Photo Tutorial Captive Inverted Round Maille

Author's Note
Our projects were very popular during the lifetime of our business and we wanted to ensure they continued to provide inspiration for chain maillers whatever their experience. It's a pleasure to see they will live on with Chainmaillers.com
-Sarah Austin

Captive Inverted Round Maille​

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Materials​

For a 21cm bracelet, you will need:

• 120 bright aluminium jump rings, ID 6mm, WD 1.02mm
• 44 bronze jump rings, ID 6mm, WD 1.02mm
• 12 bright aluminium small jump rings, ID 4.2mm, WD 1.29mm
• silver plated medium wrapped Tierracast toggle

Finding ring sizes to make a flexible chain with this weave can be tricky. (We have been very successful at making stiff stick-like pieces with many ring sizes!)

Tools:

• pins and foam (such as the top of a pin box), a bead mat or a cushion
• two pairs of smooth jawed chain nose, flat nose, or bent nose pliers

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Instructions​

Note: Captive inverted round maille is a tricky weave to start off and this is why it is pinned down. Once you have made your first chain, make it a little longer and detach from the bracelet length. You can then use this as your starter chain every time you weave captive inverted round maille and begin at step 4.

1. Steps 1-3 show you how to start inverted round maille weave and will be detached in step 13.
   
   Close forty one bronze rings and three bright aluminium rings (all the bright aluminium rings used in steps 1-7 are the id 6mm, 1.02mm). Link alternate closed bright aluminium and bronze rings into a circle. Pin the bright aluminium rings to your foam or your bead mat as shown. Make sure the rings are positioned as in the picture.
   
   
   
   
   
2. Using one bright aluminium ring each time, link the bronze rings. The rings added have been marked with a red spot in the picture.
   
   
   
   
   
3. Link one bronze ring through each of the bright aluminium rings added in the previous step. The bronze rings added have been marked with a green spot in the picture.
   
   
   
   
   
4. Open the remaining bright aluminium rings in readiness for the next steps.
   
   Remove the rings from your foam or bead mat and hold between the thumb and forefringer of your non-dominant hand.
   
   
   
   
   
5. The weave is the same as in steps 2-3 but you will now continue with the chain held between your thumb and forefinger.
   
   Link one bright aluminium ring through two bronze rings.
   
   
   
   
   
6. Link two more bright aluminium rings through the bronze rings to complete the round of rings.
   
   
   
   
   
7. Using bright aluminium rings, repeat steps 6-7, this time linking through bright aluminium rings, to add one more round of rings. Fold back the round of three bright aluminium rings just added.
   
   
   
   
   
8. Place one closed bronze ring in the middle.
   
   
   
   
   
9. Lift up the round of bright aluminium rings you folded back, making sure to lift them over the bronze ring so that it is held captive in the previous round of rings.
   
   
   
   
   
10. Repeat steps 7-9, adding sets of three rings and one closed bronze ring until the chain is nearly the corrrect size for your wrist (steps 11-13 will make the chain longer).
    
    
11. All the bright aluminium rings used in steps 11-13 are the id 4.2mm, 1.29mm. Open twelve small bright aluminium rings.
    
    Make a final round of rings as in steps 6-7 using three small bright aluminium rings.
    
    
    
    
    
12. Link two small bright aluminium rings through pairs of rings as shown.
    
    
    
    
    
13. Using one small bright aluminium ring, link the two small bright aluminium rings just added and attach the toggle bar before closing.
    
    At the other end of the bracelet, remove the starter piece of inverted round maille by removing the bronze rings. Take care as the captive ring at this end might fall out. Add rounds of three, two and finally one small bright aluminium ring as in steps 11-13 to attach the toggle ring.
    
    

Variations​

• Use jewellers brass instead of bronze or alternate jewellers brass and bronze for the captive rings.
• Use the same metal for the captive rings so that you have an all bright aluminium or all bronze chain.
• Make a matching necklace.

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©2021 Sarah Austin. All rights reserved.