Q: I love working with silver but prices have been so high lately. How can I stretch my stash?

A: We did get used to rather reasonable prices on silver for the last 6 or 7 years, but it has risen and the pundits are calling for it to rise even more. While pundits are often wrong, rather than wait and see, I’ll offer some tips on making the most of the supply you have and can afford.

Save all of your scrap! Here are some suggestions as to what you can do with your scrap metal:

Q: How do I keep metal dust from covering the lines I’m trying to follow when I’m sawing? I’m using rubber cement to glue the design on the metal, but the adhesive seems to just attract the filings and I can’t see where I’m going!

Q: I’ve had bone spurs at the base of several fingers on the palm side of my hands on and off since I graduated with a degree in metalsmithing. Because I constantly work with my hands, they never fully have a chance to go away. What can be done about bone spurs?