Moorish Rose Pot Holder

 

Been a while since my last update here; so many things going on; then the shut down...  I had been thinking closing down this blog, and just put all new posts on my shop's website.

But then, some of the things I make (OK, a lot of the things I make) don't exactly fit in there.  And it would be sad that these treasures of mine, many made with blood, sweat, and tears, just languish in back of the WIP pile.

So, I figure it makes sense to keep this blog updated, and hopefully will eventually catch up with my adventures and play time!

OK, here is one not exactly from back of the WIP pile, it's actually out on my kitchen counter, contributing to daily chores ;-)

My Moorish Rose Pot Holder!

This is done with stainless steel binder rings, big ones!  Good thing about binder rings?  No need for pliers ;-)  But then the ARs are so big ( I don't remember how big...) that it was a bit difficult to see the pattern at the beginning.  But once the center 7 are done, it did become easier to continue; then, it started to weigh more, quite a bit more...

And I forgot to take WIP photos, but this is how big it ended up being...

Compared to the few smaller ones...

Or, as Dorothy modeling it here...

In any case, it's now my go-to pot holder :-)

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Pet Dragon with Fire Mix Scales

Meet Sharon H's new body guard!

Mr. Lil Smaug, the chainmaille version, that is :-)

Thanks to the beautiful scales from Blue Buddha Boutique and C&T Designs, this handsome dragon gets to wear the most shiny armor ever!

Isn't he the cutest?!  :-)

So far, I've made a number of dragons.  What's the same is that every one of them is a labor of love; what's different is their personalities; each is unique.  How amazing is that?!!

Want your own pet dragon in your favorite color mix?  Please visit my online studio DaisyKreates.com for more details.

Pet Dragon with School Color

I'm not a sports fan, never paid much attention to school colors either; but I recently noticed a lot of them chose maroon!  Interesting!  Never thought of this seasonal, somewhat muted color would be so popular among school teams.

Any how, I received a request to make a pet dragon key fob with maroon color scales.  Well, in our chainmaille world, we just call this color "burgundy" :-)  and many thanks to C&T Designs for supplying these fabulous scales!!

This handsome dragon takes after its older siblings in not only being totally awesome,

but super adorable too ;-)

Want one of these cuties with your school colors?  Please visit my online studio for ordering details.

Click here for more views.

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Lorenz's Forget-Me-Not Bracelet

How does one forget anything this gorgeous?

This fluid...

Even in the littlest detail...

Well, one does not EVER!!

A special order from a special person!  So grateful for Manola's trust and support of my work.  Next up in the series of Forget-Me-Not, finger ring!!!

Interested in one of these as well?  I'll be happy to custom make one for you!  Just drop me a note in the Contact Form; be sure to include the name "Forget-Me-Not Bracelet" in the description.

Thanks so much for visiting!

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Chainmaille Owl Pendant

After the previous post on my original chainmaille owlet design, I've been asked why that owl looks different than the ones we often see in paintings and movies...  Well, I suppose that's because they were inspired by the three baby barn owls on Cornell Lab's bird cams.

Barn owls don't have ear tufts.  That's why:-)

Now, what if I add a couple of more rings here and there, to highlight the ear tufts, and add depth to the eyes, wonder how that might change the overall impression?

Better now? :-)

Incidentally, this is also a bigger owl, about 1 1/4" across and 1 1/8" tall.  I bumped up the sizes of all rings, and switched all bright aluminum rings to stainless steel for a better weight, which took me much longer than making the whole owl pendant, oy......

Or, should it be "screechhhhh"?  LOL!!!

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A Dragon is Born!

Hey there!!

What's up? :-)

What's new?!

Coming down my hand for a visit?!

Or, maybe just one more snooze :-)

Now, a good stretch...................

OK, ready?  Go!! :-)

So happy for this little one; it had just arrived at its new home with Roland!  Have fun, guys!!

Each of my chainmaille dragons is custom made to order (like this one) with all saw cut stainless steel jump rings to ensure its long term durability, so it can accompany you on lots and lots of fantastic adventures!! :D

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Ruffly Ribbon Strangemaille Pendant in Golden Fuchsia

Yes, this is a pendant that I created a while back, but never quite finished the whole piece, until now!

I really like this weave, Strangemaille, created by lorenzo of MAIL.  Seemingly random, but strangely consistent; I like the little wonkiness (is that a word? :-), and the softness both in look and feel.

But when it's centered on a delicate ball chain, it's totally prim and proper, be it on a white blouse....

or that cute little black dress!!

Pendant is 2" long, 5/8" wide, on 18" plated ball chain, with a 1" extension.

Make this your go-to necklace for the long, lazy summer to come!

This pretty pink pendant is now available for purchase in my online studio DaisyKreates.com.

Oh, and you are also looking for a something to go with this necklace, a finger ring perhaps?  Be sure to check this out as well.

Genie Bottle Pendant in Raven Black

One of my favorite Genie Bottles in monochrome black.

It's difficult to photograph black on black ....

See what I mean?
But this black beauty is totally versatile.  Be it raven black, jet black, onyx black, or black galaxy, it's a little bit of everything, reserved, goth-looking, mysterious, unexpected, still goes perfectly with any outfit, in any occasion, day and night!

I'm glad my friend Joanna asked for one of these; I might not have tried this color scheme on my own, mostly because I already wore so much black, LOL!!!

Took me way longer to prepare photos for this pretty pendant than to make it.  One day I'll figure this one out.

Available as customer through my online studio!!

More pix?  Please visit my online album.

Celtic Labyrinth, or December?

My very first contact with chainmaille was a Byzantine chain, as demo'ed by David Scott Plumlee on an episode of Beads, Baubles, and Jewels.  I was hooked by how the tiny little jump rings of exactly same sizes and shapes morphed into this mesmerizing pattern.

I'll bet I'm not the only one that started their chainmaille addiction, uh, I meant "journey", from this weave:-)

There's a reason for this Byzantine Effect; and this Celtic Labyrinth pendant is a good example.  Look closely and you'll see this weave is another play on the same weave but with rings of rather different AR's.

And I do like making this weave with the Byzantine flip method, which is building the pendant inside out starting from the center rings.  This allows for a sturdy, immobile structure if you wish.  The other method, which builds the 2x2 chain first, inserts center rings last, seems difficult for me to properly close the center rings, i.e., no room to land my pliers.

So, what about December?  Right, the other weave that actually works exactly the same way as Celtic Labyrinth, but with different number of points; December as it's recorded in MAIL weave library has 6 points; Celtic Labyrinth has 4.  Those who came to chainmaille before me had already discussed this on MAIL.

I experimented with a few 5 pointed ones in different AR combinations.

Isn't it amazing that while they are all made in the same manner, the results are quite different, even with some 3-D effect!

Be it Celtic Labyrinth (Unit) or December, the influence of Byzantine is not hard to see, and I now have a much deeper appreciation for Byzantine weave's versatility.

Any insight learnt from making this pendant?  When needed, square wire rings are quite excellent in increasing the stability of the weave.  Now you know!! :-)

More views of the pendant, as well as my experiments, are here and here in my Picasa web albums.

Two Genie Bottles in Classic Golden Mulberry

The smaller, more dainty one, in my original design.

Then the bigger, more showy one, in the second incarnation of my genie bottle design.

Both custom made for my friend Etsuko, in the same color scheme of golden mulberry that is most reminiscent of the "I Dream of Jeannie" bottle.

While I have created quite a few chainmaille genie bottles in lots of color combos, each time I completed one of these beauties, I still find myself falling in love with it all over again!

I wish I had one photo of these two side by side, so you may see how they are similar "and" different...  The next best thing, how about these two photos side by side?

I used the same colors and sizes of AA rings to weave the Whirlybirds, but in different number of rings.  Interesting to see the dramatic changes in the final sizes.

Over the time as I've experimented with incorporating other elements, such as beads, chains, wires, into my chainmaille pieces, one thing becomes clear:  Multimedia is much more than just the materials; it is even more about the techniques, and knowing when to use which material, what technique for their unique qualities and best contribution to the overall design.  Right, so glad that all the time I spent on bead-weaving and wire-wrapping, plus several other more :-) is now coming together nicely.  It's the quickening!!

For complete views of these two pieces, please check them out in

here and here.

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Pet Dragon Key Chain with Blue and Green Scales

A very special little dragon, custom made to order for a very lucky girl!!

No pink or red; but blues and greens are the fave!!

Super curious;

Always alert!

Happy with belly rubs;

Or curling up for a nap:-)

For a similar dragon as this one, I'll be happy to custom make one for you via this Chainmaille Pet Dragon Key Fob made-to-order listing.  For my other chainamille creations, please visit my online studio DaisyKreates.

For complete views of this cutie, please visit my Picasa Web album.

Thank you for stopping by!!

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