Enamel, the application of a glass frit, onto or around metal objects, has a history longer than almost all other art forms. Examples over 2400 years old were unearthed on Cyprus in the 1950′s. In that time, the techniques developed around the Mediterranean have traveled the world. The Ancient Celts were particularity fond of enamel on their geometric designs for jewelry and belt buckles. The Byzantines developed enameling techniques to a high level in conjunction with the mosaic works they favored. Enamaling was well known to the Muslim people, and traveled to China, arriving around the end of the 14th century.
Enamel falls in and out of fashion. It is one of the techniques that make the Faberge objects so splendid, and Limoges, France and Battersea, England have made a living on enameled bibelot for centuries. Arte Nouveau used enameling extensively to get the sinuous lines and delicately colored objects designed and desired at the turn of the Twentieth Century. From the use of different enameling techniques, industrial products as different as bathtubs, pots and pans, entire walls and ceiling of buildings, advertising signs and the insides of home and commercial ovens.
Fundamentally, enameled charms are glass bonded to a metal shape by heat. The temperature of the oven where the charm’s components are bonded has to be hot enough to melt the special glass frit but not so hot the metal form begins to distort. The charm maybe be cloisonne, where thin metal walls separate one color from another so the colors do not mix, or the charm may be thick enough that araes for each color are scooped out of the charm, leaving enough wall between so that the colors do not mix. The resulting piece is then ground down to a flat and shiny surface. This technique is called champleve enamel. If there are no metal barriers to separate the colors, they probably were applied as a liquid, with the different colors thick enough not to mix on contact. Gold enamel charms have a gold plating added after the enameling process is complete.
There is one other technique I want to mention, in case you ever see it. Then you hold these enamel pieces up to the light, you can see through the glass because there is no permanent metal back. This technique is called plique-à-jour, and the results are beautiful and delicate. If you find something made this way, consider buying it, as not many pieces are made this way and even fewer survive over time. Handle carefully.
There is one other point about handling any enameled object. Do not twist the piece, as the enamel will pop off or shatter, and repair is nearly impossible. Once the enamel has a problem, the piece is flawed and cannot be returned to its former glory without the attention of a master enameler who will even try to repair it. Do not flex an enameled object. Do not drop an enameled object, as it will be damaged, as would any glass object.
Silver enamel charms are a mainstay of tourist attractions and the gift shops attached to them. You can build quite the memento bracelet from a road trip by buying charms as you visit various places. Or you can make a memento of a European trip by buying sterling silver enamel charms as you visit each country and city.
An enamel charm can commemorate almost any event in your family’s lives: ballet lessons, a trip to the beach, soccer teams and baseball teams, graduation, a new pet, and new profession, etc. Gradually adding enamel charms to a bracelet for a mother or daughter can make them realize you recognize the important events in their lives. And, if they do not seem thrilled at the time, in the future the charm bracelet will become a treasured object, made dearer by the gifts it contains and the memories of the giver.
Go to the Table of Contents to see all topics covered so far.
Click here to go to the most recent entry on this site.