Hand Stamped Sterling Silver Tab Ring by Amy Latta of One Artsy Mama

Amy Latta of One Artsy Mama stamps on our new tab rings - see her step-by-step and final pieces below!

If you are a jewelry lover and have never tried metal stamping, you are missing out on something great. It’s the easiest way to create incredibly personalized pieces for yourself and for your friends and family. Once you invest in a few starter supplies, the projects cost very little {this ring blank is about $5}, and you’ll be amazed by the things you can make. Today I want to show you how to make your own personalized ring.

In a previous post, I shared a similar tutorial for a wide band ring, but I’m loving this style just as much or more.

YOU’LL NEED:

1. Metal Stamping Hammer
2. Alphabet Stamps {I used the ImpressArt Juniper Lowercase alphabet}
3. Steel Ring Mandrel
4. Sandbag
5. Stamp Enamel
6. Sterling Silver Tab Ring Blank
7. Soft Cloth or Paper Towel

STAMPING YOUR RING

Step 1: Place your ring snugly on the mandrel.
Push it down as far as it will go so that it doesn’t move even when struck.

Step 2: Nestle the mandrel into your sandbag.
Another option is to secure the mandrel with a table vise.

Step 3: Stamp your words, letters, or images as normal, turning the mandrel slightly as you go.

If you’re new to stamping, you may not want to make this your first project; try a few practice blanks on a flat surface first. Hold your stamp vertically with the image/letter touching the blank. Give a very firm tap on the top of the stamp with your hammer. One good solid tap should be enough to create a clean image. Tapping too many times may cause your mandrel to shift slightly and give you a messy or double impression. Not tapping hard enough won’t give a clean impression of the whole letter.

As far as what you actually stamp, you can write a word, a name, a phrase, or anything else that’s meaningful to you. Or, you can decorate it with design stamps instead. Here I used two initials with a little ampersand in between. This would make a great personalized gift for a wedding or anniversary. You could also use your children’s initials.

To make sure my design is centered properly, I like to stamp the middle character first, then work my way outward.

Step 4: Apply stamp enamel.
Cover the stamped area completely, making sure to get enamel down in the crevices, then wait 10-30 seconds for it to dry.

Then, use a soft cloth or a paper towel to wipe the surface and remove the excess. Everything on top should come off easily, while the enamel down in the grooves of the stamped areas will remain, giving the same darkened look as oxidized metal. This will make your design stand out and make it easy to read, even from a distance.

There are a variety of ring shapes and sizes available at Beaducation, including these Tab Blanks as well as Wide Bands, Thin Sterling Silver Bands, and bands with heart, circle, and rectangle shapes.

Personally, I want to try them all! I’m thinking the heart would be perfect for my next project. In the meantime, I’m so pleased with how this one turned out.

Thank you to Amy Latta of One Artsy Mama for the awesome step-by-step ring tutorial.