Ideas for Storing Your Jump Rings

Posted by | 4 Comments | Read More / Add Comment

Any chainmailler can tell you that finding a great storage solution for all your jump rings is a necessity, but keeping all those sizes, colors, and metals organized is no easy feat (not to mention avoiding that dreaded sound of rings hitting the floor or the discovery of the backpack or purse jump ring explosion!) 

We decided to ask our community on Facebook what solutions they have come up with for storing their jump rings and they did not disappoint! Here is a roundup of some of their creative (and somewhat unexpected) suggestions as well as links for where to find them.

=========================================================================

Craft Mates Bead Caddies


We here at Blue Buddha use these almost exclusively for storing small amounts of jump rings set aside and organized for our interns, teachers, and Rebeca herself.  Because they are made for crafters, they do an excellent job of staying closed and keeping things separate – two incredibly important features for chainmaillers.  We especially like their locking feature and the fact that you can open each compartment one at a time (allowing you to dump out just one size at at time.)  There is no need to keep things in baggies in these containers.  We write directly on ours with Sharpie but a label-maker would do the trick to help you remember what is in each compartment (or take a suggestion for one of our fans on Facebook and try re-purposing the labels that come on our baggies by peeling and resticking.)

For a listing of where to find Craft Mates Bead Caddies, visit their website.

=========================================================================

Hardware Organizers: Drawers


There are a variety of small drawer organizers that are normally used for organizing hardware (such as nuts, bolts, and screws.)  These are not so portable, but offer a lot of storage for home.  If you use something like these drawers (something similar to what we use in the studio for storing ring packs ready to be put into orders) you will probably want to keep your rings in baggies to avoid spillage.

These can be found at a number of places for under $20, here is one we found available on the Sears website.
=========================================================================

Hardware Organizers: Containers


Similar to the Craft Mates caddies, these can be used to store your jump rings for toting around.  Unlike Craft Mates, many of these do not allow you to open up one section at a time, so again you may want to keep your rings in baggies to avoid mixing/spilling when you open the lid.

Also available at any number of stores for $10-$20, here is an one we found on the Sears website as well.
=========================================================================

Tackle Boxes


Several folks in our community on Facebook recommended looking in the fishing department of your local sports store.  Tackle boxes come in lots of different sizes, with varying compartment sizes and many let you move the compartment separators around to customize your storage.

Here is one made by Plano (another recommendation from folks on Facebook) available from Bass Pro Shops.

=========================================================================

Dot Box Storage System


These come strongly recommended by one of our community members on Facebook.  Lot’s of small containers that close tightly and can be removed and opened individually.  The system offers a variety of container sizes allowing for lots of customization within one case.

Dot Boxes are available from several different sources.  Visit this site see a video to that shows all the smaller containers contained in the larger carrying case. 

=========================================================================

Pill Organizer


This was another suggestion we received when we posed this question to our community on Facebook.  Try using a pill organizer for a current project.  It’s probably too small to store ALL your jump rings, but can keep just enough to tote around with you for working on a certain project on-the-go.

Pill organizers like this one available on the Walgreens website can be found at any local drugstore.

=========================================================================

Even more ideas…

– Empty pill bottles
– Condiment cups with snap on lids
– Spice jars with magnets that stick to a strip on the wall (turn the lid and shake some out – minimizes spillage)
– Plastic containers used for embroidery floss

Have a solution not mentioned here?  Share it with us in the comments below!  Thanks to everyone on Facebook that responded to our question.  You all are a never-ending source for ideas and inspiration and we love it!

 

 

Hey B3 fans – Cast your vote!

Posted by | No Comments | Read More / Add Comment

CAST YOUR VOTE NOW!

Submissions for our first ever Featured Product of the Month Contest are now closed which means it’s time to cast your vote to determine the winner.  Folks this month were challenged to create a piece that featured our size X12 anodized aluminum rings.  The submissions are so inspiring and we’d like to thanks everyone who participated for your excitement and creativity.  Voting will close September 30th at 5pm CT.  Voting is only allowed once per computer so choose wisely!

To share the survey, we recommend you copy the link to this blog post and use that in any emails, blog posts, or social media posts you’d like to make about it (we’ve noticed some weirdness in the past with sharing the link directly – it sometimes like to bump people out of voting that haven’t already.)

===============================================================


Did you miss your chance to participate in this month’s contest?  Don’t worry – there’s always next month!  October’s Featured Product of the Month is our size D20 – 20g 1/8″ (3.2mm).  Check out our D20 weave ideas blog post to get your creative juices flowing!


Chainmaille Weave Ideas: D20 – 20g 1/8″ (3.2mm)

Posted by | 2 Comments | Read More / Add Comment

Wondering what chainmaille project to tackle with those size D20 – 20g 1/8″ (3.2mm) rings?  Check out the post below for weave ideas as well as where to get instructions for each one.

Weaves Idea: D20 – 20g 1/8″ (3.2mm)

Wire Gauge = 20ga AWG (0.032″ / 0.8 mm)
Inner Diameter = 1/8″ (3.2 mm)

Hint: Use our Ring Picker tool to quickly see every metal and color we have available and in stock for this size!

==================================================================

 


These samples use our base metal jump rings (aluminum, copper, jewelry brass and anodized aluminum.)

 

Aspect Ratio approximately 4.4

“rpi” = rings per inch.
Use this number to help you figure out how many rings you’ll need for your project. Simply multiply it by the desired length (in inches) for your final piece.



Open Round

27 rpi

Open Round/Turkish Round PDF
(currently in sale section)
==================================================================

Box

44 rpi

Box/Byzantine PDF
(currently in sale section)
CHAINED book
==================================================================

Turkish Round

42 rpi

Open Round/Turkish Round PDF
(currently in sale section)
==================================================================

Rosettes

34 rpi

Mesh & Rosettes

 

 






These samples use our bright, brilliantly-colored enameled copper jump rings.











Dragonscale (I20+D20)
D20 37 rpi
I20 41 rpi

Dragonscale PDF + Hardcopy Instructions
==================================================================

Coiled DNA (P18+D20)
D20 37 rpi
P18 5 rpi

CHAINED book
==================================================================

European 4-1
38 rpi

Mesh & Rosettes
DVD Vol 1
==================================================================

Japanese Zig Zag (I18 + D20)
D20 26 rpi
I18 13 rpi

==================================================================

Shaggy Loops
24 rpi

Shaggy Loops PDF
(FREE!)






These samples use our beautiful anodized niobium jump rings. Combine them with sterling silver for extra elegance!









3-Connector Byzantine
36 rpi

Box/Byzantine PDF
(currently in sale section)
CHAINED
==================================================================

Half Persian 3-1
20 rpi

Half Persian 3-1 and Half Persiand 4-1 (Flat Persian, Snake Chain) PDF
(currently in sale section)
==================================================================

Japanese Lace (H18 + D20)

H18 – 20 rpi

D20 – 42 rpi

Japanese Lace PDF + Hardcopy Instructions

CHAINED book
==================================================================


Elf Sheet
71 rpi

Instructions by Vanessa Walilko in Step by Step Wire Jewelry
==================================================================

Wiggle
18 rpi

Wiggle PDF
(FREE!)

===========================================================================


Here’s even MORE inspiration! We featured size D20 in October 2011 for our Featured Product of the Month contest and this very cool piece by Marge H. was the winner.

Want to participate in the contest? Find out what’s happening this month by clicking on the category “Featured Product of the Month”.

FAQ: Does B3 have findings to match anodized aluminum rings?

Posted by | No Comments | Read More / Add Comment

The question of which findings work best to close colorful anodized aluminum projects has been popping up a lot for us lately – on our page on Facebook, through customer emails, etc.  Seeing the frequency of this questions, it seems like a blog post about this subject is in order – so here it is!


NOTE: Some of the examples below use our other colored rings (anodized niobium and enameled copper) – however, they should still help to give you an idea of how the clasps look with color.

=================================================================
Figuring out which finding to use to finish a piece can be tricky.  Do you want the clasp to be a feature?  Do you want it to blend in seamlessly?  Will what I see on the website actually match my final project?  These are all questions that add to that trickiness.

If your project combines anodized aluminum with plain base metal rings, matching the clasp to the base metal rings is an easy way to make it feel part of the piece.  We offer base metal findings in finishes to match our aluminum, copper, and jewelry brass jump rings.

You can also match our base metal findings to full-color projects.  If your project uses warm colors, consider using copper or gold finish.  Cool colors work best with rhodium finish.

If your project uses our darker colors (black, purple, iridescent gunmetal, etc.) you might want to try a base metal clasp in a gunmetal finish.  We’ve finished many darker projects with gunmetal clasps and they look beautiful.

 

 

 

 

If your project is brightly colored and you’d like to finish it with color as well, you might want to consider using our anodized niobium or enameled copper toggles.  Our anodized niobium toggles are handmade especially for us and can be anodized to 30 different colors.  We also offer anodized niobium earwire to finish colorful earring projects!

 

Our enameled copper toggles are fun and funky and come in 10 bright colors.  For a bold statement, finish a project with the large red circle toggle!

You might be wondering why we don’t offer anodized aluminum findings to match our AA jump rings.  We posted some information about this on our wall on Facebook just this week:

We would love to eventually carry matching AA clasps…in fact it’s something we’ve had on our minds for a while. We have done some preliminary thinking and talking about it with one of our manufacturers (we’ll only do it if we can make them U.S.A.-made like our AA rings) but we haven’t made any official moves to make them….yet. 😉

We’ll keep everyone posted once we get to the point of being able to make them!

So that’s the skinny on choosing the ring finding for your anodized aluminum project.  It’s not an exact science so the decision might still be a tricky one but we hope that gives you a little more direction.  Have some great suggestions of your own on how to finished a colored pieces?  Share them with us on our wall on Facebook!

Fall 2011 Color Forecast

Posted by | One Comment | Read More / Add Comment

Here in Chicago, cooler air is rolling in which can only mean one thing – fall is upon us!  The changing of seasons inspires a change in lots of things from the foods we want to eat to the colors we want to be surrounded by.  It’s a great time to be newly inspired.  This fall, colors are classic, rich and full of depth.  They remind us the most of our anodized niobium rings.  With colors that show their many facets with every angle, they are subtle but filled with life.  Experiment with adding in bright punches from our enameled copper and your projects will follow the same trends as fashion week!

As you’re planning your next project, consider using one of these suggested combinations or print out the palette and play around with mixing and matching your own.


=============================================================================