Experimenting with Viking Knit

I’ve been having fun experimenting with viking knit. 

I started with a pattern I found in The Best of Step by Step Wire Jewelry, 2010.  The pattern is by Kathleen Pierce and is available at  http://www.interweavestore.com/Beading/Magazines/Best-of-Step-by-Step-Wire-2010.html) 

This viking knit pattern has six loops per row done on a 9 mm dowel. 

This is a photo of mine. I’m pleased with the way it came out.

Next, I experimented with some variations, with varying success!

The top chain is the original viking knit shown in the first picture.  I used 26 gauge silver plated wire for this, six per row on a 9 mm dowel as instructed.

The second chain is a four-per-row chain done with 24 gauge craft wire on a round #2 (I think) Broncos pencil. (My son would be proud).  It looks good, too.

The thinner knits I tried got kinky and loopy as seen in the above photo so won’t work as necklace chains unless possibly I used them for something heavy enough to weigh them down.  I tried techniques with these that did not really work so well.  One (the silver wire, fourth from the top) was an experiment in using only 2 per row but on a 9 mm dowel. It stretched a good deal.  It might work better with better wire.  I also tried thinner dowels with 4 per row which but as is seen in the photo, there is still some twisting going on. Not sure how to alleviate this…but all in all this was a fun project!

2011 Snowflake Ornament Collection

 

Deco Snowflake 

These are some of the snowflake ornaments I made for Christmas gifts this year.   

Noteworthy:  I purchased pre-made frames for these, conversely to last year when my husband and I soldered our own. I found the wire on these pre-made frames very hard, which made the ends difficult to roll but provided a somewhat sturdier frame. Next year I think I will go back to soldering my own but use a half-hard wire.

Red Snowflake

Aqua SnowflakeFerris Wheel SnowflakeSnowflake for a Queen

Moving to the Next Level: A Year of Jewelry Exploration

It’s been awhile since I’ve posted to this blog.  Meanwhile, I have not been idle!   I’ve learned some new skills and tried some new mediums including lampworking, soldering, and Precious Metal Clay. My wire wrapping skills are also slowly but steadily improving. 

I’ve renamed my blog “Jewelry Sojourner” in recognition and anticipation of the Journey in jewelry art.  A sojourner is defined as one who resides briefly in one place and then moves on. I like to think of my jewelry exploration in this way—in the sense that I am always looking for new things to create, new designs to try, new skills to learn.  With jewelry, there is always something new and different and exciting; it is a world filled with endless possibilities. I look forward to exploring as many as I can–so come along and watch me grow!

New Mediums

Lampworking

And indeed, 2011 has been a year of jewelry exploration!  My friend Beth–ever my loyal jewelry journeying companion–and I took a three part series in lampworking.

 These are some of the lampwork beads I created:

 I will have pictures Beth’s beads soon.  Athough Beth was more nervous at first with the torch, she has surpassed me in lampwork artistry, which just gives me incentive to work harder—nothing like a little healthy competition!    

 Some of my lampwork beads are notably lopsided—holding the    mandrel steady and keeping it turning smoothly are skills that take some practice.  I am also learning about which colors work nicely together (and which don’t!).      

 One of the biggest thrills in lampworking for me is taking a bead I have made and turning it into a piece of jewelry. 

Here are a couple of the pieces of jewelry I made with some of my lampwork beads:

 Lampworking is a medium I want to explore further. It’s a great medium for wintertime in New England being that it’s all about torches, flames, and heat!  It’s also very meditative.  Once you get going, it’s amazing how time passes as you get in the “zone”.    

 PMC

Precious metal clay is another medium Beth and I explored.   Fun, but expensive!  A little packet of PMC costs about $35.  This, I decided, is not a medium I wish to explore further at this time.  But Beth made a great PMC mermaid, another picture I promise will be forthcoming.  

Soldering

Another 2011 jewelry venture was into soldering. I tried this after admiring my friend Laura’s stained glass soldered jewelry.  I took the hard road here and started out using odd shapes like sea glass and ceramic shards instead of starting with something square and flat, which would have been more logical.  I’ve had some success, though!

I haven’t done any soldering in awhile (all my tools are at Laura’s house) but I’m ready for more in 2012.

 

Delving Deeper into Wire Wrapping

Of course, I still spent a lot of time working in the medium I love the most—wire wrapping.  Here are a few pieces I made this past year. 

This piece was inspired by Cindy Wimmer’s Caramel Swirl Bracelet.

I found the tutorial at www.interweavestore.com/jewelryprojects

This is my first attempt at Egyptian Coil. If you’re interested in learning this technique, www.jewelrylessons.com has numerous tutorials on it.

 Lessons Learned and Goals for 2012

In both lampworking and soldering, I’m going to take a step back and work on the basics. In lampworking, I need to work on holding that mandrel steady and being patient with the glass so it can become nice and well rounded.  I’d like to make a series of similar beads so I can link them together for bracelets and necklaces.

In soldering, I need to work on basic technique. I’ll try using square and rectangular pieces and save the ceramic chips for later. 

Some jewelry ventures for 2012 include: exploring chain maille, drilling sea glass, and making lampwork beads at home.  (Thanks to my wonderful husband, who bought me a drill press and some propane and oxygen for Christmas J ) 

I’ll write more about my experiences in lampworking, soldering, and other jewelry sojourns in upcoming posts!