Billy
Friday, October 1, 2010
13 Year Break
I can't believe it's been 13 years since Soundgarden released an album. Time keeps ticking away!
Thursday, September 30, 2010
Oh yeah, they're coming back!
I've noticed throughout this year that tie dyes seemed to be more popular than ever and I was glad when I came across this article. It's a good read and a great sign that's tie dyes are making a strong come back. Not that they ever went too far away.
Billy
Love The Classic Swirl!
I've made quite a few of these this year and they seem to be one of my top sellers! They are so much fun to make and I tend to vary the colors in light and dark versions of this classic swirl. Just thought I'd share this with you. Wear a tie dye and add a little color to your day!Thursday, June 10, 2010
Patriotic Helms Weave Bracelet
Here's a quick tutorial of how I put together my Patriotic Chainmaille Bracelet using the Helms weave. This bracelet is 7.75 inches in length and is .5 inches wide. The nice feature about this bracelet is that it lays flat on your wrist. It is very durable and maintenance free since it's made from 304 stainless steel and coated copper jump rings.Be sure the follow all steps 1 through 9 posted below. It's quite easy to assemble and a lot of fun to wear! Enjoy!
Billy
Step 1
Start with 5 of the 14 gauge stainless steel jump rings, close 4 of them and open one of them. Then open one of each of the colored 18 gauge coated copper jump rings in red, silver, and blue.
Step 2
Start with the red opened jump ring, add the 4 closed stainless steel jump rings, and close it. Now add the silver jump ring under the red one and close it. Finish this link by adding the blue jump ring under the silver one and close it.
Step 3
Open a stainless steel jump ring. Place it around the outside of the 3 colored jump rings and close it.
Step 4
Now spread the 2 stainless steel jump rings apart that are on each side of the stainless steel jump ring that you just closed around the colored jump rings. Lay the completed weave flat.
Step 6
Now add the 2 closed stainless steel jump rings to the end of the weave with the 3 colored jump rings. Start with the red jump ring first just like you did in step 2. When you're finished closing the blue jump ring, open another stainless steel jump ring.
Step 7
Flip up the top stainless steel jump ring. Carefully place the opened stainless steel jump ring between the 2 closed stainless steel jump rings and around the outside of the 3 colored jump rings you added in step 6.
Step 9
Flip the top stainless steel jump ring down. That's it! Just repeat steps 5 through 9 until you've completed the length you'd like. The only thing to do is add your clasp to one end. Enjoy!
Tuesday, April 13, 2010
Jen's Pind Linkage
This is one of my favorite chainmaille weaves to make and also known to as JPL3. The 3 stands for the number of rings that are looped through each other within the repeated pattern. The Jen's Pind Linkage weave can be made in 3, 5, 7, 9, and I even saw one done in 11. The hardest part is being sure that the repeating rings lay upon each other in a stepping formation. It took me a little while to learn it, but once I did I found it to assemble quite easily. I started with some 18 gauge jump rings at first and then moved on to some larger 14 gauge rings when I made this copper bracelet pictured to the left. I probably should have started with the large gauge rings first. Oh well, live and learn. I must say that I have gotten quite good at making small chains in this weave.
I found this video that helped me get started with weave and helps explain how important it is to keep your stepping ring pattern going the same way. If you don't, you'll have rings out of order that don't create any pattern at all. Good luck!
Billy
Monday, April 12, 2010
Tie Dyes & Chainmaille?
I'm asked this question quite a bit and I figured this would be a great place to elaborate on just a few of my never ending passions in this journey we call life. I've always been a very creative person since I can remember with a high degree of fascination in all things metal and their moving parts. Color composition and optical balance are also very interesting and I feel that these factors influence me on a daily basis. I have a great inquisitiveness of how things work and fit together, but not just with inanimate objects. I always find my self engulfed in the way all creatures interact, communicate, and coexist with each other. By always trying to keep an open mind with a positive attitude, I found that I am able to see things from a different perspective and achieve a true feeling of balance which I use to create my art in unaltered artistic freedom.
I've always been interested in tie dyes, but it wasn't until a year ago that I became involved in creating my own tie dye t shirts. My wife Chelle and I just couldn't seem to find the right colors or patterns that we liked, so after a lot of research and trial & error, we finally were able to make some really cool tie dyes ourselves that everyone really loved! Not to mention the fact that the ones that we did find were priced so high. We always try to keep our prices low and offer a high quality tie dye that will last for many years. We love wearing our tie dyes just as much as you do and when we have a favorite, we want it to last! Check out our store, Billys Twisted Tie Dyes.
I just started my new venture in chainmaille last year when I had some time between tie dyes. I didn't really realize all that could be done with some jump rings and a creative spark. That's all it took and now I'm finding myself with endless chainmaille possibilities both in making pre-cut jump rings for my fellow artists and in creating finished chainmaille fashions! I just love the way chainmaille weaves flow and can form some very interesting patterns. It really does compliment my tie dye designs and I can't wait to see what I come up with this year! I'll keep you posted. Check out my Etsy store, Maillice In Wireland.
Billy
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