Ash Tree Chains Handmade Chainmaille

An amazing woman named Lisa Ellis has found a way to make chainmaille fidget toys and thankfully has released a tutorial as well, so I have also learned how to make these. There are three sizes so far, though I have only made the medium-sized one.  There is a tiny version, a medium version, and a larger version.  The tiny one is more of a truly pocket-sized fidget while the medium size is larger, sort of palm-sized.  The large size fidget has rubber rings inside and can be worn as a bracelet when you don't need to fidget. They are amazing to watch as they spin.  I have made two medium-sized ones in different colors and they are absolutely hypnotizing. I have included videos in this post so you can see for yourself!    Rings for all pieces completed are from Metal Designz and The Ring Lord.

I have found a few amazing tutorials that helped me combine weaves to create a dragon and an owl.  I haven't made too many of them so far, but the ones I have made turned out very cute. The owls are really versatile and can be made in two different sizes and SO MANY different colors!  They can be simple decorations, pendants, tree ornaments, or almost anything really.  They're also super cute! Large Owl in Anodized Aluminum Dragon figurine in Anodized Aluminum I have also made a couple of Dragons!  They can be a statuette sort of figure or can be worn as what some call and hand flower and some call a slave bracelet.  I wear one this way with my costume for the Renaissance Festival!  I even tried it on as a dragon choker, that may take some tweaking but it can be done. There are a ton of variations of the dragons that I have seen, but I have only made it the one way so far. Dragon as hand flower On ...

Provided photo of Isagenix Logo I have finished a custom requested piece for a lovely woman who wanted her business logo on a necklace.  After lots and lots of playing around with rings, I finally fabricated a workable necklace!  I delivered it to her a few days ago and am happy to report she loved it!!  For those who may not know, the logo she requested (see picture) is for Isagenix.  It was a few tricky looking shapes to try to make and took a lot longer than I care to admit (lol) to figure out a way to make it.  I was able to get it all done though, mostly in a simple European 4 in 1 pattern with some Half-Persian for stabilization.  I've added some photos of the process.  These are all the same photos I had sent to her throughout and I would do the same for you if you were to request a custom piece (or any piece if you'd like updates). Step One: Making the shapes  The first thing I did was try to get the different shapes of the logo m...

Since maille became more popular for decorative and jewelry purposes rather than armor, there have been patterns and weaves designed that incorporate beads and crystals.  I have learned some weaves that use beads or crystals alongside the metal rings to add embellishment to the pieces themselves and some weaves that "capture" the bead/crystal in the mail and hold it without it actually being attached.  I'll get right to the pictures on this one since there will be a bit of a description of each piece.  As always, feel free to get in touch with me if you see something that interests you!  You can message me through here ,  here , or email me here . African Bead Necklace, Bracelet, and Earrings The African Beaded set includes hand-crafted beads known as Krobo Trade Beads from Ghana, Africa.  Each bead is made from recycled glass bottles and then hand-painted and sold using Fair Trade Principles.  This set is truly one-of-a-kind due to this. ...

As previously mentioned in my intro post, Chainmaille is believed to have been invented by the Celts.  There are SO MANY variations and types of "Celtic" jewelry weaves that I cannot even begin to tell you about all of them here.  I think they're most likely called "Celtic" because they sort of mimic the way traditional Celtic patterns look with the amazing amount of detail and intricacy found in traditional tapestries and such.  I'll make this a very quick post and show you the two pieces I have learned to make so far :D First: the Celtic Flower, which I have made in two styles.  A pendant, roughly the size of an American Quarter coin (a little larger, but not much) and a ring, around the size of an American Nickel coin. Celtic Flower Pendant in Bright Aluminum Celtic Flower Ring in Anodized and Bright Aluminum Second: the Celtic Stars which are a bit larger as I made them keychain size.  They are around 2 inches all around. Celtic Star...

The Japanese weaving style is one of the oldest forms of maille.   It dates back over 3000 years!  The Japanese called their maille “Kasuri” and their style uses a basic flat box structure or hexagonal grid pattern. Often with rings that are smaller than the ones used by Europeans.  They usually lacquered  their rings as well, to prevent rust when being sewn together with cloth or leather.  Japanese weaves are typically designed to be more flexible than their European counterparts.  Europeans, with the advent of plate armor, would use maille for joints and parts that needed to be able to move more to give a range of motion to their fighting style and allow the plate to take more of a beating.  The Japanese weaves allowed for more fluid movement by the body as a whole since mobility was a primary concern with their own fighting styles.   The difference between the Japanese weaves and European weaves also varied based on the weapons the maille was ...

Persian weaves are a particular family of chainmaille weaves that are very difficult to find historically.  There is not much (if any) evidence that it was ever actually used in the Persian Empire.  In the research I've done, the consensus seems to be that it is a more modern family of weaves that was named Persian as a nod to the intricacies of the designs.  There are so so many weaves in the Persian family.  I feel like I have barely begun to scratch the surface of what I will be able to do with this family of weaves.   Here are a few examples: Full Persian Earrings in Anodized Aluminum Full Persian Bracelet and Earrings in Enameled Copper Half Persian Heart Necklace in Anodized and Bright Aluminum Persian Dragonscale Bracelet in Bright Aluminum Rings and Kits for all pieces completed are from Weave Got Maille and Hyperlynks.

Viper Basket Bracelet in Anodized Aluminum Viper Basket is a name that is used for the doubled ring version of Orbital Vipera Berus.  It is a very easy, but great looking weave.  It is a 2 in 2 chain with larger rings "orbiting" each set of 2 to make the rings change direction and gives the weave a more intricate look. Viper Basket Bracelet with matching Earrings Vipera Berus is also called Northern Viper by some and is "the third bastard son of mixing European Styles and Hoodoo." Vipera Berus Bracelet in Anodized Aluminum I don't know too much about either of these weaves and I think it's because they are both variations of other weaves.  They are both amazing looking weaves though and lots of fun to do. I have only made one piece out of each of these weaves, so there are unfortunately not too many pictures to show.  I did make a matching pair of Viper Basket Earrings, but I don't know if the Vipera Berus would make good earrings or not....

The Sweet Pea weave is one I don't know too much about.  I have found online that it was named and possibly created by Dylon Whyte and that there are a few variations in the way the units are connected.  It's a tricky one to get started, but easy once it's established.  I like to think it's called Sweet Pea since the units look like little peas connected together, but really I have no idea why it was named this way.  It is a neat little weave though and I do plan to learn the variations, just haven't had the chance yet. Since there's not too much to say about this one, I'll skip right to the pictures of the couple I have created and will keep you all updated on new creations and variants.  As always, contact me if you have an interest in any of my creations and I will be happy to create your piece(s). American Sweet Pea Bracelet in Anodized Aluminum Jelly Bean Sweet Pea Bracelet in Anodized Aluminum Rings and Kits for all pieces completed are f...

All-American Swirls in Anodized and Bright Aluminum Gunmetal Swirls in Anodized and Bright Aluminum The Swirls design is a kit I got from a wonderful place called Weave Got Maille.  It was designed by Tanya Hlabse.  It uses a lot of Mobius units withing the design and as connections and is an amazing piece of jewelry.   Mobius Bracelet in Anodized Aluminum American Mobius Bracelet and Earrings Set in Anodized Alum. Ombre Color Wheel in Anodized and Bright Aluminum Mobius units (also called knots or rosettes) are made when 3 or more rings are linked together to form a "rosette" or a unit/knot.  There are a TON of different designs I've seen that feature Mobius units.  I have by no means learned everything there is to learn about these units and I am SO excited to learn more!  One of my favorite Mobius kits so far has been the "Ombre Color Wheel" kit from Weave Got Maille, a design by Theresa Abelew.  It made a 35"...