WHAT IS FORDITE
Fordite, was an intriguing accident created 50+ years ago at the Ford Rouge plant outside of Detroit, MI. Metal racks transported new car bodies through the paint shop and into the oven where the paint coating was baked hard. As more and more cars came down the assembly lines to be sprayed, layer upon layer of paint built up on the racks. Occasionally, one of the workers would chip off some of the paint build-up, take it home, and get creative with it. Fordite is also known as Detroit Agate for its resemblance to the natural stone that contains several colors in interesting patterns.
Modern car factories do not have the overspray waste that the older factories had, so modern Fordite is relatively rare. Fordite is collected by car aficionados, for instance, a piece of Fordite traced to a 1960s Corvette plant (yes, not only Ford oversprays) can be quite costly.
I discovered the material recently, and for those who follow my jewelry design aesthetic, it should not surprise you that I have a new love.
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