The Aluminum Makers

man holding engraved aluminum coin magnet; pair of aluminum earrings arranged with leaves

This group is near and dear to my heart for so many reasons. One, recycling the vast amounts of cans and other garbage that end up in the dump is a good good thing. Two, the people that do this were already working to make cooking pots for local buyers.

This pendant making is a profitable addition to a skill set already here.  The metal is melted over a hot fire and then poured into sand molds. It rests there for an hour or so until it is set and cool enough to handle. The pieces come out of the mold and are then cleaned with metal brushes to rid them of excess metal drops, so to speak. 

hand with engraved aluminum rings on fingers

After they make hundreds of these, another set of makers uses a hammer and metal stamp letters to hand stamp each word. Each piece is labor-full. Which we love, because more labor means more people with jobs!