Vipera Berus, Kinged

When I set out to figure out the sizes for Vipera Berus, I had no idea how easy and satisfying this weave is to learn. Of course, I've seen the weave several times, but had never tried to make it before.

The weave starts out as a simple 1-in-1 chain; 2-in-2 for the kinged version. Once you have at least a dozen or more links of 1-in-1, simply hold one end steady and twist from the other end. This will cause the second ring to lay over the first, the third over the second, the fourth over the third, etc. Then you just link the layers together.

I used this tutorial from Maille Artisans to learn. The directions and the illustrations are very clear and easy to follow. It's really not even very difficult to start; just use some twisty ties to hold the first 4 or 5 rings in place and start weaving. I'll refer to the rings in the 1-in-1 starter as the horizontals and the connecting links as the verticals.

Once you get the first 2 to 3 rows of the verticals done, placement of the rest of the verticals is almost foolproof. As with a lot of weaves, having the perfect ring sizes makes all the difference and once you get going, as you fold the horizontals, you can clearly see where the next vertical goes. It just lays perfectly and you almost can't do it wrong. (Well, you can, but you'd have to work at it :) The kinged version s a little more challenging because there's more movement in the weave when putting in the first ring of a pair, but it's still really easy to get the pattern and soon you'll be weaving it as fast as you can close the rings.

As the weave gets longer, the density feels very satisfying. I liked my 14g test piece so much that I finished it out for a bracelet for myself. I've never made a weave this dense where it was so easy to keep track of your place.

My only real caution is that you'll want to make sure that your ring closures are as good as they can be because the weave is so very tight, it's quite difficult to go back and make adjustments to rings in the thick of the weave.

Another big advantage of the weave is that it's extremely easy to mix metals. Just make the 1-in-1 in one metal, and connect with verticals in another. The kinged versions offer even more possibilities and I'm working on a couple of other combinations now.

Have fun making this weave. Even though the weave itself is easy, the density means you'll still need a bit of time to make a good length.

Gary

These are the ring sizes we recommend for Kinged Vipera Berus. Multiply the rpi (rings per inch) figures by the number of inches of chain you want to make, then use the Rings pulldown at the top of the page to order them.

Or just get a kitpack.

As with all of our work, we invite you to make and sell as many of everything as you like, but ask that you don't publish our instructions or ring sizes.