Hot enamel in jewelry: application technology. Repair of products with enamel More about the repair of products with enamel
Representatives of the fair sex try to emphasize their individuality, stand out and attract the attention of those around them with stylish hairstyles, expensive shoes, manicure and original jewelry. Many people choose expensive earrings and rings made of gold and silver with precious metals. Others prefer products with hot enamel or cold enamel. considered unique. Performing the hot enamel technique is considered to be an exquisite workmanship. Talented craftsmen make jewelry with her irresistible.
Variety with enamel
They are distinguished by special refinement and beauty with enamel. Today, classic, avant-garde, ultra-modern rings and earrings in silver and gold, adorned with enamel, are at the peak of popularity. Thanks to this original technique, the craftsmen place admirable works of art on bracelets and pendants.
Jewelers incorporate creative ideas and expertise, combine new metal processing technologies and produce colorful jewelery. The color scheme of these products can be varied. Enamel not only complements the crafts, but also protects them from corrosion and mechanical damage. Over time, these jewelry do not lose their shine and brightness, they are not afraid of moisture, temperature changes and light.
The most important advantage of enamel jewelry is that they are original and highlight the individuality of their owner.
What is enameling
The production of bijouterie, covered with a kind of glaze, has been launched en masse. Nevertheless, such jewelry is handmade. In the original version, each piece is different from the other, so they never repeat.
The use of glass, which melts easily, on the surface of the metal is called enameling by professionals. The composition and application of the glaze may vary. There are several techniques for fixing a substance.
History of origin
Enamel was used for products by the ancient Russians. They called it enamel. She was adorned not only with jewelry, but also used for arts and crafts: bowls, cups, caskets, caskets were decorated.
The oldest items with original glaze were found in Cyprus during excavations. Also, traces of this creativity were found in Egypt, India, Byzantium. Since the Byzantine Empire had close ties with Kievan Rus, this technique also came to our region.
In the X-XI centuries in the Middle East, ornaments were applied to utensils with hot enamel. The craftsmen of the Byzantine Empire also applied it to dishes.
The heyday of enameling fell on the XII-XVI centuries. Then the Chinese emperors ordered to combine metal with casting. So they began to apply enamel to copper. For this, a special blue compound was created. Later, the technique in blue tones became the property of Chinese arts and crafts. The Chinese enameling technique is popular all over the world. Not only jewelry, but also boxes, saucers, cups, vases, glasses are covered with patterns in a heavenly scale.
Later, the application of hot enamel began to be used not only for kitchen items, but also framed icons, mirrors, and frames with it. In the 19th-20th centuries, the Art Nouveau style became popular, when decorations and decorative items were decorated with artistic glaze. Chemistry has advanced far ahead and thanks to this, experts have developed a whole palette of shades for enamel.
Cloisonne Jewelry Hot Enamel
The most elegant technique of hot enamel is cloisonné. First, a pattern is applied to a copper, silver or gold plate using thin wires. They act as a kind of partitions, between which colored glaze is poured.
In the old days, this decoration technique was used instead of precious stones. In India, there are minankari jewelry in which enamel variegation is combined with precious stones. The Hindus also add metal ornament or embossing there.
Chinese cloisonné enamel is exemplary. What kind of images you will not see on this patterned casting! There are also magical animals, flowers, petals, bunches of grapes, ornate patterns. Many have enjoyed enamel floor vases from China!
Stained glass enamel belongs to the partition technique. The principles of these two glazes are very similar. The gaps in the wire-lined ornament are filled with wet enamel. Then the product is dried and fired. To obtain a multicolored pattern, each shade of glaze is fired separately in a muffle furnace. As a result, the fused enamel resembles glass.
The only difference between the stained glass technique and the cloisonné technique is that the first one has a transparent structure if it is raised to the light. Cloisonne enamel has a metal base, so it does not shine through.
Notched enamel
The most ancient and simplest to manufacture is considered to be champlevé enamel, or "champlevé". It consists in creating grooves in the metal. The glaze itself is easy to apply. With its help, colored engravings are made, as well as grandiose images with alternating metal and enamel.
Copper is most often used as the parent metal, since it is soft and it is easy to make grooves in it. Their depth can be different, the color saturation depends on it. For the production of jewelry, already stamped blanks with recesses are used, into which enamel of different shades is only poured.
Transparent or transparent enamel
This glaze is used in jewelry with precious metals. It can be gold, platinum, silver. Such metal, covered with transparent enamel, will shine through it and shine very strongly. The colors of the product will be very juicy. The metal under the transparent glaze does not tarnish and is protected from mechanical damage.
Deaf enamel
This glaze is also called opaque. It is applied to copper and tombac. Deaf or opal enamels are distinguished by a huge range of colors, due to which the metal alternates with the color of the glaze.
There is still something in between translucent and deaf enameling. At different angles of incidence of light, it goes from transparent to opal, recalling the play of light with tints.
Hot enamel technology
Hot enamel jewelry has been used for a long time, although the process of making them is considered time consuming. This type of enameling is a leader in the production of jewelry and other products. Such glaze firmly adheres to things, because it is baked in specialized ovens (muffle) and kept at a temperature of 600-800 ° C. Then the product can be cooled, cleaned and polished.
At first glance, the process seems simple, but patience for such a case does not hurt. Initially, the enamel is in the form of a powder. It includes specially selected charge materials: quartz sand, chalk, feldspar, clay. Also in this composition there are soda, borax, potash and excipients. The presence of dyes, oxidizers, and mufflers in it is mandatory to obtain an opal state.
First, enamel powder is diluted with water in a special container until sour cream is thick. Then this mass is filled with the necessary parts of the jewelry. Before firing, the product is dried to release air bubbles. Under the influence of temperature, the enamel melts and becomes glass-like (transparent or dull). Then the craft is polished and re-fired. At the end, a perfectly smooth surface is obtained.
For multicolored and cloisonné glazes, the firing is done strictly one by one. White enamel is fired the longest, followed by pink and blue. Then the cells are filled with green and black glaze. Red glaze is considered less heat-resistant, it is the least resistant.
The enamel mass is poured very evenly to create a flawless surface. Depending on the complexity, jewelry with hot enamel can be fired from 5 to 100 times. The time and temperature of the firing must be closely monitored. This is how unique masterpieces are obtained that exist only in a single copy.
Types of cold enameling
Cold enamel is peculiar fiberglass, it is easy to apply. There are three types of cold enameling:
Tricks of choosing quality products
Enameling is a painstaking process, so jewelry in this technique is not cheap. They are considered premium products. When buying jewelry with enamel, you should pay attention to the presence of cracks, chips, scratches, bubbles. For her, gold is most suitable, because in a heated state it does not deform. Earrings with hot enamel in silver look great. Copper gizmos are also in perfect harmony with glassy glaze. Storing and wearing jewelry with enamel requires the following rules:
Differences between hot and cold enamel
Hot enamel is more durable and its price is higher than cold enamel. There is another technique in cold enameling - enamel. After applying it, it spreads out in multi-colored patterns, like gasoline on water. It turns out a kind of colored stains.
Hot pouring is smoother because it is strong. Irregularities are found on cold enamel, as it is not polished. While still hot, the glaze shines brightly.
Cold mixes also have merits. They are distinguished by simplicity, unpretentiousness, plasticity. No special tools are required to make such jewelry. Cold enameling is suitable for all alloys.
Enamel on gold and silver
Stunning collections of gold and silver jewelry with enamel make the hearts of the most sophisticated connoisseurs of beauty flutter. Among the huge selection of earrings, rings, bracelets, the harmony of juicy shades, cut gems pleases the eye. The classics in the form of black and white are also in trend today.
Silver with enamel look simply masterpiece. Coated rings are chunky and sophisticated. They sometimes inlaid stones. Original sets with enamel will become an adornment for girls of any age and status. Smooth, even rings like wedding rings, on which a Greek pattern is applied, look great.
Who makes hot enamel jewelry
Feminine colored jewelry is represented by several Czech ones. The most famous of these is Style Avenue. Czech experts are experimenting with cold cloisonné enameling.
Italian products with glaze are popular. Here are the most famous companies: Damiani, Bulgari, Garavelli. Italian crafts surprise with their shapes in the form of flowers, buds and butterflies.
The products were named minankari. Shades in them pass very smoothly. It is suitable for pendants and rings.
Silver jewelery from the Sunlight company is especially popular in Russia. The surface of this enamel is very smooth, and the ornaments are made with smooth lines.
Repairing products with enamel is a rather difficult task and requires special equipment and time.
Most often, when repairing chips and other damage to the enamel, you have to remove all the enamel and recoat.
Enamel is of different types and therefore the cost of repair depends on many nuances.
Contact the masters from our jewelry network - who are engaged in this service and send photos of your products to them by mail. Then you can find out the exact cost of enamel repair in your product.
Commonwealth Jewelry Workshop Map
IMPORTANT! this service can be provided in any workshop (which is possible closer to your home). You can see the full list of workshops on the "Addresses" page
More about the repair of enamel products
Enameling has long been used in jewelry making. One of the first mentions of enamel in the manufacture falls on the XII century BC. We are talking about gold rings that were found in a Cypriot tomb. The finds that were found later date back to the Byzantine era. In the 15th century, enamellers significantly changed the practice of using glass in painting.
The next milestone in the improvement of this technique was Faberge eggs, which combine enamel with jewelry. A rare person has not heard anything about Faberge eggs, because these are some of the most famous pieces of jewelry art that combine sophistication, sophistication and individuality. Oriental craftsmen have taken cloisonné enamel to a new level of quality (the process of adding thin partitions to separate colors). Artists also used it during the creation of large frescoes, sculptures, in addition, it is typical for jewelry: bowls, vases.
Today jewelry enamel is in great demand. Its popularity is largely due to what beautiful and interesting things are obtained when using it in the manufacturing process, since with its help you can achieve truly unusual shades that compare favorably with trivial ones, while maintaining quality, unlike jewelry.
Unfortunately, there are frequent cases of erasure of enamel, however, the repair of products with enamel is a fairly well-oiled process. Enameling is not an easy job that requires a high level of professionalism, knowledge of your business and the ability to get along with enamel. How does enameling work? To begin with, the enamel is brought to a powdery state by grinding. Then it is mixed with pure silver or gold. This mixture is placed on an enameled flat surface and sent to the oven.
When the enamel thickens, it is determined by the cells with a thin brush of a sable or a professional tool and fired in an oven at a very high temperature (1475 degrees) for up to three minutes. If you mix different shades of enamel and bake in the oven several times, you can achieve an interesting depth of color. All these manipulations are repeated more than once until the enamel reaches the level of the partitions. Now the procedure can be considered successfully completed and the product is sent for polishing.
As you can see, working with enamel is very difficult and requires serious skills and experience. Therefore, to repair products with enamel, you should contact a trusted master who is well versed in the intricacies of his craft. A responsible, serious approach is important in order for the work to be done perfectly. With the help of the art of enameling, the products have acquired gloss, charm and chic.
Efanova S.R.
As you know, enamel is a glassy alloy of silica, alumina and various oxides. According to their composition, enamels are divided into transparent and opaque, they have a large color and tone gradation. The richest palette of alloys since ancient times has been widely used by various civilizations and peoples in decorating metal products and continues to be successfully used to this day.
Since enamel is a glass alloy, it means that it has many qualities and properties of glass, and most importantly, it is subject to the same processes of destruction and aging as glass. Over time, under the influence of unfavorable conditions, the enamel can undergo cracking and delamination; iridescence and surface corrosion may begin; peeling of enamel from the metal surface leads to chips, loss and loss. Based on this, the approach to the restoration of various enamels should be consistent with the methods of glass and porcelain restoration.
Typically, the enamel is applied to a metal surface. Even if it completely covers the metal, it is impossible not to take this circumstance into account during the restoration.
When a metal product decorated with enamel comes for restoration, the metal itself undergoes restoration first. Many enamels are quite chemically resistant and can withstand the effects of chemicals used in metal restoration. Although, of course, in this case, this effect should be chosen the most gentle.
If it is required to remove deformation in the metal, and the enamel has cracks and a tendency to peel off, then it must be carefully strengthened by repeated impregnation with polymers (PBMA, BMK-5, PVB) in order to protect the enamel from possible delamination as much as possible. After elimination of the deformation, the excess concentration of the polymer is removed by its solvent. But this does not mean at all that any deformation is removed when the enamel is strengthened. As soon as there is a risk of cracking and lugs, the deformation leveling process is stopped.
After the restoration of the metal, the restorer proceeds to the restoration of the enamel coating and selects methods according to the state of the enamel. Cleaning from surface contamination on the enamel will practically be carried out even when cleaning the metal, if the corrosion products were removed. If at the first stage there was no chemical surface treatment, then the contamination is removed with ethyl alcohol - cleaning, degreasing and dehydrating the surface, preparing it for further work.
Unfortunately, it is not always possible to lighten enamel cracks that are dirty and have absorbed metal corrosion products. Oxygen and chlorine-containing chemicals used in the restoration of porcelain (namely, in the clarification of contaminated through cracks or glaze) are not suitable for use in the restoration of enamels. The enamel is in close proximity to the metal, which (especially copper and copper alloys) reacts with these reagents, and the contamination of cracks is not eliminated, but, on the contrary, intensifies. Therefore, after the stabilization of the metal corrosion processes, the cracks are no longer cleaned and then it is necessary to proceed to the strengthening processes.
Any destructive process in the enamel requires stabilization and conservation. The formation of cracks subsequently leads to delamination and outbursts, the loss of not only the qualities of appearance, but also fragments of the exhibit itself. Therefore, you should carefully process the enamel with strengthening compounds.
The strengthening composition developed at VNIIR (Moscow) - 25% polymethylphenylsiloxane in toluene - has proven itself very well. It is distinguished by deep penetration, high transparency and colorlessness, high lightfastness, thinness of the resulting film, which, if necessary, can be increased and thanks to which it is possible to imitate the gloss of enamel. The refractive index of light of polymethylphenylsiloxane is practically the same as that of glass.
Polymers - PVB, PBMA, BMK-5 - are also used for impregnation and strengthening of enamel cracks. They choose 3-5% impregnating compositions and diluents - xylene, toluene. If it is necessary to impregnate white enamel, it should be remembered that PVB, PBMA polymers have a slight lightfastness and turn slightly yellow over time.
The impregnation process is carried out, as a rule, several times, gaining a layer or increasing the concentration of the solution.
Restoration of attacks and losses of enamel with enamel would be the best way to restore the expositional appearance and integrity of the monument. But, as you know, the enameling process requires heat treatment in the range from +600 to + 900 ° C. In the presence of a damaged, cracked layer of old enamel, the application of new enamel is almost impossible. It is unlikely that a professional restorer will take the liberty of subjecting the exhibit to such heat treatment. Although modern industry (especially Western) allows for a large palette of enamels, it is still very difficult to select the correct composition of dyes and oxides to accurately reproduce old enamels.
In this case, it is proposed not to restore, but to imitate the enamel, and for this it is necessary to choose a material that will not only imitate it well, but also be chemically neutral to the metal that serves as the basis for the enamel. In this case, the main principle of restoration is also preserved - the introduction of easily dismantled materials into the exhibit.
Quenched enamels can be effectively imitated with mastic based on cyacrine EO with fillers of colored dry pigments. Cyacrin EO is chemically neutral in relation to metals and enamels, has excellent adhesion, practically does not change the color of the introduced pigments. A mastic mass based on cyacrine and colored pigments (shavings of colored pastels) is non-shrinking, after quick drying it is perfectly processed with a scalpel and sandpaper. When drawing up the color of the mastic, one must only remember that the more alkaline-containing substance is in the pigment, the faster the hardening occurs when kneading with cyacrine, therefore, sometimes galmanin (medical powder) must be added to the composition, which contains a small percentage of acid, which slows down the hardening process.
The gloss of enamels perfectly imitate varnish coatings, which can be used as: organosilicon varnishes - MSN-7, KO of various brands, Polisil; polymer varnishes - PVB varnish, PARALOID, etc. By varying the concentration of varnish solutions, it is possible to achieve imitation in the range from matt to glossy surfaces. The lacquer coating serves not only to imitate gloss, but also as a conservation and protective layer.
By choosing varnish as a binder, it is possible to effectively imitate transparent enamels. In this case, Polisil is an excellent base. If we take its 25% or more solution in xylene with the addition of coloring pigments, then a composition is obtained that, when dried, quite accurately meets the requirements put forward. Typically, this composition must be applied several times to achieve the desired layer thickness.
No less effective material for imitation of enamels with a shiny surface is a two-component acrylic varnish of the German company MAX MAYER. This varnish is designed to cover automotive surfaces, therefore it is chemically neutral to metal, resistant to light, moisture and heat. When colored pigments are introduced into it, the varnish perfectly imitates many types of enamels.
Mastics imitating enamel and lacquer compositions not only restore the lost display appearance of museum exhibits, but also serve as a protective layer that prevents further destruction of the metal base.