Sunday 21 August 2011

Stone polishing

On our visit to the coast I collected my usual quota of pebbles from the beach. This is usually determined by the weight on the back axle!


I put them in my stone polisher and today they reached the end of Stage 2, having had two weeks in the polisher with carbide grit to grind them.

Opening the drum is a very messy business! I have ruined more tops than I care to mention.


However once the stones have been carefully rinsed you can begin to see their potential.

Bear in mind that these stones have only undergone two of the three stages of grinding and have then to be polished.


Already they are looking good. I'll just have to be patient for a couple of weeks to see the finished result!

If you'd like to see more on stone-polishing go to my page Art and All that Stuff

4 comments:

GaynorB said...

I look forward to seeing the finished articles. I love rocks and rock formations.

Every year when I get to teach the rocks bit of the science curriculum I show my holiday slides to the kids - rocks!!

Craig said...

They are very beautiful. What do you do with them once complete? Jewellery, small pieces of art?

Diane said...

They are gorgeous, I see that you make them into jewellry what a great idea. Now I want a polisher! Diane

Colin and Elizabeth said...

Gaynor, Craig and Diane thank you for your comments. I'll certainly post a picture (or two!) of the polished stones. Polishers aren't all that expensive, Diane, and they are great fun to use. You never know what you're going to end up with and it's always a pleasant surprise to see the gorgeous colours and patterns of the pebbles. It's a very tactile hobby too. Children love the feel of the polished pebbles. Yes, Craig, I make some into jewellery. There are examples on my Art and All That Stuff page (see link above). But most of them end up in glass dishes on coffee tables around the house, just to look at and handle!!