Author's Note
I wanted to contribute my tutorials to Chainmaillers.com to help ensure that the entire chainmaille community has access to them. The tutorials are presented here with the same images and text from my old site CGMaille. I hope they continue to help inspire you to learn and create many amazing pieces!
-Phong
Weave Background
European 4-1 45° seams are used in clothing and armor construction to change the 'direction' of the weave to accomodate changes in the topography (due to arms, bosoms, Quato, etc). There are multiple ways of making a seam; this one is to connect two separate pieces of European 4-1 that are biased. 'Biased' means that the sides come down at an angle, rather than straight down. When all is said and done, all rings are still connected to 4 others; seam rings are connected to 1 ring above them and 3 rings below.
This version works from the bottom of the seam up. This approach is useful if you are making bra cups, for example.
Aspect Ratio & Ring Sizes
You can make a seam with pretty much any size ring. Rings with ARs toward 3 will be more difficult to do, but then again, if you're using rings that tight, you deserve some punishment.
Tutorial Color Scheme
Old rings are steel, new seam rings are bronze.
Step 1: Make 2 patches of E4-1 as shown. Make sure the top row of both patches are facing the same direction. If you end up with them going against each other, add a row of rings to one of the patches so the tops match. Lean them together so the bias sides are running parallel.
Step 2: Lay a ring between the two patches so it lines up with the bottom row.
Step 3: Connect a ring to the loose ring you just added, and the two edge rings in the bottom rows.
Step 4: Connect a ring to the ring you added in Step 3, and the 2 rings on either side of it.
Step 5: Repeat Step 4...
Step 6: ...all the way up to the end of the seam.
I wanted to contribute my tutorials to Chainmaillers.com to help ensure that the entire chainmaille community has access to them. The tutorials are presented here with the same images and text from my old site CGMaille. I hope they continue to help inspire you to learn and create many amazing pieces!
-Phong
Weave Background
European 4-1 45° seams are used in clothing and armor construction to change the 'direction' of the weave to accomodate changes in the topography (due to arms, bosoms, Quato, etc). There are multiple ways of making a seam; this one is to connect two separate pieces of European 4-1 that are biased. 'Biased' means that the sides come down at an angle, rather than straight down. When all is said and done, all rings are still connected to 4 others; seam rings are connected to 1 ring above them and 3 rings below.
This version works from the bottom of the seam up. This approach is useful if you are making bra cups, for example.
Aspect Ratio & Ring Sizes
You can make a seam with pretty much any size ring. Rings with ARs toward 3 will be more difficult to do, but then again, if you're using rings that tight, you deserve some punishment.
Tutorial Color Scheme
Old rings are steel, new seam rings are bronze.
Step 1: Make 2 patches of E4-1 as shown. Make sure the top row of both patches are facing the same direction. If you end up with them going against each other, add a row of rings to one of the patches so the tops match. Lean them together so the bias sides are running parallel.
Step 2: Lay a ring between the two patches so it lines up with the bottom row.
Step 3: Connect a ring to the loose ring you just added, and the two edge rings in the bottom rows.
Step 4: Connect a ring to the ring you added in Step 3, and the 2 rings on either side of it.
Step 5: Repeat Step 4...
Step 6: ...all the way up to the end of the seam.
