Finally something different?

After bracelets and chokers, I've finally made some matching earrings :-)

I used readymade ear hooks though but the chainmaille weaves are mine.

Left to right:

Silver tone Byzantine weave earrings

Gunmetal Byzantine weave earrings

Silver tone barrel weave earrings

Gunmetal barrel weave earrings

Cheers!

Black Beauty

While this would go very well with a little black dress, I think it does casual looks as well with a long sleeve white shirt (sleeve rolled up to bracelet length, of course) and jeans. I like this combo, shiny/bling beads and shaggy loops, for its dual personality of formal and casual looks.

As usual, I've included an extendable chain with a 4-ring Mobius flower.

I'm liking the Mobius flower more these days. There's something quite captivating about looking at the swirls on a multiple-ring Mobius flower.

Material used: Toho 8/0 seed beads, 5mm gunmetal rings and gunmetal lobster hook

Have a blessed evening!

ps: I'm considering making these as chokers or short necklaces but the looping so many beads is a stumbling block. There are about 400 here and it already took me hours :-( That, and my hand hurts.

Afternote

Took another pic this morning. Looks different :-)

More and more rings

Bought some long green frosted magatama beads. I was looking for shorter ones, those that look like drop beads but I could only find these. I like these too after seeing how it all comes together as a bracelet. I also found a tiny Hand Made tag that I added, along with a 2-strand slide lock. This bracelet's fun to wear since it's simple to wear on your own with the slide lock and also 'cos it has a lot of movement.

DD has claimed this.

I found 5mm rings in other colours. From left to right, Byzantine weaves in gunmetal, gold, rhodium and silver. I don't think they're the real thing 'cos of the price (even though the Great Singapore Sale is still on) but they do resemble the real thing. I have some silver-plated rings that I bought from Australia and they look similar to these that I bought here in Singapore. Price-wise, the silver-plated ones from Down Under cost more than 5 times the price of similar looking ones.

Both DS and DD like the gunmetal one the most. I think I still prefer the rhodium rings.

Have a blessed day!

And more stars

I made another 6-petal Celtic star and decided to try making a 5-petal one with the remaining rings from both the gunmetal one (bottom of the pic) and the non-tarnish one (top right). I found two smaller rings for the middle and counted off how many rings I would need and, thankfully, I had enough.

DS and DD both prefer the gunmetal one. I think I prefer a silver one (from rhodium or aluminium rings) with an accent charm for some colour. 

Have a blessed day!

Seeing stars

This is the 3rd attempt at making a Celtic star. It's a variant from the actual 'cos I didn't bother with aspect ratios again so the first two were too floppy. These were made from 2 sizes, one wrapped round a 3.5mm knitting needle and the larger one wrapped around a Papermate pen.

Have a blessed day!

Chains

Have been trying out different types of chains. These are, from top to bottom,

2 by 3 in brass

2 by 3 in gunmetal

barrel or double vision with gunmetal doubles and brass exteriors

barrel or double vision with brass doubles and gunmetal exteriors

parallel or helm in aluminum

I struggled at the start with the barrel and parallel but it's not that difficult once you get the hang of it and it develops into a rhythm. :-)

Have a blessed, warm evening. Took this pic just now, think it'll be another hot day tomorrow.

Jump ring fatigue

My right hand hurts from gripping the chain nose pliers too tightly. I've switched to using the Beadsmith jump ring 'ring' so at least my left hand is recovering. :-) I'm still having lots of fun with chain maille.

These are 3 bracelets. Only the green one is done. The label on the wire was torn off but I suspect it's aluminum 'cos it's so light, compared to the Artistic Wire brass and gunmetal above. Two are similar in design with the 3-ring Mobius flowers, double connectors and heart lobster clasps. The middle one is a part Byzantine and part metal focal charms. While it looks like there's a big gap between the rings, it wasn't easy attaching the metal charms 'cos of the larger ring size. I like the result though. Now I'm deciding between buying a toggle or making a clasp out of the same brass wire. But for now, I rest.

Have a blessed day!

This reminds me of chocolate

The shiny brass is like the foil on the outside and the gunmetal, the chocolate within. :-)

Mobius chain bracelet with 3-ring brass Mobius flowers or love knots and double connectors in gunmetal. This time, I used a heart lobster clasp with an extension chain. Total of 57 brass rings with 5.5mm ID and 45 gunmetal rings with 3.5mm ID.

Have a blessed day!

Gunmetal vs antique bronze

There are so many types / colours of wires out there. These are 2, antique bronze and gunmetal. At certain angles, gunmetal seems like tarnished metal yet when it catches the light, it seems like hematite. It's actually another type of bronze. :-)

These are 2 airy Byzantine bracelets. Airy 'cos the gauge of the wire is too high compared to the 'norm' and the ID is too big. Well, I wanted to try and see what it's like. Sometimes the links get caught and you can't see the pattern but otherwise, it's OK.

Have a blessed day!

Chainmaille

I chanced upon chainmaille jewelry few weeks back. Jump rings linked together in certain patterns to create chains or pendants. I bought some jump rings for the bookmarks few days back and decided to try this out. The 'normal' gauge for such is usually thicker than what I had on hand but for a trial run, it was OK. I tried 2 types before my hand started aching from twisting the rings shut or pinching them to hold them in place before placing the next ring. I prefer the Byzantine one more than the double ring one. Maybe if there was more colour or different sizes, the double ring one would be nicer. I used the gunmetal rings instead of the antique bronze. At a glance, it may seem to be tarnished but when the light hits it at the right angle, it's a really pretty colour :-)

Afternote: made the Byzantine into a bracelet.

More updates

First 2 of 4 coptic-bound hardcover books. White unlined pages with pink or patterned papers for each signature. All 4 are pink and unique :-)

 

DD wanted more clips and I got a bit carried away at the shops. Somehow, hair clips at craft shops cost less than hair clips at accessories shop. These are in gunmetal, DD's current favourite colour for accessories.

So I made some bookmarks with the organza ribbons using antique brass and gunmetal ribbon crimps and charms. I like the shells most. These are really simple to make. A tad tricky to roll the end and crimp it but otherwise, just attach a charms using an O-ring.

I like simple shiny shapes. Kind of regret only getting 2 each. Hope there'll be more at the shop when I next go there. Attached a flower to the light blue double wrap braided bracelet posted previously. Used one square for a bracelet similar in design to the ones I've made before. Last 2 are for an interchangeable necklace. I like the blue + silver combo.

Have a blessed day!