Experiments with paint made from our copper cufflinks

We have carved a little time this year to explore the idea of self-managing our studio waste. We are brainstorming ways to utilise our waste and recondition it into something usable within our studio, viewing it as a commodity and encouraging it to be part of our business growth. One of the areas we are experimenting with is by creating raw pigments from our jewellery.

Sitting our copper jewellery in acid (household vinegar) we encourage the oxidisation of the material in a beautiful Verdigris colour. Leaving the oxide to bloom for a few months allows us to scrape this pigment off the jewellery and grind it, using a pestle and mortar, into a fine and vibrant powder. This powder can then be mixed with tree sap, oil or water to create paints or ink. It’s good fun but requires patience, understanding and expertise, which is growing through educating and experimenting. 

We are definitely learning as we go and thoroughly enjoying the combination of science and art that this type of exercise brings with it. There is magic in material science. It brings the same feeling of wellbeing that gardening or crafting does. 

And so, for our festive thank you cards this year we have continued this experimental approach, using our verdigris pigments to create some oil paint to play with. 

2024 has also seen us renovate and move into a new studio space which, by luck, has a holly tree outside the door. We sadly had to trim this right back to avoid building damage, but have left the stump ready to bloom as we settle in. When thinking about festive ideas for our Christmas thank you cards, the holly tree stump seemed like the perfect metaphor for renewed space and experimentation.