From Mine to buckle
HANDMADE SOLID SILVER BUCKLES
Each Camino belt buckle is a piece of solid silver jewelry entirely handmade in Taxco, Mexico by master silversmith Osiel Hernández and his father César, artisans from one of the town’s established silverworking families.
Our buckles are crafted from solid 950 silver, a higher silver content than traditional 925 sterling. This increased purity produces a deeper luster and warmer glow while maintaining the durability required for everyday wear.
Each buckle is either lost-wax cast or hand-sawn, then refined through approximately six hours of careful bench work.
Design & Wax Sculpting
Every buckle begins as a hand-drawn form or carved wax model. Proportion, curvature, and relief depth are established at this stage.
Silver Selection & Alloying
We begin with 99.9% pure silver granalla, locally mined in Mexico. The silver is melted and alloyed to produce solid 950 silver, higher in purity than traditional 925 sterling, offering greater luminosity while maintaining durability.
Casting or Hand-Saw Fabrication
High-relief buckles are created using lost-wax casting, where molten 950 silver is poured into a mold and released as a solid form. This process allows for sculptural relief and curvature that cannot be achieved through stamping or machine milling. The result is dimensional silver that catches light from multiple angles, giving the buckle presence and depth when worn.
Openwork designs are hand-cut directly from solid silver sheet using a jeweler’s saw. This technique produces cleaner negative space, sharper interior corners, and finer line control than mass-produced cutouts.
Refinement and Sanding
Excess material is removed. Edges are filed. Symmetry is corrected. The buckle is sanded to eliminate tool marks and refine hand feel.
Polishing
Each buckle is hand-polished to the desired finish. The luster comes from the solid silver itself; no plating, no surface coatings.
Hallmarking & Final Inspection
Every buckle is stamped to indicate 950 silver purity and inspected for weight, balance, and finish before pairing with leather.
