Chain wire weaving: types and techniques

Chain weaving we used to see on people who are passionate about historical reconstructions, on fans of fantasy and role-playing. However, it happens that such jewelry becomes a fashion squeak, and now on all models are wearing bracelets, braided in chain mail. In this article you will find out what is the chain weaving, its varieties and whether it is difficult to master this technique for beginners.

Weaving "chain mail": a versatile and unusual technique

The chain weaving is certainly loved by representatives of various subcultures. So, half arm armor is an accessory of dreams for bikers and metalworkers. Reconstructors prefer some kind of souvenirs or give their girls knitted in this technique ornaments. Openwork metal will be like the representatives of Gothic. Fans of steampunk will not pass by brass and copper jewelry, as they will be an excellent addition for their costumes. The chain weaving of the roleplayers is associated with the worlds of the Middle Ages and Middle-earth.

However, something else is important.

Chain braids bracelets and other jewelry will be an excellent addition to the image in the style of "casual" - and the worker, and everyday, and universal. An interesting chain on the hand, openwork earrings from metal, a ring with an unusual pattern looks original, but not defiant. Chain braids bracelets and other ornaments - this is what is suitable for office work, and in order to surprise friends and colleagues, but at the same time stay in the dress code.

Such an alternative to expensive jewelry jewelry is something more varied, large, interesting and diverse in terms of weaving.

The difference from the usual types of gold chains - bismarck, anchor, armor

The technique of chain weaving is to weave individual rings in one product.

Often auxiliary parts are used to make the chain in the classical jewelry craft. For example, rings with overlaps, spirals in the weave "rose" and other elements. In addition, soldering is often used, and the chain that has turned out is subjected to additional final processing - modification of faces, broaching or rolling.

"Kolchuzhka" is done only with the help of single rings. Wire for chain weaving can be used on an equal basis with the material purchased. All structures, patterns and shapes create exclusively metal rings of different materials.

There is one more characteristic feature, which has a chain-weave. Instructions and diagrams do not always reflect it. This kind of weaving of jewelry goes "in depth and breadth". Decoration can be not only one-dimensional, like a line or a chain, but also make up a full-fledged canvas or a sculptural composition.

Types of chain weaving are even more diverse than the usual jewelry. There are more than one thousand species in the classification, which is a problem for those who buy the product: in the case of unenlightened buyers, it initially dazzles in the eyes, and this makes it difficult to make a choice.

When was the chain weaving used to make jewelry, not just protective clothing?

When this species began to move into the decorative sphere, it is very difficult to say. There are many different theories about the "intertwining of these genres," but information about most of them, like the examples of works, in the era of the lack of the Internet has not been preserved.

The use of chain mail to create decorative jewelry, in fact, have to reinvent from scratch. Of course, the genetic relationship of this technique with the basic methods of making protective armor is the basis for formulating various theories, but none of them can be called unreservedly true today.

How to choose materials? What metals are usually made of bracelets and necklaces?

The entire process of making jewelry is done manually. For such products, different metals can be used, calculating the characteristics of the future product for strength. It is necessary to take into account the rigidity of the metal, the characteristics of the weaving itself, and also the dimension of the rings.

The most popular materials are steel, copper, silver and brass. In addition, you can use niobium, bronze, titanium, sometimes gold.

What products can I perform in this technique?

Chain braiding is universal: from "chain mail" it is possible to do everything that your heart desires - from small rings to the gate of the house. This genre has the widest possibilities: on the net one can find candlesticks made in this technique, chess, sculptures, horse horseclothes and much more.

What does the work process look like? With what it can be compared for the layman?

The rings are closed when they are threaded into each other in a certain way.

For clarity, this process can be explained by an example. Imagine that you simultaneously have a fabric that can become stiff and durable, and a rope. Almost in all chain weaves the stem is a chain, a line. Most of them can be expanded: thus a canvas or plane is obtained. Modifying the thickness parameter, you can give the product hardness and inflexibility.

How difficult is it to master this kind of weaving for a beginner?

Everything depends on the goal of the individual. Understand in what sequence it is necessary to close the rings in order to get this or that pattern, perhaps for a day or several. And then there is the question of ambitiousness: how many beginners we want to master and how well it wants to hone the technique. And since their number can not be counted, the training period can last indefinitely.

Which weave is the most popular?

In general, "on hearing" people do not have more than a dozen species. They are either basic, or migrated to jewelry craft. This is Persian, European, Byzantine, Japanese, box.

Is it possible that people in such ornaments are looking not for the craftsmanship of the manufacturer and the beautiful technique of weaving, but for the solution of some of their problems?

Often the chain weaving is positioned as a solution to the problem of stealth and security. As the practice of reading customer reviews and flash mobs like "describe this decoration" shows, people see the same in them.

Products made in the technique of chain weaving, among other basic qualities, at the associative and emotional levels are considered as a means of protection, a piece of armor. To the touch they just remind of flexible and fluid armor on the hand, especially if the decoration is wide enough, for example, massive necklaces or bracelets in the form of canvases.

These are pieces of armor disguised as ornaments. The one who wears it is endowed with symbolic protection, while others see only an elegant ornament.

In addition, products in the technique of chain weaving are very tactile. Each species behaves in its own way: one can be flexible, the other - dense, the third - with rotating elements, the fourth - with the pacing, the fifth - with the assembled ones in the spring ... With flexible weaving, you can play and crumple in your hands just endlessly.

Another chain mail often becomes a symbol. Creating a product of a certain design, you need to know a piece of history associated with it, find associations with the weave, to find out in yourself things, significant symbols and needs.