Casting Thai Silver Charms

Casting silver is a highly skilled, labor intensive endeavor. Watch the entire process unfold from the initial sketches to a completed piece!

We create an original sketch for every new design.

A Master Model is hand carved from wax or fabricated in silver to match the drawing.

A rubber molding material is used to create a flexible mold of the master model.

The mold is cut open, revealing an accurate impression of the model.

Fluid wax is injected into the rubber mold.

Once cooled, the wax is called a Pattern

Dozens of wax Patterns are attached to a wax pole, called a Sprue. The complete assembly of Patterns and Sprue is a Tree.

Wax trees are loaded into cylindrical metal flasks.

A plaster-like material called Investment, is mixed with water to form a slurry and poured into the flasks, around the wax trees.

Once the slurry has hardened, the flasks are heated in an oven. The wax melts away, leaving a hollow void in the exact shape of the Tree.

Molten silver is poured into the mold, filling the void and recreating the original wax tree in metal.

Once cooled, the investment is cleaned from the metal trees in a water bath.

Silver charms are trimmed from the tree one by one.

Each Silver Charm is filed by hand to create a smooth surface.

Jump rings are soldered onto the charms individually.

Diamonds are set by hand.

A grinder is applied carefully to create a rough finish.

To create the final finish, each Silver Charm is hand polished.

After all that work, these silver wings are ready to fly!

Nina Designs