A Brand-New C h a in M a Combination il & W ir e R Whether you’re familiar with chain mail or you love e im wireworking, Chain Mail & Wire Reimagined offers You’ll only a suosminegt bhointgh ttreuclhyn uiqnuiqeus.e : jewelry projects made necuernedi aqat uefee wa l ottooroukll!sy t o gined Wire artist Karen Rakoski and chain mail designer Barbara DeYoung have teamed up to combine the two skills in 18 stunning pieces. You’ll learn how to shape wire into diamonds, ovals, 3D twists, and more. Shapes can even act as links to connect with traditional chain mail weaves for fabulous necklaces, pendants, and bracelets. INSIDE YOU’LL FIND » Complete step-by-step instructions for 18 jewelry pieces ■ Basic techniques for working with wire ■ Instructions for 10 traditional chain mail weaves, including helm chain, dragonscale, scallop, half Persian, and more Chain Mail ■ Extra design alternatives and ideas with each project for even more options & Wire Reimagined R A K O S K www.KalmbachBooks.com I & D E Y 67022 U.S. $21.99 O U CAN $22.99 N ISBN 978-1-62700-045-1 G 52199 KAREN RAKOSKI 9 781627 000451 0 64465 16722 7 BARBARA DEYOUNG Chain Mail & Wire Reimagined KAREN RAKOSKI BARBARA DEYOUNG Kalmbach Books 21027 Crossroads Circle Waukesha, Wisconsin 53186 www.Kalmbach.com/Books © 2015 Karen Rakoski and Barbara DeYoung All rights reserved. Except for brief excerpts for review, this book may not be reproduced in part or in whole by electronic means or otherwise without written permission of the publisher and authors. For technical and artistic reasons relating to photographic reproduction, colors reproduced in these images may not be exact representations of the original work. Lettered step-by-step photos and technique reference illustrations by the authors. All other photography © 2015 Kalmbach Books except where otherwise noted. The jewelry designs in Chain Mail & Wire Reimagined are the copyrighted property of the authors, and they may not be taught or sold without permission. Please use them for your education and personal enjoyment only. Published in 2015 19 18 17 16 15 1 2 3 4 5 Manufactured in the United States of America ISBN: 978-1-62700-045-1 EISBN:978-1-62700-186-1 Editor: Erica Swanson Book Design: Elizabeth Weber Illustrator: Kellie Jaeger Photographers: William Zuback, James Forbes LIbrary of Congress Control Number: 2014950468 Contents INTRODUCTION .....................................................................4 TOOLS & MATERIALS .....................................................6 THE PROJECTS LOOPS Twine & Vines Bracelet Double Half Persian ...........................10 Trillium Flower Necklace Helm ................................................15 Caged Mail Pendant Helm Flower .............................................20 SINGLE WIRE Hydrangea Bracelet European 4-in-1 ......................................24 Triple Twist Necklace Full Persian ............................................28 Cleo’s Charms Bracelet Helm ..................................................32 Shooting Stars Necklace Full Persian ....................................36 MULTIPLE WIRES Draping with Daisies Necklace Helm Flower ........................41 Rose and Thorns Bracelet Helm .............................................45 Stars of the Sea Necklace Scallop .........................................50 Valley Ferns Necklace Diagonal Byzantine .............................55 FRAMES Diamond Solitaire Necklace European 4-in-1 ........................61 Geometric Sliders Necklace Full Persian..............................66 Three Wishes Necklace European 4-in-1 .................................70 BRANCH AND WRAP Spider Mums Bracelet Box Chain.............................................77 Squares and Lace Bracelet Victorian Lace ..........................80 Dragon Pillows Bracelet Dragonscale ....................................86 Byzantine Waterfall Necklace Byzantine ..............................91 TECHNIQUE REFERENCE CHAIN MAIL TECHNIQUES Box Chain .............................................................................97 Byzantine .............................................................................97 Diagonal Byzantine ...........................................................98 Double Half Persian ...........................................................99 Dragonscale ........................................................................100 European 4-in-1 ...................................................................101 Full Persian .........................................................................102 Helm ......................................................................................103 Helm Flower and Cleo's Helm ........................................104 Scallop ..................................................................................105 Victorian Lace ....................................................................106 WIRE TECHNIQUES FROM THE AUTHORS .....................................110 Introduction When it comes to chain mail and wirework, we're both teachers, and our students have provided a few hints as to what they would like to see in a book. We took their suggestions to heart. Hopefully these designs and techniques will be “just what you wanted.” MAKE A GOOD make exactly what you see in the book. When you REFERENCE are ready to stretch what you see into the direction SOURCE of your personal vision and designs, we have added We are teachers to some variations, concepts, and techniques to give the core, plain and you ideas. simple. An idea doesn’t even have to have all the bugs worked out of it before we need to show SHOW TECHNIQUES, NOT JUST PROJECTS someone where it is at and where it is going. Once Perhaps you have had a lot of experience and were the technique is refined and the directions make looking for a more challenging technique or two. sense: class is in session! That is where you come Maybe bending your first piece of wire is ahead of in. These designs and techniques are ready for you. you. Possibly the lines and designs of the jewelry in If you like to see everything step by step, it’s here this book have caught your attention and you wish in text and pictures. The directions should help you to make and wear them or give them as gifts. Or 4 maybe you are able to peek a little into the future pieces are all shown in and can envision using the techniques and ideas to bold and prominent size, springboard your own work. Whatever paths led which is also great for you here, we want to help provide opportunities, showing techniques and experiences, and creative directions that help you directions. Not everyone enjoy the processes and the results of playing with wears statement pieces, wire and jump rings. though, so we include some directions for MAKE THE JEWELRY WEARABLE going from delectable to Wire can tell a story, paint a picture, capture space, delicate, as well as smaller or make a connection. In many ways, the jump rings design alternates if you in chain mail are just fine wires with well-rounded don't feel like tackling personalities. Wire and chain mail also have some a large necklace or very different characteristics in drape, and density, bracelet. When you and dimension. They are worn differently. They are wear these shaped differently for functionality and comfort. The KEEP THE designs in this book came first. There was no way TOOLS AND pieces, we to make them with just wire or just chain mail. The MATERIALS BASIC want people to combination is simply...magical. Considering that this book starts you ask, “Where did MAKE IT EASY AT FIRST—AND on a journey toward THEN MORE COMPLEX fashion jewelry, you you get that?” The layout of this book follows the evolving might expect special designs made with wire. First, there is a single wire tools and devices. The used in a simple formation. Then there are more truth is that sometimes a special pair of pliers or wires and more complex formations. Each project cutters will help you make the finished product more includes the specific directions and materials for easily. So, when a specialty tool can make the job the variation of the basic chain mail pattern that will a bit easier, we will tell you about it. But remember, be required to make the piece shown. A technique we were thinking about you—so every design in this reference in the back of the book will gude you book can be made with the most basic pliers, a through various techniques as needed; flip to this cutter, a measuring device, and a few dowels. section for more detailed instructions for making wire shapes and chain mail weaves. You can pick out HELP ME WITH MY DESIGNS an easier project near the beginning of the book and Creativity comes with “stretch.” After a technique beginning of each chapter, or you can just dive in is learned and mastered, and long after the favored and select your favorite. pieces are made and being worn, we hope that the book will continue to offer you opportunities and MAKE IT LOOK AMAZING ideas. Wirework and chain mail can continue to be The designs in this book are meant to have the a timeless springboard for your own designs and look of classic upscale jewelry. When you wear creative process. these pieces (and your personal variations) we want people to ask, “Where did you get that?” instead Enjoy creating and playing with wire! of “Did you make that?” Everyone deserves a little awe and amazement from their friends and fans. — Karen and Barbara The pieces are shown in a narrow color palette to emphasize the “look.” The pieces are shown in enamel-coated copper wire or sterling for affordable style—but by all means, move up to silver and gold when you are comfortable with the techniques and have picked a favorite piece. The 5 Tools & Materials PLIERS KIT with a flat, rectangular The following list surface, are recom- of pliers and other mended for opening common tools is and holding jump rings, essential for wirework wires, wire bundles, and and chain mail. other flat work. Chainnose BENTNOSE PLIERS have FLUSH CUTTERS slice pliers tapered smooth jaws wire cleanly without bent at an angle. creating a tapered edge. “Razor-cut” pliers offer CHAINNOSE PLIERS the best cut. have tapered smooth jaws for gripping, bend- OTHER HELPFUL ing, shaping, and holding TOOLS work. Use the jaw edges DOWELS, turned to for right angles and specific dimensions, other sharp bends. come in various sizes for making jump rings, coils, Pliers with replaceable and repeatable bends. NYLON JAWS, which reduce marring, are Use a light adhesive helpful for straightening TAPE that will not leave wire. a residue (quilters tape) to secure wire bundles ROUNDNOSE PLIERS and mark measurement have smooth tapered positions on pliers’ jaws. jaws thickest at the base and thinnest at the tips. Both a straight-edge Bentnose pliers FLATNOSE PLIERS, RULER and a FLEXIBLE TAPE RULER are helpful. Use a FINE-TIP PERMANENT MARKER. Remove marks with denatured alcohol or ACETONE. Keep your tools clean, in working order and Flatnose pliers sized for the appropriate gauges. Use SAFETY GLASSES when cutting. 6 Nylon-jaw pliers Roundnose pliers SPECIALIZED TOOLS Use a CHASING BAIL-MAKING PLIERS, HAMMER or RAW-HIDE have jaw with an equal MALLET to flatten and consistent size. finished wirework or Choose a graduated impart textures. wooden, oval or steel- Use MAGNIFYING stepped cone BRACELET LENSES or an optical MANDREL. visor with close-up work. Use a CALIPER to Pliers with SHAPED measure the gauge JAWS reduce steps in (wire thickness) and making geometric forms inner diameter of chain and also improve the mail jump rings and consistency of edge size check wire sizes. and the radius of bends. You can use a COIL Use a RING OPENER—a MAKER, electric drills, finger band with sized hand-cranked tools, or slots—to open jump rings Flush cutters even wooden dowels to with only one pair of pli- wrap wire for different ers and without putting size coils. Use roundnose the chain mail down. pliers’ jaws for graduat- ed coils. A hand-cranked TUBE WRINGER makes perfect, Choose jewelry FILES to uniform, and wonderful smooth wire ends and waves in metals and de-burr jump rings. wires. ACETONE or denatured alcohol will remove wire Tumbling with a marks and tape residue. TUMBLER, a polishing technique for metal pieces, uses stainless 7 There are two common of the wire, 4mm is the For the projects in this gauge standards: size of the hole inside book, we use dead-soft American (AWG) and the ring, and aspect WIRE (the softest wire) steel shot and a burnish- British (SWG). The ratio is the number of because the pieces ing liquid to polish and designs in this book use 18-gauge rings that can require a lot of manip- de-burr. (Tumbling is the AWG wire standard. fit into a 4mm hole. ulation. Beginning with not recommended for Since 18-gauge wire is hard or half-hard wire enamel-coated copper.) The inner diameter (ID) 1.0mm thick, four rings makes wrapping multiple is the size of the hole can fit into a 4mm hole, times difficult. MATERIALS inside the ring. That and the aspect ratio For most of the projects hole can be measured is four. The wrapping wire sizes in this book, you won’t in inches or millimeters are generally 22- and need much beyond wire (mm). When ordering The same weave can 24-gauge, and “sewing” and jump rings. supplies for designs in use different wire wire gauges are very this book, ask for IDs gauges. The 16-gauge fine (28- and 30-gauge). JUMP RINGS used in millimeters. The inch full Persian in the in chain mail are equivalents do not al- Triple Twist is bold and 18- or 21-gauge square referenced by wire ways work the same. forceful, while the same and twisted square wire size (gauge), ring size weave with 20-gauge allow you to fabricate (measured by inner Aspect ratio is the term rings in the Geometric most shapes by hand. diameter), and aspect that defines the relation- Sliders is diminutive 18-gauge half-round ratio. ship between gauge and and delicate. When you wire is used for designs inner diameter, and it is change gauge sizes for requiring structural The gauge is the important when choos- a particular weave, the support. Choose thickness of the wire. ing rings for a particular ID must change with the 21-gauge half-round The larger the gauge is, chain mail weave. The same aspect ratio. Al- wire for lighter binding the thinner the wire is. “mathematical” though the math for this or decorative wires. Most chain mail jewelry definition of aspect ratio change is precise, the uses 14–20 gauge wire. is inner diameter (ID) ring size requirements divided by wire gauge. for certain weaves may But there is an easier not always translate well way to understand it. from gauge to gauge. We recommend that you Using the example of buy your rings in the an 18-gauge 4mm sizes listed. Byzantine weave, 18-gauge is the thickness 8 CHAPTER 1 Loops