Sunday, September 14, 2008

DVD Chainmaille Instruction

SmartFlix.com How-To DVD Rental

I discovered this service on an internet search and I've gotta tell ya, it's a godsend for those of us who like DVD's for instruction, but don't necessarily want to invest in them - or who would at least like to see the DVD first before they decide to buy. This is where I ran across Weaving Silver 1 & 2 by Spider. They were absolutely invaluable for certain weaves that I just had trouble "getting".

Weaving Silver 1 & 2 show some of the most popular weaves, such as Jens Pind 3 in 1, Dragonscale and Half Persian 4 in 1. It's filmed in extreme closeup with large gauge silver rings against a black background and you can easily see everything that Spider is doing. While the sound isn't always consistent and there's a slightly blurry moment every now and then, I can't recommend these videos enough. She's an excellent instructor, gives hair-saving shortcuts that makes some of the tougher weaves seem easy and gives tips and tricks as she goes.

One glaring ommission in these DVD's is the fact that Spider doesn't give the inner diameter of the rings she's working with or suggestions even on the aspect ratio of the weaves she's doing. That I had to figure out on my own. In my Resource Links section are sites which give average ring sizes for various weaves, aspect ratios for various weaves and further instruction on further weaves not covered in these videos. However, these videos are an extremely good base for learning chainmaille, for the beginner as well as the intermediate craftsperson.

Smartflix also rents DVD's on other jewelry crafts like wirewrapping and Precious Metal Clay, as well as other hobbies and interests. It's a resource who's time has come - how many instructional DVD's have you found in your local video rental store?


SmartFlix.com How-To DVD Rental

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