If you are making jewelry as a hobby, or explore new ways of texturing metal, start thinking about some items you have already at home. I have recorded a video about texturing metal using some of these items and tools. I have used stainless steel wire mesh, screws, screwdrivers and stainless steel wire to texture some copper blanks.
It will be certainly better to anneal metal and clean it first. You can use a small butane torch if your metal piece is not too large. Then, clean the oxides from metal surface and it will be ready for texturing. Here, I am talking about non-ferrous metals that I am usually using, such as copper, brass and silver. You also need a hard surface to be able to strike metal using a hammer or mallet. Any hammer or mallet you have, is fine. I use a very cheap and small hammer in the video. Strike stainless steel wire mesh on metal repeatedly and try to not move the wire mesh. It will create very interesting texture on metal.
You can also use any type of screwdriver. Use slotted screwdriver to create lines. Besides, you can use tip and thread of a screw for texturing, and both create unique effects. A screw tip can do what center punch does as well as making dots in a pattern. The below picture shows a very simple pattern created using screw tip and two types of screwdrivers.
Screw thread will create dashed lines, if you strike it repeatedly. It can make a pattern like what you see in the below picture.
You can also use a stainless steel wire to make texture. You can use a wire with any thickness you like. On the other hand, you can bend and shape the wire and then strike on the metal to create the effect you like. You can try the wires of other metals too, but stainless steel is the best one as hammering does not change its shape easily due to its hardness.
You can find other ways of metal texturing if you look at things in a different way! Write for me about your innovations.