A friend gave me a kit to make some Christmas tree earrings one year, and I really enjoyed it. A few years after that, I started with an $8 helm weave necklace kit I bought off the rack at a big box hobby store. I soon after made the byzantine bracelet in the same family of products, then bought my own rings and began finding other weaves to make, and…here we are.

I bought that necklace kit in May of 2011.

I do not make any of my rings at this time. Most of the rings, including the straightforward aluminum colors, come from The Ring Lord, based in Canada. The more nuanced/expressive colors mostly come from Weave Got Maille, based in the U.S.

It depends greatly on different things….the size of the rings, the complexity of the weave, the material itself… some earrings can take 15 minutes, and some necklaces can take 5 hours for more. (This is often reflected in the price.)

The coating is a result of anodization, an electrochemical process that leaves it bonded to the metal. Under normal circumstances and wear, the colors should last for a good while. As an item is worn, the color will fade slowly, but does so in a way that I feel gives it a lot of character. I’ll try and have a blog post offering a comparison soon. But I’ve worn a couple of pieces for more than 5 years, 24/7, in all kinds of conditions, and they stay beautiful and lively for a long time.

Aluminum is extremely lightweight. Even complex pieces can be very comfortable, even barely noticed by the wearer. Other metals are heavier, I’d rank them brass as a light-moderate weight, bronze slightly above that, nickel silver a little heavier, and stainless a bit heavier than that.

It depends slightly, but not too long. If it’s just a custom color being order and I have it on hand, I generally get it shipped 2-3 days later than I would if it had been in stock. If I have to wait for a color to come in, add about 7 business days. Pieces I have to design might add another day or two, just depending on what the order entails. In all, unless otherwise agreed upon or something unforeseen happens, you‘re not going to be waiting longer than 3 weeks.