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Before
starting your project, look at the picture carefully to get an idea of what
you’re up against. This piece will probably turn your fingers all
red and make you want to kill your pliers (the frustration level is about
an 8/10) but this is certainly the most satisfying piece I have ever completed!
Step 1: Preparing
The Moon
I like to start with the focal point –
in this case, the Jade Disc. First, you’ll need
to string the chain through the naval. It’s very likely that the
chain is too large for the hole, so you’ll need to start with three
links from the tiny chain links (1)(2)(3). You’ll
need to squeeze link (2) with a set of pliers so that it is thinner (length-wise)
than the other links. Then take link (3) out, put link (2) through the
naval and reattach link (3) to link (2). You should now have a naval with
one chain link through the middle and two chain links dangling on both
sides.
Step 2: Lassoing
the Moon
Take out 13 or 14 links from the tiny
chain attach one end of the 13-14 links (depending on the size
of your disc) to link (1) that you’ve just made on the Jade
Disc, put a Halo Ring through this and attach
the other end of the 13-14 links to link (3). Repeat this again, on the
other side of the jade disc. (Don’t forget the
Halo Ring!)
Step 3: The
basic Bracelet
Separate the Tiny Chain into
12 links (these will become loops). Your chain will consist of Halo
Rings linked together by loops of 12 Tiny Chains
links. Starting from the Halo Ring already attached to
the Jade Disc, you'll work your way outwards to the toggles.
One side of the Jade Disc should have 3 Halo
Rings linked together with 2 sections of 12 Tiny Chains
Links. Loop one more section of the 12 Tiny Chain Links
through the last Halo Ring and attach both end-links
to the hoop of the toggle bar. The other side should
have 4 Halo Rings linked together with 3 sections of
12 Tiny Chains Links. Again, loop one more section of
the 12 Tiny Chain links through the last Halo
Ring and attach both end-links to the hoop of the toggle
ring.
Lay the basic chain in front of you. You should
have the following from left to right:
Toggle Ring, Tiny Chains (C1), Halo Ring (H1), Tiny Chains (C2), Halo
Ring (H2), Tiny Chains (C3), Halo Ring (H3), Tiny Chains (C4), Halo Ring
(H4) attached to Jade Disc, Jade Disc, Next Halo Ring (H5) Attached to
Jade Disc, Tiny Chains (C5), Halo Ring (H6), Tiny Chains (C6), Halo Ring
(H7), Tiny Chains (C7), and Toggle Bar.
Step 4: Dressing
Up
Now that you have the basic chain, it's time
to decorate!
Let’s start with the toggle ring
and work our way to the Jade Disc. Charms are only put
on the Tiny Chains, so don't worry about the rings. Fron
the Toggle Ring, skip the first loop of Tiny
Chains (C1). At Tiny Chains (C2), put
tiny flower, Swirl Coil (you may need a jump
ring for the Swirl, use an extra link from the Tiny
Chain), Antler Charm, and another Swirl
Coil. At Tiny Chains (C3) put 2 Autumn
Leaves, leave one or two links between them. At the back of Tiny
Chains (C3) put 2 Icicle Charms leave one link
or two between them as well. At tiny chains (C4) put
a Flower Charm and a Tiny Flower Charm.
At the back of Tiny Chains (C4) put 1 Swirl Coil
(again, you may need an extra link).
On the Jade Disc, put one flower
antler on the left side, one autumn leaf to
the right, and one star rose to the far right. At Tiny
Chains (C5) put 1 Swirl Charm, 1 Tiny
Flower, and one autumn leaf. At the back of
Tiny Chains (C5) put 1 icicle charm.
At Tiny Chains (C6), put 1 swirl charm
and 1 flower charm.
That’s it, you’re done. Look over your piece and change it
anyway you like.
Optional Step:
Making it about you
There’re some Tiny Chain
Links left over, so I linked all the 12 Tiny Chain Links
on the braclet together with one more link between them. This makes the
Halo Rings look like they were suspended and not linked
to the actual bracelet. I also added an extra Halo Ring near
the toggle and wove a few Tiny Chain Links in there to
make everything look like it was all interconnected.
I like chains because you can be totally creative
without risking the entire piece. If you make variations of this bracelet,
email me some pictures!
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