Oops Chainmaille Finger Ring in Rainbow Anodized Niobium

Took me long enough to finally finish this ring!!

Do you remember the coil of pure niobium from last post?  Right, that's what went into this finger ring :-)

6 rows high, 22 columns around, several anodizing dips from 15 volt to 107, zipped up end to end, and voila!

Niobium gives out brilliant colors without etching, is hypoallergenic, super friendly for the majority of the skin sensitivity.  I specially like using it in chainmaille for its relatively harder temper and nice medium weight.

Did I mention I like colors? (hee hee...)

This baby belongs to my dear friend Joy M.  Think I'll be making more of these, because it's so ..... 

what's the word?

Addictive!  LOL!

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Vertebrae Finger Ring

Ring made of rings.  Circles into circles.  That's the magic of chainmaille finger rings.

Many times, I started out weaving a bracelet, or a necklace; then somehow when I wrap it around my finger......

Oh look, a perfect size for a finger ring!! :-)

Vertebrae is the name of the weave; or technically, it's known as a basic European 4 in 1 Scaled, with the "scale" referring to the smaller rings nestle inside the larger ones.  But enough of the maille-tech lingo!

Try this ring on for yourself.  It's substantial at 1/2" wide, but still nimble, fits comfortably with a low profile shank at 5/32" thick.

At ring size 7 1/2, it is a popular medium size ring for most gals, or a fashionable pinkie ring for the guys.

This ring is currently available for purchase in my online studio DaisyKreates.com.  Matching style of bracelet and pendant are also in the plan.  Stay tuned:-)

Visit my Picasa web album for more views of the ring, as well as my other handmade creations.


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Sterling Silver Squiggle Adjustable Ring

Squiggly, wiggly!  Free form and adjustable!

Fits on ring finger just as well as on pinkie.

Open ended design for easy adjustments.

Tapered back for comfortable wear without worry of ring slipping off accidentally.

Hammered surface with micro facets catching light all around it...

Oh so shiny:-)

Weights at 0.11 troy ounce, fits ring sizes 6 1/4 to 7.  All 925 sterling silver, all hand forged, no two are exactly alike.

Pick this one up in my online studio DaisyKreates.com now!

Oops Chainmaille Finger Ring

Soft, very tactile and conforming, yet strong and durable!

I have long favored Oops as my number one weave when it comes to making a chainmaille ring most representative of the unique quality of maille.

Yes, that's over 180 tiny little jump rings, opened and closed by me, with my trusted pairs of Xuron pliers, until my fingers and wrists are exhausted, eyes crossed....

No, this is not the most ring hungry project, but it is my pride and joy for the neatly lined up pattern and perfectly balanced weight distribution!  Not many other chainmaille finger rings offer such strength as well as a low profile.

Fingers itchy for a DIY?  Other than joining the ends, this is not a difficult one to make, just rather time consuming.  These are all bright aluminum rings in 20 awg, 3/32" ID.  Have fun!

More pix?  Visit this photo album!

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Strangemaille

You know what people say about things they don't understand.....  "That's strange..."  Got your attention, didn't it? :-)  It did for me!

It looks a bit strange (duh!), but in a very attractive way:-)  Saw several gorgeous bracelets made in the weave, looked almost like fuzzy loops out of yarns.  I want one!

So last night, I set out for my first go at Strangemaille; I was aiming for a short test strip.  It was rather easy, to my surprise.  So I kept going.  Wow, this weave is additive!  I couldn't stop!  Went for nearly 4 inches when it happened again, my eternal nemesis:  Running out of rings!  Ugh!

So I broke off a section of the strip, counted a few multiples of 3 center rings, decided to connect it end to end for a finger ring, instant gratification, right?!  But ahh.....  (you may have guessed it) The connecting part took me longer than learning and making the 4-inch strip!!

Lucky for me, when I nearly decided to give up and call it a night, it clicked!  Like a zipper!!

Not exactly prim and proper, more funky and loopy, LOL!!

It definitely is not as thin as a Oops ring would feel, but still pretty comfy on the finger, about the size of a chunky pinkie ring.  I'm very happy with this:-)

This ring is now available for purchase in my online studio DaisyKreates.com.  Please come by a visit.

As to the rest of that test strip?  I put a pink drop bead on one end, a simple bail of triple rings on the other, and turned it into a funky little pendant!

More pictures of the pendant to come in my future blog entry.  Please stand by! :-)

(I noticed how many times I used the word "funky" here; it's either it really is very funky, or I should expand my vocabulary beyond "funky"....:-) )

Complete views of the "Strange" stuff, please visit my Picasa web album.

~~~~~ Credits ~~~~~

Strangemaille is a weave by lorenzo on M.A.I.L.  To learn how to make this weave, I followed this tutorial by hysteria101, an excellent article.  Several inspiring work there as well as on M.W.W.


up, down, middle, up, down, middle, up down, middle....


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Ninja Star Finger Ring

A new twist in the popular scale maille flowers! This is a fun ring to wear during the relaxing, warm summer days!

Made of brushed aluminum scales, put together with orange color rubber O-rings and purple aluminum jump rings, this scale flower stays flat more so than many other scales flowers. From the side, it looks almost like those secret "ninja stars" from legends of the ancient days!

Oh, but do not throw this at anyone. For one thing, it is too cute for a weapon; besides, its light weight will not reach too far a distance:-) Bright and anodized aluminum are both light weight, making them well suited for big statement rings.

Measuring at 1 3/4 inches wide, a mere 3/8 inch high, this finger ring fits comfortably for size 7 to 7 1/4.

Available for purchase at my ArtFire studio.

Check out all my scale flower/ninja stars applications, please visit my Picasa Web Album.

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Dancing in the Rainbow - Part 2

Following upon yesterday's post of the sparkly set of "Dancing in the Rainbow", here's a little collage for the necklace.

This genie bottle pendant has the same elements as all her older sisters:-) but a whole lot more colors.  In fact, just about all the colors in the rainbow, and a couple more, making up the chamber portion of the chainmaille genie bottle.

Unlike all my other genie bottle pendants that "lounge" on the neck chains, this "all-spectrum" genie bottle sits straight up in the middle of the necklace.  It's incorporated into the necklace in a more classic design, very prim and proper:-)

Same as the other pieces of the set, this necklace is loaded with Swarovski crystals on its fringes.  We are going full force for the "bling factor"!

Now that we're all set,

~~~~~ Shall we dance? ~~~~~

For complete views of this very special set, please visit my Google Photos album.

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Dancing in the Rainbow

A commissioned 3-piece set of jewelry, with lots of colors, lots of bling!

The finger ring

If this looks lots of fun to wear, it was even more fun to make!

The chainmaille portion is a fancy European 4 in 1, kind of a morphed Chrysanthemum.  Easy enough.

But the base took me a while....  a long while.  Many experiments, lots of testing; I finally settled on the technique I learned from Eni Oken's Ornate Ring, which I modified to make a separate ring base/shank like so....

which can then be used with many other ring applications.  Pretty snazzy, wouldn't you say?!

And here are the earrings with clip-on ear wire findings...

A colorful version of my chainmaille genie bottle line, a very embellished chainmaille Whirlybird.

And finally, the necklace!

* note *

I wanted to take more photos for the necklace but my camera has finally decided to quit.  Not blaming it; it's given me almost 10 years of fun and good time; not many electronic gizmos out there these days can last 10 months with non-stop performance.  Thank you, my little red Exilim!  I will miss you...

So, I'm now shopping for a new camera.  Suggestions/recommendations welcome!  When I'm back behind my new camera, I'll get more pix for this fancy, blingy necklace, provided its owner Eunice will loan this back to me for more photos:-)

Cyberpunk Chainmaille Finger Ring

A challenge is good thing, specially when it comes to reinventing ancient coolness in a futuristic setting: Cyberpunk:-)

A stainless steel chainmaille finger ring, woven in European 4 in 1 on the bias, with brass trim, steel fringes, and blow-in-the-dark beads!  Yes, those beads glow in the dark!  Put them under a bright light source for a minute or so, take it into a dark room, and see the 8 beads (3 in front, 5 at the back) emitting pops of green light, reminiscent of fireflies in mid summer's nights!  Cute and fun!

Unlike most traditional finger rings, my Cyberpunk finger ring evokes motion as the chainmaille strip that forms the ring clearly steps up as it wraps around your finger, with offsetting ends and uneven fringes that are seemingly tapping into the unseen power flowing through the aether.

The inspiration of my design came from a gizmo called The AirMouse.  Ha ha, just as folks tease me about still tightly hanging onto my 7-year-old Palm Treo, I'm not big on the latest electronics, but I am fanatic about all things sci-fi!  Taking cues from the AirMouse (and the hand pieces created by the Ancients of the Stargate stories), my Cyberpunk ring design goes beyond just another mesh-like ring, its shape pointy, its style semi-organic, and its spirits practically out of this world.

It has been a pet peeve of mine that chainmaille finger rings must meet at least two requirements:  durability and comfort.  Let's face it, finger rings get probably the most abuse among all jewelry items.  Given the fact that chainmaille, as we construct them today, uses butted jump rings that are mostly unsoldered, I make my finger rings only with dense weaves, strong materials, and at the lowest possible aspect ratio without losing flexibility.  This ensures the ring will maintain its overall shape under your most daily stresses.

I also want my rings to be comfortable on the finger, not too bulky, not too pokey (well, unless pokey is part of objectives:-)....  Despite of its width, the wall of my Cyberpunk finger ring is less than 2.8 mm thick, that's under 1/8".  It will feel great on any finger that fits!

My Cyberpunk finger ring fits about size 8 1/4; at the widest, it measures 7/8"; on the back of ring, which is the narrower side, it's under 1/2".  The longest fringe is near 3/4" long, the shortest just over 3/8".  It is made of stainless steel, jewelry brass, and glass beads.

Available for order via my online studio DaisyKreates.com.

For more views of the ring, please visit my Picasa web album.
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Sterling Silver Oops Finger Ring

One of my all time favorite chainmaille patterns: Oops:-) But ahh, there is nothing "oops" about this ring!  Precision-crafted from bare sterling wire, hand coiled and cut with a jeweler's saw into hundreds of tiny jump rings, then woven together to create this awesome ring. Talk about labor of love!


Unlike most commercially produced finger ring, chainmaille rings have the advantage of having a bold presence without the weight.  What is most unique about this ring is in the Oops pattern, where each jump ring interlocks its neighboring rings at such angles that produces the strongest hold with the thinnest ring shank/wall.

Enough tech talk:-) Here are the ring specs: The ring is size 5 1/4, measures at 7/16 inch wide, 1/8 inch thick, weighing at tad over 1/3 troy oz.

Please visit this album for all photos of this lovely chainmaille finger ring.

More Oops Rings

Five more, to be exact! :-)

I started out wanting to fix my first Oops ring so that it's more of a "common" size. So that took a while to take apart the original, reduced 1 column, then split it horizontally into two, and this is where I started having lots of "Whaaa...?" moments.

Learning how to do Oops went really fast for me; that usually also meant I never fully understood how it's supposed to be.  Ah, but nothing like repairing a weave to truly let it sink in.

And when it did (that's aka. the light bulb moment), it finally made sense for me; then it happened, a temporary insanity set in, I made one in sterling 20 gauge (awg), then a 22, both in saw cut rings by me:-) Then I noticed I have some bright aluminum rings, WD 0.75mm, from TRL, that are perfect size for Oops; so that's another one (we'll call this a prototype:-)

But the last one is my favorite: Over 7 feet of 24 gauge 1/2 hard sterling, wound on 1.6mm mandrel, then saw cut into tiny ant-size rings, woven together for the most comfortable ring I've ever made or seen!

I lost track of time in making this ring; but it's about 4 long evenings and nights, lots of searching for dropped rings, several 'huh" moments, and a few times swearing, not to mention some unavoidable silver saw dust that may be lodged in my lungs ...

But this is my pride and joy! Light weight and sturdy, slides on my finger with ease but won't fall out when I wash my hands. Giving myself a big pat on the back. Good job, Daisy:-)
For more photos, please check out here.