Zodiac

The Zodiac collection is an exciting addition to my Revive series. These hallmarked pendants originated as solid silver spoons, designed by renowned sculptor David Cornell in 1972 for John Pinches, one for each sign of the zodiac. I have repurposed the spoons to create a lovely, chunky yet minimal pendant that blends contemporary design with original features.

I have had these spoons a while and trialled various different styles for the pendants before reaching this version; I think the stripped back minimal design allows the zodiacs to shine, to be the main feature without any fuss distracting from it. They are a nice thickness so hang well on the chain without being too heavy.

Whilst the pendants look minimal, they are deceptively involved to create. You can see the process here. The zodiac discs were not soldered to the spoons, these were glued, which came as a bit of a surprise. Although a friend mentioned 1972 was the era of 3 day weeks so maybe speed was of the essence! To create these pendants I have had to remove the zodiac discs, clean all areas of the remains of the noxious glue, then file the back down to create an even surface. Had I just cut around the disc in its original placement this would have missed the hallmark as that is lower than where the disc sits on the front.

Part of the leaf decoration on the spoon is filed down to create a flat surface (don’t worry, the rest of the decoration is kept in tact and will become a future Revive creation) and the disc carefully soldered into place to ensure the hallmark is in the correct place on the back.

Lots of filing then takes place to make the pendant round, with smooth edges, and the bale soldered into place. All of this takes a lot of time and care to get everything in just the right spot. I work through different grades of filing and sanding so the edges are lovely and smooth, then give a pre polish which gives the final polish an extra boost. The polish gives the pendant a lovely long lasting warm shine.