decorative calla lilly wall sconces

[richi b]

Hi all
I have not posted for a while due to work stuff. I was hoping that some bright spark might now how to mike a calla lilly (peace lilly) out of 1mm mild sheet. I have mangered to make the basic shape and but it has a lot of folds and creases in the metal that distract from the finish. the lilly is to be used as a candle holder for a wall sconce. If any one has any ideas then please let me know. Many thanks richi b

 

[chunkolini]

Put up a picture of what has happened to it, that can often help to see what is wrong.
If it has gone out of the window that might have damaged it.

 

[richi b]

i think the main problem is the compound shaped curves. I tried heating it to bright orange then forming the shape with grips and round nose pilers.then i tried bashing it with a small brass engineers ballpein hammer on a block of wood to try and force it to shape but thats when the creases and folds came. Also is a photo of a rose made using destructions on here somewhere and made of an old shelve from an office cubord i scavenged from some where

 

[richi b]

also the finish on the rose is an old style black-smiths heat it to cherry red and drop it into old used engine oil then put a lid on it and leave for it to cool then repeat for as needed to get depth of finish, it may case harden the subject thu.

 

[Hitch]

The Lilly isn't all bad, the basic shape is good, but I think your choice of hammer needs to be different, something with a larger face, not a ball pein.

Id be inclined to shape the large back area first, then pull the fronts round to form the candle holder.

 

[richi b]

thanks hitch i will try that on the next one. might need to get another bottle of gas for the forge fist as this one is frosting up a lot

 

[Hitch]

Probably do it cold....

 

[richi b]

would it go with it being cold thought that would make the metal split and tear?

 

[hotrodder]

Nah, it'll be fine as long as the cut edges are smooth/deburred. It's difficult to try and describe with just words but what you need to do is a type of reverse curve. Googling 'sheet metal reverse curve' and clicking on videos will get you the principles. The area that needs stretching the most is around the centre of the red line...



That'll give you the arch as the petal curves back without the creases as the sides curl round. It tends to be a bit of two steps forward, one step back (especially when learing/the first attempt) as each step tends to partly reverse the shape in other areas. The trick is to know how much to overshape things so the next step corrects things rather than undoing them but that's where the 'fun' is

 

[richi b]

thanks hotrodder i take it this would be done on dollies with a planishing hammer

 

[hotrodder]

Could do but that stretches things pretty slowly albeit with more control. The first hit in the link i posted shows a hollowed out tree stump being used, the hollow giving the metal room to move. A soft surface is another way, traditionally a leather shot/sandbag but an old towel bunched up on the table/bench will provide support that 'gives'

As Hitch you really want a larger face than a ball pein, i'd probably begin by whacking* (what will be) the back of the petal with a bossing mallet to stretch a spot and then maybe refine the shape of the main arch of the petal using something like a pipe bend as a dolly before pulling the sides and front round. Doing that last step is gonna try and reverse some of the shape in the back of the petal. If you want to (try) to be clever you could over shape it so it undoes things about the correct amount but the two steps forward, one step back is easier

* at this stage start with an oversize piece of metal, typically an inch or so margin all round. As it begins to take shape trim the excess

 

[richi b]

right then i need some more tools me thinks. got some leather and a beach near me so can make a bag need a bossing hammer and have a plumbers pipe bender so will use the 22 mm former out of that and give it a go. thanks for the help guys

 

[hotrodder]

Just crudely roughed out but to give you the idea...

Tools used (sand bag not shown but seriously, an old towel will work for something like this)


felt tip is the area i hit with the bossing mallet, only 4 or 5 blows to stretch the area evenly a little bit


which helps the transition from concave to convex (the reverse curve)


I've changed my mind about the order though as the bossing mallet first made it harder to get the overall shape in sooo... i would begin to roll the edges around and rough the overall shape into the petal first. then bash the spot into the bag/towel before finishing rolling the edges etc

 

[richi b]

Excellent thanks Hotrodder that's going to help a lot

 

[Chipper]

You'll find your own way of doing it, but I make my flowers cold, bits of wood hollowed out to form "bowl" shapes in the petals. Edges are curled afterwards once I'm sure the nests of petals feel good together, they usually need a bit of fettling.
Curled edges etc are done over all sorts of odds & ends like cold bent rod, tube cut at an angle. Home-made hammers out of round bar and big stainless coach bolts, formers & dollies and a weeny hammer made from a wheel brace etc etc. Any-old-anything gets used
Bossing mallet sometimes starts the bigger petals in the wood recesses, but need other things to carry them on. I don't use the sandbag.

 

[richi b]

roses are shorted chipper it was the calla lily i was having difficulty with but hope to have that sussed out now but thanks buddy