Spiderchain Jewelry

Boutique Jump Ring Manufacturer

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Birdcage

Also known as Byzantine, this is one of the first jewelry weaves that most maillers learn. My favorite ring sizes for Birdcage are quite tight – large wire gauge when compared to the mandrel size. Ring sizes that do well for Birdcage will also make a nicely snug European 4-in-1.

A little ingenuity goes a long way with Birdcage:

mix and match…
elegant size graduation
from Scott Plumlee’s first book
just add charms…

This is a somewhat picky weave. You want a ring size that’s tight enough to support the structure and keep the pattern stable, but not so tight that the rings jam up on themselves and make the chain bind when it tries to bend.

Too crowded! The “elbows” are overlapping.
If the rings get too thin, Birdage falls out of shape.

All the sizes listed below make a lovely, tight (but not too tight!) Birdcage weave. However, 6:21 and 11:16 are the two that I end up using all the time. 6:21 is dainty enough for the smallest wrist, yet is plenty strong for everyday wear. 11:16 is seriously hefty, and has a perfect weave density.


Inch Sizes

size 6:21 7:20 8:19 9:18 10:17 11:16 13:15 14:14 16:13 18:12 20:11 22:10
rings/inch 38 30 28 24 21 20 18 16 13 12 11 10
inches/ozt 20 17 13 10.3 8 6.5  4.7 3.9 3.5 2.7 2 1.6
chain diameter 4mm 4.5mm 5mm 6mm 6.5mm 7mm 8mm 9mm 10mm 11.5mm 13mm 14mm

 

Please note that there is no “great” 22ga Euro 4-in-1 size in inch rings. Use the millimeter size 2.25M22 instead, which falls between 5:22 and 6:22.


Millimeter Sizes

size 2.25M22 2.5M21 2.75M20 3.25M19 3.5M18 4M17 4.5M16 5M15 5.5M14 6.25M13 7M12 8M11 9M10
rings/inch 39 36.5 32 26 24.5 22.5 19.5 18 15.5 13.5 12 10.5 9
inches/ozt 27 20 16 13.5 10 7.5 6.4 4.7 4 3.1 2.5 2 1.6
chain diameter 3.5mm 4mm 4.5mm 5mm 5.5mm 6mm 7mm 8mm 9mm 10mm 11mm 13mm 14.5mm

  • Bracelets Vol. 1

    $35.00
If you don’t already know how to make Birdcage, you can find instructions for this weave (and six others) on my first DVD.

  • AR Sampler – 3.4

    $41.00 – $268.00
If you’d like to explore this weave, I recommend that you purchase one of these aspect ratio samplers. All the rings in this sampler work well for Birdcage, and they range from 22ga through 10ga. Try out a wide range, and decide for yourself which size(s) you like the best.

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