03.14.16 Pi Day

Photo credit: Slide Rule Resource Center

When I realized that March 14 was a Monday, I could barely contain my excitement as I thought..."a Pi Day post!"

Mine is a family of geeks and nerds; scientists, engineers and mathematicians; thinkers and tinkerers.  My father had a PhD in theoretical physics, my mother was a mathematician.  Early in their courtship my Dad gave my Mom a half size mahogany backed K+E slide rule.  My grandparents were perplexed by his choice, but my mother loved it!



My husband, who now builds integrated circuits, was a high school champion in academic slide rule competitions - yes - they had that in Texas.  Our oldest son is the chief mechanic for high end chain for bicycle stores - he's all about application and precision.  Our middle son graduated summa cum laude with a degree in mathematics.  Our daughter is almost halfway through college, majoring in biochemistry.

Pi Day is a holiday created for people just like us - and just a couple of weeks ago, I finished a piece of Pi jewelry.

I didn't hesitate when I saw this green turquoise cabochon - I bought it and started to think about what I wanted to do with it.  I loved the color - which reminded me of a granny smith apple - and that was the source of my inspiration...I would call the pendant "Apple Pi".

Of the work I've done so far, this may be my favorite piece.  Not just because of the stone, but it is my first piece in argentium which can be fabricated by fusing rather than soldering (I could write another geeky post about the differences between argentium and sterling...but that's not for today).

It's also my most detailed saw work. Because argentium has a different melting temperature than sterling, the assembly process is a little different.  With sterling, I can cut the backplate at any point in the assembly process - with argentium, piercing the backplate is the last step before polishing and finishing.

Photo credit: amazon.com

It's much easier to saw with the bezel up and the flat side of the backplate down, so to make sure the "Pi" was facing the right direction, I had to draw it backwards on the inside of the piece.  I'm really, really pleased with the end result - and now thinking I might make another Pi pendant to put in my shop...perhaps a circle on a square backplate, because we often joke at our house "pie are round...not Pi R Square."







No matter what your preference - apple, pecan, lemon meringue, pizza or chicken pot pie - I hope you find time today to order a slice.


Until next time.