemologist. Jeff is the manufacturer of Paul Wagner's North Coast Collection jewelry, and his own personal line including reticulated silver and other various gemstone and metal designs. He was a jewelry store owner/operator in Olympia, WA for 19 years and has been making jewelry since 1984. Before getting into the hands-on end of the business, Jeff worked for Zale Corp in their headquarters in Dallas, Texas then moved into retail jewelry sales before apprenticing as a goldsmith. He is passionate about making jewelry and is constantly striving to improve the quality of all the jewelry he makes. He is at his happiest at his wax carving bench designing new pieces.

This reticulated silver jewelry is designed and hand crafted by Jeff McKenzie, here in the Pacific Northwest. Sterling silver is an alloy, commonly consisting of 92.5% pure silver and 7.5% copper. To reticulate the silver, Jeff repeatedly heats and then quenches the silver in an acid bath. When the sterling silver is heated, copper oxides are produced on the surface of the piece. Quenching in an acid bath removes the copper oxides. This "depletion gilding" creates a thin layer of pure silver on the outside of the piece, leaving the copper inside. Once the silver piece has been heated and cooled six or seven times, it is then heated one more time, almost to the point of melting; in fact the piece is melted, but from the inside out. The copper has a slightly lower melting point than the silver so when the copper melts and boils on the inside, it produces a ridged or ripply surface.