Wire rings part 2

After making the coiled rings I decided to explore a new ring model that would be closer to the standard ring design and that would allow me to make simpler rings by trapping a single bead on top.

The common ring design, as explained in the previous post (wrapping the wire around a mandrel and then using the ends of the wire to trap the stone on top) is perfect for this but once again, the ring is not adjustable (Eni Oken has a beautiful example of a non-adjustable rainbow weave ring done with 4 base wires).

So I came up with a very simple variation: I wrap the wire twice around the mandrel and then bend back each of the two wires that cross at the base leaving a small opening that can be used to loosen or tighten the ring. The rest of the process is identical to the standard ring and you can add several beads and cross or wrap the wires at random for a sort of birds nest design or you can wrap the two ends of wire around a large bead or cabochon and secure them with a thin wire weave (sometimes called rainbow weave) as shown in the photo.

This ring design is particularly appropriate for making a bead stand out because there isn't a lot of distraction so the bead needs to be pretty. With the coiled ring design the beads don't have to be so special because the complexity of the design makes it stand out more.