So, I wanted to do some Scaleflowers for a friends birthday. Since I got just two variants of rings no tutorial helped me in anyway. So I tried my own version and have to say I'm pretty happy about it. (Don't look at my workplace to closely, my cat decided to visit me while I worked^^)

You need:

a handful of small rings and one bigger ring (I used Bright Aluminium, 18ga 3/16 ID and 16ga 3/8 ID)

5 large scales

10 small scales

2 tongs to press the rings into the right form.

I got my scales and rings from ringlord, if you're living in Germany remember that you will have to pay additional taxes!

Step 1: Open Up the Rings and Arranging Your Flower

First open up the small rings and the big one.

Regarding how much small rings you need: a lot. Just bend a handful.

Then arrange how you want your flower to look. I usually use different colors for the big petals and the small ones. I also add on an irregularity in the pattern, as well as different colors for the small petals that are in the front and the ones in the back.

When you arrange the petals be careful that the crease on the big scales shows away from you.

The crease of the small ones should bend in your direction. It will add more stability in the end.

Step 2: Connecting the Petals - Part 1

Now pull two small rings trough the arranged petal and close them with the help of your tongs.

Repeat that with all five of your small-and-big-scale-combos, then slide them onto the big ring and close it.

Be careful that all of the combos are facing the same way. It won't be as stable when the creases face different sides.

Step 3: Connecting the Petals - Part 2

Since it doesn't look like a beautiful flower like that you have to stabilize the petals where they are.

Take one small ring each of two combos. They have to be the ones near each other but on a different combo.

Now take a new ring and connect the two rings..

Repeat the Step untill you connected all combos and then do the same on the backside of the flower.

When youre finished you should have two rings between each combos, almost on top of each other with the big ring between.

Now on to the tricky part.

Step 4: Adding the Small Scales

alright. Make sure you are in the mood for this, because it can annoy you really fast. Turn on some music an let's start!

You have to set the new small scale between one combo. Also it has to be between the small rings you added in the step before. Now.

Pull the ring through one 'between-combo-ring', then through the new scale, through the second 'between-combo-ring' and finish with sliding it through the two holes of the combo on one side. Then repeat the process with the other side.

Now, it will get increasingly difficult to get the ring through both 'between-combo-rings'

If you can't get it through just connect them using only the new scale and the ring one the front, still connecting it with the combo. Just make sure that the front ring is connected with the new petal everytime, because it will not look good later if you don't. If you zoom on the rings in the pictures you will find that I also left some rings out.

Lasltly arrange the small scales in the pattern you want to have. I choose to have one in front, the next in the back and so forth.

And there you have it!

It will get easier each time and the last small scales take the biggest amount of time. But with practice one flower will take you about ten minutes.

Have fun!