Chainmaille Jewelry

This cute little thing is made from a weave called Half Persian. I can whip one of these out in about ten minutes. Made with rubber rings, it's a perfectly simple bracelet that can be dressed up or down.

What makes this bracelet different from others made of this weave is the supplies. And the explanation begins with one of my personal policies.

Sometimes rings are bad quality. It happens. The particular batch of turquoise 16g 1/4 rings I got last was full of sub-standard rings. As you can see, the coloring isn't consistent. It's blotchy, and lighter or darker on some rings.

I make a point of not using rings like these in my pieces. I also don't use rings that get scratched up by my pliers, because that happens too.

Of course, due to the bad batch, I collected quite a few "unusable" turquoise rings. It seemed a shame to let them all go to waste. So here they are! I think it adds a touch of something different to the bracelet.

You can find more pictures on the etsy listing. And no, that is not a real egg, it's some kind of frosted glass.

This week I'm featuring etsy artist puterinoor. She'll always have a place in my heart since she was the first etsian to favorite my shop. But how could I not favorite her back? Her paintings and drawings are absolutely gorgeous! I just love the one shown here - I've always had a thing for mermaids.

Wow, it has been a crazy week! Job interviews, babysitting schedules, class schedules, auditions, and seeing some people for the first time in a long while. I'm rather exhausted, emotionally and physically, so apologies for lack of substance.

I'm out of finished items to post on etsy, due to low/no supplies. But, I finally have what I need to make an order, so I'll be doing it in the next few days, and this time I mean it!

And once I get my supplies... oh, the things I will make.

~~Jen

One of my favorite things to do with chainmaille is coming up with creative new patterns for Japanese 2 in 12. The weave is already quite versatile, since it's double-sided. I just love things that you can wear multiple ways!

Because of the hexagonal layout of this weave, you can make just about any shape. One day I decided to do some nice flowers. I could sort of have two colors, because of the reversibility, but the metal rings have to go with both sides. I decided on red and blue for the rubber, having purple as a compromise for the metal.

I also decided to add yellow and silver centers, and green connectors, like stems. I'm very happy with the way this bracelet turned out, I think it's adorable!

You can find the bracelet on etsy here. Apologies for the not-so-excellent photos, they were taken pre-light box.

~~Jen

I got a new layout! Honest opinions?
Sadly, I lost my flag counter stats...

Like so many others, I've decided to designate Fridays my day for sharing some of the fabulous artists I've found on etsy. Here's one I discovered just the other day and fell immediately in love with. It's called Lovechild Boudoir.



This store has some absolutely gorgeous fashions, drawing inspiration from Steampunk, Victorian, pin-up, and lingerie. Here's my absolute favorite, I've been dreaming about jackets like this for years. Until now, I couldn't quite exactly find what I wanted, but this is it. Now I just need to save up for it...



~~Jen

I let my mom take me to the bookstore, which I really shouldn't do again. Too much temptation, I can't afford a book spree right now. Anyway, one of the books I allowed myself to get is called Decorative Knot Craft. It's Korean knotting. Some of the knots are so gorgeous! I had been looking for some sort of macrame book, as a fidgety alternative to chainmaille. (At least until I get my maille rings. I'm going to try and order today. I need to figure something out first.) And if I can master some of the knots, I can combine it with chainmaille. Anything that'll set you apart from other artisans helps sales. I have some great visions in my head... Now we'll just see if I continue being interested in it. I've tried a few, they're fun!

~~Jen