My Favorite Metal for Chainmaille - Aluminum Alloy 5356

This is an experimental ball (well, more of a dodecahedron) I constructed completely from my favorite chainmaille metal.

Aluminum 5356 or "Bright" Aluminum is lead- free, rust-free, tarnish-free, ultra-lightweight, and looks very much like sterling silver. Very bold styles can be constructed with it at a fraction of the cost and weight of a similar piece made in silver. It acts very much like precious metal, as it is not coated like gold-plate or silver-plate and it won't turn your skin weird shades of green like brass or copper sometimes does.

Bright Aluminum shouldn't be confused with normal aluminum which oxidizes and can leave a dull coating on the metal and rub-off which looks a lot like dark gray pencil markings on skin and clothing.

All of my chainmaille pieces start as aluminum alloy wire that has been hand-coiled by me. Rings are formed by cutting them individually from the coil using shears. Each ring is then opened, interlocked and finally closed to form a chain or motif. If the item uses a clasp, they are hand-turned and made from the same material as the links.

If you haven't tried aluminum, don't be afraid. It's got a lot of good things going for it and it just plain looks great!