This shade may be suspended from the socket by means of silk cords or wires, and the open spaces at the top will permit some light to glow above the shade.
Chapter X
RELIEF ETCHING
In this era of practical craftsmanship there is a field for any unique art that savors of originality and which will help to beautify the home and its furnishings.
Relief etching is one of these arts, and is a very old one, having been employed by the workers on King Solomon’s temple, and perhaps in earlier historical buildings. That was before the time of chemical treatment, however, and when the beautiful effects were obtained by laborious hand-work, a modification of which is handed down in the Turkish, Russian, and Oriental hand-etched brasses and silver goods.
Modern science and chemistry have superseded the old method, and many beautiful pieces of relief etching are produced by the acid process, which is much more beautiful in some respects than the tool-work. The process is very simple, and any boy can become master of the art in a short time and at a very moderate cost.
The equipment necessary to the work will be a tray for the acid bath, a small can of asphaltum varnish, three or four camel’s-hair brushes of assorted sizes, a bottle of nitric acid, and some pieces of sheet brass or copper less than one-eighth of an inch in thickness.
For the acid bath a photographer’s porcelain or hard-rubber developing-tray will be just the thing, but if not available a good pine or white-wood tray can be made with sides two inches high.
To protect the wood from the action of the acid, the tray should be treated to several successive coats of asphaltum varnish—one each day until the wood is thoroughly coated and the joints well filled. The wood should be half or three-quarters of an inch thick, and screws should be used at the joints and laps. A tray of this description can be made at home, and when finished it should appear as shown in Fig. 1. If the varnish is too thick when applying it, a little turpentine will thin it properly.