Maille Pictures


Maille Pictures
Here are a few pictures of some of my maille projects.
	My very first maille project, a hauberk or maille shirt. Made from 16 gauge stainless steel wire coiled and cut using a homemade jig. The inside diameter of the rings is 1/4". The finished shirt weighs about 25 pounds and contains around 24,000 rings. I spent about eight months working on it with several other projects during that time. The coif or headpiece isn't finished yet, it will be closed off in front and hang a few inches lower than shown here.
	The current costume as worn to the renaissance fair last fall. The sword belongs to my son, I was still deciding on what style I wanted. Under the hauberk is a gambeson or padded shirt which helps distribute the weight of the maille. The belt helps as well by transferring some of the weight onto the hips. I wore the maille for about nine straight hours at the renaissance fair. At the end I was ready to take it off but it really wasn't that bad.
	These earrings were made for a co-worker. The final design changed to include a couple of mobius balls that dangle nicely. The light blue rings are anodized titanium, the silver rings are 5356 aluminum. They are surprisingly light.
	Here is the picture of the final earrings. Victoria wanted them to be a little bit longer and more dangly.
	Another pair of earrings. The big ring is anodized titanium with brass tubing that covers the joint in the wire and provides an accent color.
	This is a Japanese 8 in 2 cubic weave in anodized titanium I made for a birthday gift. It will be used as a card cover when playing poker to avoid having his cards mucked inadvertently. It is about one inch cubed. The color variations add some visual interest to a pretty simple piece.
	This in my anodized titanium coin pouch. It holds about $40 in Sacagawea gold dollars. It is more fun to pay in gold coins at the renaissance fairs.
	Another gift for a fellow renaissance aficionado. This one is in stainless steel, 16 gauge, 1/4" ID rings, with a leather draw string. It is filled with Sacagawea gold dollars in this picture.
	Here is a Japanese 8 in 2 cubic weave made with 16 gauge 5356 aluminum (bright aluminum) 1/4" ID. It is a little loose but should make a nice set of juggling cubes. It is a very solid, dense weave and fun to make. Update 01/23/07 Actually, the update is very late. I finished the set of three cubes last fall. Some day I'll add a picture of all three together. FWIW, the cubes juggle very well.
	A Byzantine bracelet made of 5356 aluminum.
	A patch of European 6 in 1 made with aluminum electric fence wire (alloy unknown) that I anodized and dyed a light purple. One of these days I'll add the anodizer to the projects page. Update 01/24/07 anodizer picture added.
	A set of jewelry I made for my wife for the Renaissance fair we attended in Tahoe. She asked me the night before the event if I could make her a few pieces. I had anodized some titanium wire to test my anodizer setup. I'll add the specifications for the rings later and the anodizer setup to the projects page. The picture doesn't do a very good job with the color, it is an iridescent purple/blue color. I'll replace the picture when I have a chance.
	16 gauge 5356 bright aluminum, 1/4" ID with a penny for size comparison. Double click on the picture for a detail picture.
	This weave is called Jens Pind's. It is an interesting spiral weave. The top chain is made from 16ga 11/64" 5356 aluminum. The bottom chain is 16ga 3/16" 5356 aluminum. It is amazing how 1/64" difference changes the weave. The top chain can be bent into a diameter of about 1" while the lower chain can almost be folded back on itself.
	Close up of 16ga 11/64".
	Close up of 16ga 3/16".
	Here is a picture of some anodized titanium wire showing part of the range of colors possible. I anodized these samples using the anodizer I built. It is difficult to convey how cool the colors look and even more difficult to get decent photographs. The colors are much more vibrant and the subtle variations add significant depth. The color will change slightly from one ring to the next and even from one side of a ring to the other. The only real downside to titanium is the exorbitant price. A pound of 16ga wire sells for around $72!
	A necklace I made for a co-worker. The hoop is 18ga titanium, the rings are 18ga, 5/32" ID, 5356 aluminum, anodized, and dyed black. I was trying out having the coils very tight while they were anodized to allow a sliver of the base aluminum to show through after the rings were dyed. The idea was to have a little highlight on the rings to add a bit of sparkle. I ended up sorting through the final rings and selecting those with just a small amount of silver showing through.
	A detail shot of the maille from the necklace. I plan on making a set of earrings to match but I'll use rings with more silver for comparison. I like the way the edges form a saw tooth pattern.