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Step 3 - fusing the loops   I bend the newly cut loops to get the ends of the wire firmly pressed together. This is cruical because if there's even a small gap the fusing will not work. I heat the wire to just barely past orange-hot. At that point the wire surface becomes suddenly very shiny (it's molten) and I have to remove the flame immediately or the wire ends melt away from the heat and form little balls of metal. But if the timing is right then the ends run into each other and make one unbroken circle of wire. I would like to emphasize that there is no solder involved. The fine silver turns molten and fuses to itself. Several people have asked what type of solder I use for this process and the answer is none.