Knitting Metal

Knitting Silver

It sounds impossible doesn't it? Yet, in fun, it reminds me of the famous children's fairy tale, Rumplestiltskin, and the little elf who helped the poor miller's daughter spin straw into gold. As I take sterling silver wire and work loop over loop to create a precious metal chain, I find great satisfaction in creating something more magical and wonderful than the simple material from which it derives. Chains from a simple spool of wire...now that's fun!

Organic Silver Forms

I love texture in jewelry. Knitting, hammering, bending, folding and forming silver create such amazing textures and forms. Fold forming is a new system of metal forming which developed between 1980 and the present. Fold-forming is an approach to metalsmithing that creates jewelry by relying on metal's characteristics and following what the metal naturally wants to do. Rather than forcing form upon the material, forms are partially derived from the natural tendencies of the plasticity, ductility and elasticity of the metal.

You can see a fold-formed bracelet on our website Urban Organic Designs. Our "Silver Cuff Bracelet" has "ruffles" and "rivulets" which references natural forms such as streams and waterfalls. We love bringing nature to urban environments and accessories through our jewelery designs.

How to Fold-Form Metal

One of the best resources for learning how to fold-form is Brainpress. Here is the link to see the amazing fold-formed copper and silver created by Charles Lewton-Brain. http://brainpress.com/Foldforming.html Enjoy!!