272 



AMERICAN HOMES AND GARDENS 



July, 1908 



ing on 



Copper 



By Mabel Tuke Priestman 



THERE is a charm in etched metal that appeals to 

 most of us, for not only is it extremely decora- 

 tive, but it is very interesting to do, and not nearly 

 as difficult as it would seem, on looking at an 

 intricate piece of work. Its uses are manifold, and it 

 is especially well 

 adapted for candle 

 lamp shades and 

 sconces. The worker 

 in sheet metal will 

 find it a pleasant 

 variety to the ordi- 

 nary repousse work. 



For those who do 

 not understand how 

 repousse work is 

 done, a few prelimi- 

 nary directions are 

 necessary. 



Very few tools 

 are required, some 

 of which can be 

 bought as they are 

 needed. It is not 

 necessary to buy a 

 work bench, as a 

 shelf or table can be 

 made use of. The 

 following list of 

 tools will be needed, 

 and can also be used 

 for all kinds of re- 

 pousse work, etched, 

 perforated, or cut 

 metal : 



A small pair of 

 metal shears at 

 thirty cents. 



Medium hammer, 

 forty cents. 



Hardwood mal- 

 let, twenty-five cents. 



Medium round 

 file, fifteen cents. 



Flat plier, twenty 

 cents. 



The following ma- 

 terials are also required for all kinds of sheet metal work: 



Hard and soft wood blocks. 



Several sheets of fine emery paper. 



Numerous six penny wire nails, Nos. 10 and 20. 



Sheet of copper, gage 21, which costs, per pound, twenty- 

 three cents. 



Sheet of brass, gage 24, costs twenty cents a pound. 



Small copper rivets at forty cents will be required, together 

 with a block of metal for riveting. 



The Etcher at Work 



The little card tray, designed and executed by Mr. Has- 

 well Clark, teacher of metal work at the New York School 

 of Design, is an easy piece of work for the beginner. This 

 little copper tray is formed by hammering and bending. 

 After the design is etched upon it the design may be traced 



upon the tray by 

 means of a carbon 

 sheet of paper. As 

 the design is geo- 

 metrical, only one 

 corner of the de- 

 sign need be drawn, 

 the same tracing be- 

 ing folded and traced 

 on the three remain- 

 ing corners in or- 

 der to get them per- 

 fectly symmetrical. 

 Cut a piece of cop- 

 per with the shears 

 exactly the size the 

 tray is to be made. 

 When this is cut out 

 the metal must be 

 laid on the hard 

 wood block and any 

 irregularities on its 

 surface can be oblit- 

 erated by striking it 

 squarely with the 

 wooden mallet. The 

 corners must be 

 rounded slightly, 

 and draw a pencil 

 line one inch from 

 the edge on the four 

 sides. Then place 

 the hard wood 

 block in this, in such 

 a position that the 

 pencil line shall 

 come over the angle 

 of the block. Then, 

 with the round end 

 of the mallet, beat 

 the center of the 

 side over the edge 

 of the block to begin to form the shape of the tray. Each 

 side must be beaten, working up gradually to the corners, 

 first from one side and then from the other, so that it closes 

 up evenly. This can all be done by the round end of the 

 mallet which will adjust itself nicely to the curves. If the 

 edges are rough they must be filed, using the flat side for 

 convex curves and the round side for concave. The corners 

 are made to match by means of a rat-tail file, and the tray 

 should now be ready for the process of etching. If it does 



