A handmade hallmarked sterling silver and crystal sugar sifter or dredger from the JA Campbell 'Appetite' collection.

It is a joy to use inside or alfresco and a necessary piece of table theatre. Your friends will love showering their winter puddings or summer fruit from this sterling silver and crystal dredger. This could start a revival of the sugar dredger when the idea spreads!

For people interested in how we produce this sugar dredger Master Silversmith John Campbell describes how he makes this item. Made from 3 components, 2 silver and 1 crystal. The first 2 are made by the spinning method. This is where hollow round objects are made on a spinning lathe by forcing flat silver blanks over a pre formed brass or steel chuck. This is a highly skilled process dating back many generations to possibly Roman times. The Mildenhall treasure in the British Museum contains some large round dishes bearing the telltale rings on their backs. The spinning process is most suitable for small production runs of between 1 and 100. Production batches larger than this would be better made by the pressing method. After spinning the 2 components, the next process is to join the 2 by lapping them together. This rolls the edge of the top component over the bottom, locking them together. The next process is to fit the cap to the crystal as the diameter of this varies slightly due to the body being mouth blown.

At this stage the article is punched with the makers mark, JAC in a triangle, which are the initials of founder John Campbell. It is then taken to the London Assay Office to be scraped and tested. Once a positive result has been received from the laboratory confirming that the article has been made with metal at least 92.5%, pure silver the remaining hallmarks are punched into the surface. This independent hallmarking process began in the 1400's and is one of the world's oldest and most secure forms of consumer protection.

Upon arrival back at our workshop, the hallmarks are inspected and 'set', that is to remove any small dents put in by the punching process. Following this the JA Campbell name punch is applied to the base.

The polishing process can now begin.  First using coarse compound moving up to medium and lastly a fine compound until the high polish associated with silver is achieved. 4 grades are used and around 20 different operations employed.

You can spoil yourself and buy one for your own use or a special present for someone close. It is also very suitable as a silver wedding present, a silver birthday present, a corporate gift or incentive gift. It can even be made in gold for the very special golden wedding present.

As with most JA Campbell products this item is suitable for engraving to personalize as a gift. The design features and quality in every item made by craftsmen at JA Campbell are unique.

In the unlikely event of damage JA Campbell provide a repair/replacement service. You can be assured that all J A Campbell products are made up to a standard not down to a price. Nothing leaves the Brentwood workshop until Master Silversmith John Campbell is completely satisfied.

This sterling silver and crystal sifter is a pleasure to use today and a great investment to be handed down to future generations.

As with most things in life your silver will need occasional cleaning, this does not need to be a chore and can be quite therapeutic. From as little as the wash up of an eating utensil to the occasional buff up to remove light tarnish, and an occasional polish using silver cleaner such as Silvo. A small item like this should only take 10 minutes to clean. You will wish you had done it weeks earlier when you see how good it looks.