Eight years ago today was the first time I picked up a pair of pliers and linked jump rings together. More than a million rings opened and closed in 2,922 days of maille.
I knew as soon as I created my first piece that I wanted to make a living doing this. I am happy that I was able to turn my dreams into reality, and grateful to all the customers, vendors, fellow maillers and competitors who helped me along the way. Can’t wait to see where Blue Buddha Boutique will be in another eight years!
I dug around on my computer and found ten projects from my first two years as a weaver. Some of these have appeared on forums over the years, and some have never been published. Enjoy!
Half Persian 4-1 (Flat Persian) using 10 gauge sterling silver rings size KK (5/8″ or 15.9 mm)
Japanese necklace made as a wedding gift for a friend. Sterling silver and anodized niobium.
My first adventure with Half Persian 3-1 Sheet 6. I really love this weave, and regret that I haven’t made any in about 4 years. Stainless steel, 20 gauge.
Here I am playing around with the sheet form of Byzantine. Aluminum, 20 gauge.
One of my few Not Tao 4 bracelets. I was going to make an entire jewelry line based on this weave, but I wound up creating other lines and this one never saw the light of day.
Another Half Persian sheet, this one is HP3-1 Sheet 5, with additional accent rings woven into the top. Stainless steel and niobium, 3 different sizes in 20 gauge.
Yes, I totally made soda tab jewelry, too. :-)
I even made this posture collar out of rope and soda tabs. Intended to use it as a Halloween costume, but I never did.
Pride finger ring. I loved this ring, but soon realized that anodized aluminum is not suitable for finger rings, as the color is affected too quickly. Bummer. Stainless steel with anodized aluminum, 22 and 20 gauge
Vampire Bite choker. Every goth girl’s gotta have one, right? 😛 I used to sell these on eBay in the months leading up to Halloween, but I haven’t found the time during the past 4 or 5 years. **UPDATE** See link in next paragraph below for new chokers. Aluminum, 18 gauge.
UPDATE: I’ve gotten enough requests, and I finally found more of those deep red drops – so I’ve added the vampire bite choker to my jewelry website.
There you go—a look into the past. If you too have been mailling for a few years, maybe you’ll be inspired to pull out some of your older pieces. I hope you’ll marvel at what you were able to do even back then with your own two hands, and appreciate how you’ve grown as an artisan, and how the design and intricacy of your work has evolved. Remember: never be afraid to push boundaries and try new things. While this approach has a high failure rate, the successes are far more creative, glorious and fulfilling than if you’d never pushed yourself at all.
Hi! Very interested in the vampire bite choker. Email me back if you’re willing to make one! Thanks