Verdigris the proper name we give to the green gunk on copper, brass or bronze which has oxidized with time. Most of the time we want to prevent or get rid of it - see my past blog post on how to clean off green gunk on jewelry. But many love the look of patinaed metal which has a weather worn look. The green cupolas of old buildings have so much character.

But what if you deliberately patinaed metal for jewelry? Would there be fans? Just ask Tammy Antoinette of Orlando, Florida. She is the artisan behind Painted Metal on Etsy. She only joined Etsy six months ago and has already racked up over 200 sold items! Her customers love her beautiful verdigris jewelry. She is also rushed off her feet trying to meet the demand from a boutique for her designs in time for holiday shopping!

The first example here is her hand cut brass charm on a vintage brass chain bracelet below.



These lovely vintage brass earrings below are on long dangles with tiny 24K gold plated glass bead accents.



Her brass Turquoise and Mocha rings show her dab hand at using different patina colours. She sells them as a stack of 20 skinny rings to be worn in whatever combination desired. Will your fingers turn green? Tammy has the answer, "The brass rings have a few layers of patina as well as a layer of sealant and wax, which coat the brass and act as a barrier between your skin and the brass, so no, you don't have to worry about your finger turning green."



Her brass bangles entitled Ripple of Colour show the range of colours she can custom produce. I bet you didn't know verdigris can be this gorgeous!



I asked Tammy what inspired her - she says she sometimes responds to feelings and tries to recreate it rather than the object itself. I was not surprised to learn that with her love of patina effects, she would be interested in historical pieces - old copper and brass African cuffs in particular. She hopes to "dive more into the history of African metal jewelry, and also the process of lost-wax casting, and have several books sitting on my shelf that I just haven't had the time to read, but once I do, I am sure you will start to see the influence of that culture and time period in some of my pieces as well."

Via

For more tutorials check out my Jewelry Making Tips

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