I designed this pufferfish to be cute and cartoonish, but making this fun little creature really pushed my silversmithing skills to the limit. It’s fully handmade, without any casting. The process starts with cutting out two silver circles, which are hammered into hemispheres. These are further shaped to include eye sockets, a mouth, and the tail section. The eyes are then soldered in, and the two halves are joined to form the body. The seams are carefully finished to make it look like a single, seamless piece. I added engraved fins and spikes, all of which were cut, engraved, and filed by hand. Finally, I gave the body a satin-like finish to create a subtle, scale-like shine.
It turned out a bit heavier than I would like it to be, so I'll likely make them a bit lighter in the future and for now I'm selling this piece at a lower price.