Making Viking Knit Chain

This time of the year, with all the sports on television, is the perfect time to make my Viking Knit Chain for next season. This particular piece is made from 24G half hard sterling silver wire.

First I weave it onto a metal dowel which is about as thick as my thumb.

 I try to create as few wire joins as possible so I use about 8 feet of wire at a time. For this piece the final length on the dowel was 21 cms.. When I take it off the dowel, it's wonky in spots and the chain isn't totally even.

But now I start to pass it through my hand made draw plate.

Some use metal plates but I prefer wood because there is less chance of scratching or damaging the wire. A soft wood like pine works well but the wire is strong enough to quickly damage and enlarge the holes. So I have settled on a nice piece of oak. I make two passes through each hole and for most of my bracelets and neck chains, I stop after the 7/32 inch hole.

As you can see the chain is now much longer (40 cms.) and has become much more uniform. The weaving has become "locked".

Now all that is left is to pull it against a wooden rolling pin to remove any kinks and make it nice and supple. This length will be used to make three nice women's' bracelets (one already spoken for). I'll make a few more in silver but will make more using 24G copper.

Creating this length will have taken me about 4-5 hours in total but most of that is spent in front of the TV watching sports so I don't begrudge the time.

Cheers!

The Viking Knit Chain

 A few years back my Norwegian wife taught me how to weave this beautiful Viking Knit Chain and I use it regularly to create awesome pendants with my agate cabochons.

Normally I use 24G copper wire but when I want a challenge, I'll use 22G. The wire is "woven" around a wood or metal dowel.

As you can see, at this stage it's pretty irregular and doesn't look like much. After I have a length of about 8 inches, I'll take it off the dowel. By this time I will have used over 50 feet of wire. The diameter is the same as the dowel.

I have made myself a draw plate out of oak and this is what I use to "stretch" the chain.

Starting with the largest diameter, I draw the chain through successive holes until I get to a diameter of 7/32 inch. Now the chain will look like this.

As you can see, the weave has become much tighter and the chain has a little more than doubled in length. To make sure it doesn't unravel and to enable the addition of a clasp, I have to make end caps. These can be bought but I prefer to make my own out of 16G copper wire.

I then attach sliding copper bails to the stone so it can be hung on the chain. Some I make but the filigree ones are commercial.

Then the piece is completed with a hand made copper clasp.

The chain can also be used to make bracelets.

Every once in a while I make the chain out of sterling silver wire and then I use a spectacular sterling silver sliding bail.

It takes me about 4 hours to weave the chain and another 1.5 hours to do the finishing but it's a lot of fun and the finished product is well worth it.

It's Earring Time!

One of the downsides of living in a house built in 1849 is a leaky stone wall basement. But in between mopping it up, I've had the time to work on earrings.

The first order of business was to make a second display. I used the same format as for the guitar string earring display

 Then I started to fill it. The first creations were a set of three using sterling silver sea themed pieces in beautiful abalone frames the real artist had kicking around. I used non-tarnish silver wire but sterling ear wires. The first features a whale tail.

Next came the anchor.

And finally, the shell. (sorry for the bad pic)

Now I am starting on the local agate and jasper I finished and drilled last summer. I plan on dressing them up a bit with some of the beautiful copper beads in my inventory and I'm pretty happy with the first pair.

So much for my day job. Normally, I make Viking Knit Chain in the evenings using 24 gauge copper wire but I am currently experimenting with a slightly thicker 22 gauge and really liking the result.

The real artist, not to be outdone, has finished her first sketch book using her home made dyes This beauty is totally hand fashioned, including the binding and we might have a few in the store by next season.

Stay healthy and sane!