Viking Knit Class

Now that shows are pretty much done for the year it's time to get caught up on my blog. I recently had a class with a fun group of gals from the Owosso Country Cub who wanted to learn to make a viking knit bangle. It was not just viking knit, it was double viking knit. In spite of some struggles I assured them that, even if it looked like a train wreck, the magic would happen when we got out the drawplate. I always love seeing how students react when they see the results of pulling the chain through the drawplate. As you can see, every single bracelet turned out beautifully.

Bronze Bracelets and Patinas

I've had some questions about how to patina the phosphor bronze wire that I now carry in my Artfire shop. Here are three different Viking knit bangles that I made showing three different options. I love all of these finishes so it's really a matter of personal preference. The first one is the shiny bright wire just as it comes off the coil. I really didn't even need to run this through the tumbler.

The second bracelet with the squiggle clasp got a light patina using JAX Brown-Black Darkener although I'm sure the Midas brand that Rio carries would work the same. This solution is clear and the color develops slowly so it's possible to have much more control than with LOS. When using this type of patina it's important that your metal be well cleaned first to remove any oils that might interfere with the patina. One of my metalsmithing instructors insists on cleaning hers with a toothbrush and soap or scouring powder. But I've found that a run through the tumbler with a little dishsoap or burnishing powder does the job as well. I left this one in the solution until it got a slightly aged look, then rinsed it. I didn't use any steel wool or remove any of the patina.

The third example uses LOS which works beautifully on clean bronze. This got quite dark as you can see in the crevices and I did use 0000 steel wool to buff off some of the patina from the high spots.

Week 33-Labradorite Pendant

I found a source for some really nice labradorite-my favorite stone-at the G&LW Show last month. I set this one in a Viking knit bezel accented with some coils of tiny wire. I had it for two days. I made it on Thursday and it sold on Saturday. :D

Week 20-Lots of Viking Knit

I Viking knitted this week until I ran out of wire. The first one has a beaded bead focal-the only beading I know how to do. The second one uses Greek Mykonos ceramic beads, and the third one has a giant heavy Bali bead that I picked up somewhere in my travels and could never figure out what to do with.

Week 32?

I've lost track. I've let myself get so behind and I don't even look at the themes anymore. LOL This one borrows an idea from our own Deborah Gray-Wurz. I learned how to make these beaded beads from Mary Dugas from our local bead guild. It's the only thing I know how to bead and, for someone who resisted learning for as long as I did, I had great fun making them. So I combined this one with a section of leftover Viking Knit, some caps, and some large silver beads to make this bangle.