Today's DIY will cover the basics of jewelry creation.
We will work with bronze and create a locket in a shape of a woman's head with a Greek profile.
The lesson is designed for students who have an idea about the most basic tools of a jeweler, and who used a gas burner at least a couple of times, so I will not describe every action in detail, so as not to burden the text, but if you have any questions on technical aspects, I will be happy to answer them in comments.
So.
Make a sketch. The diameter of a circle is 4 cm.

Print the picture. Use snips to cut out the metal workpiece. In our case it is 2 pieces of bronze, about 5 cm in diameter and with a thickness of 0.6 mm. It is better to take a thicker metal (up to 1mm). Glue the printout to the workpiece.
Centre punch, drill and saw. Fretwork is the longest and the most laborious process. It is better to start with small holes, and then move on to bigger details so that the metal is not slanted during the process. I did the opposite, I was hurrying to see the Greek profile :) I had to adapt later.

When fretwork is finished, you get this result.

In the process of fretwork I did not like the side elements. First, I decided to replace them with filigree (twisted wires), but then I just cut out more beautiful edges and soldered them. The circular base should be larger than the sawed part with a profile in at least 5 mm. In the picture above there is a wrong workpiece. But in the picture below everything's all right :)
When all the elements are ready, flatten them on an anvil with the help of a textolite hammer (you can take a wooden hammer) and go to soldering.

It is not pleasant to solder bronze. It is naughty. But we are not looking for easy ways. Tie the profile to the base with nichrome wire to keep the parts tight to each other and solder them. After soldering remove the excess wire. We don't need it anymore.
The result after the first soldering.

Bleach the work in citric acid. Cut the side panels. Cut away the excess edges. Go to the second soldering.

The result after the second soldering. The loop is soldered poorly. I decided to remove it and attach later using a rivet.

Bleach the work in citric acid. Process the surface with a needle file and sandpaper. Attach a loop with the help of a rivet.

Let's move on to finishing the surface. Polish the pendant with rubber bands, apply the texture with an engraver.

The pendant is polished and sent to ammonia fumes for the night. In the morning we take out of the jar with ammonia such a beauty.

Remove the excess patina. I do it with a dremel tool and rubber bands for sanding and polishing.

The work is finished. It remains only to take nice pictures.

That's all for today. Thank you very much for your attention! I invite everyone who wants to create to my workshops.

Yours, Ekaterina Dmitrieva.