Got Phi?

The above is an illustration of the Front and Back sides of a new rule I found at Lee Valley Tools.
This is an illustration how to use the Phi rule. Illustrations courtesy Lee Valley.

Phi, also known as the "Golden Ratio," or the "Golden Mean," has a value of approximately 1.618. Named after Phidias, the lead sculptor of the Parthenon in Greece, who is said to have employed it. Phi is used to proportion objects, buildings, furniture and art, for greater aesthetic appeal.

The rule eliminates the complex calculations when applying the golden ration to designs.

I thought it looked interesting. so I bought a six inch one, the smallest, to try and use it is some jewelry designs. Don't know if it will work, but worth a try. Comes in a plastic case with full instructions, easy to use. You'll need a pair of chain nose pliers to free the rule from the case!

Lee Valley does have some other things which have a potential use by jewelry makers. The is a selection of capped plastic tubes for storage, such as needle files and saw blades, plus other small storage containers, a variety of magnets which can be employed to hold small tools in place. There are magnets to hold pencils, or possibly a scriber. Magnifiers, safety items, masks, wet and dry sandpapers, etc. There is also a very nice bound logbook for you to keep your design ideas from being lost. Might be worth your while to take a look. The tubes are nice, I ordered some, as well as magnets. The magnets are powerful.

http://www.leevalleytools.com

Ordered some pieces of "faux bone" from Robert Danzig to experiment with. I think I shall have fun playing with this material. I'm going to try texturing the material by heating and pressing in some old mimeograph stencil texturing plates left over from yesteryear. Might be able to employ some of the styli we used to use. Some of you probably haven't a clue what I'm referring to when I say "mimeograph!"

Ordered more metal in various gauges and types, tubes and mesh, etc.

Very cold here for Arkansas, too cold to work in the garage, so the stump is still on hold. I will, sooner or later, finish it.

Now, I have still more projects on hold. Bought a interesting shaped, old anvil on Ebay. Man, is it ever going to take a lot of work to shape up for jewelry work. Rust removal, plus a lot of sanding. I hope it will be worth the effort! That job will have to wait for warm weather.

Hope you haven't suffered too much bad weather. We missed a bullet the other day.

Saw a video on Ganoskin where a guy attempted to polish chain with a buff on a polishing machine. Guy was extremely lucky not to have lost a finger! Destroyed part of his chain. Never attempt such a thing! Polishing machines are incredibly dangerous when used improperly! As is most machinery when misused.

Have fun, be well, do good work and check back once in a while.