Daily Wire Jewelry Making Tip for
July 28, 2011

Question:

I am trying to replicate a bracelet I saw at a show. It was a heavy-gauge wire or metal piece, bent in to a square shape (closed), and then a thin wire, threaded with beads, was wrapped around it. I’m trying to find out if I can buy the ready-made structures? Have you ever seen such a thing? I’ve been to dozens of sites, can’t find anything.

-Rebecca in Cincinnati, Ohio

Answer:

Rebecca, because most of the Wire Faculty and I make our own wire forms, I do not know if the manufactured shape you are looking for is available. I can tell you that is rather easy to make your own, though. Depending on the amount of beads, their weight and sizes, you can choose from either round or square wire in a gauge from 16 through 14 for the frame. To add the chosen beads, you can use about any round wire that will fit into the bead’s holes.

I did a nice DVD showing exactly how to create a cuff-style bracelet, this one includes handcrafting your own wire filigree and using a chasing hammer and a bench block for hardening and texturing the wire too. Here is a sample bracelet that can be made using Intermediate Series DVD 4.

Perhaps you would like to learn how to coil beads into a stunning bracelet? If so, then I recommend learning the Arabian Bracelet taught by Albina Manning on DVD 1 of her Coiling and Weaving Series (below).

No matter your decision Rebecca, remember that you can take the techniques taught in our DVD lessons, alter and or combine them, and create many new designs!

Answer contributed by Dale "Cougar" Armstrong

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Daily Wire Jewelry Making Tip for
June 28, 2011

Question:

Hi Dale, I am looking at purchasing your beginners video #1 (the wire bracelet), and I would like to order everything at once to get started with the project. Where do I find the list of materials for that video? I know this info may be somewhere else that I have not found. Thanks for your help.

-Cathy in Alexandria Bay, New York

Answer:

Hi Cathy, yes there is a lot of information on the Wire-Sculpture website! To view any of the supply lists for our DVDs, go to the front page of Wire-Sculpture.com, and look on the left side of the page. There is a green banner called Jewelry Making Supplies. Under the green banner, look for Jewelry Supply Kits, and click on it. From the Supply Kits page, click DVD Supply Lists, and then click on the series and DVD you seek. The supplies for each product are listed at the bottom of each page. Now, the DVD supply lists do not always tell you exactly what length of each wire is needed for a specific DVD project (measurements are included in the DVD instruction sheet); rather, the lists give you the choices of metals in the gauges that are used.

All Wire Unisex Bangle (for supply kit, click here)

To make your first all wire Unisex Bangle, you will need no less that 6 inches of 18-gauge round soft wire, and 22-gauge square half hard wire. The amount of 22-gauge square depends on the size of your wrist and how wide you would like the bracelet to be. Based on an 8-inch wrist you will be safe to use 6 feet of one metal choice (like silver) and 3 feet of another metal choice (like gold filled) to make a bi-color bracelet, or you can use one metal for the entire bracelet and get 9 feet of your choice. I hope you enjoy learning the wrapping process, and enjoy proudly wearing your new bangle!

Answer contributed by Dale "Cougar" Armstrong

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Daily Wire Jewelry Making Tip for
September 18, 2010

Question:

I have just completed the cab bracelet like the one on the cover of Dale’s book with a turquoise cabochon. This cab had a girdle on it. Now I’m trying to make another, and the cab I had picked out does not have a girdle. How on earth do you put a nice band around it so it can be used properly?

-Merry in Smithers, B.C., Canada

Answer:

Oh yes, the edgeless cabochon.

The only way I conquer this challenge is to make sure I have two wires in the middle of the frame, as well as one for the front and one for the back. When forming the frame to the stone, it will be two wires above – that’s cool. You could even plan it that way and instead of making just one pull with the top wire, make that first pull a bit deeper and then pull the second wire, a bit more shallow than the first. And I’ll bet you’ll be a bit more specific when shopping for cabs now too – believe me when I say that we all learned in this way.

Answer contributed by Dale “Cougar” Armstrong

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Daily Wire Jewelry Making Tip for
September 2, 2010

Question:

What gauge and temper wire should I use to make a multiple-wire bangle bracelet? I usually use pattern wire with four twisted wires. Using 20 or 21-gauge half hard half round wire doesn’t seem strong enough to me, especially for the end wraps.

-Nancy in Sun Lakes, Arizona

Answer:

For many years, I have been using either 18-gauge or 16-gauge half hard half round wire as the binding or wrap wire for a pattern wire bangle.

Answer contributed by Dale “Cougar” Armstrong

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Daily Wire Jewelry Making Tip
August 21, 2010

Question:

I’m presently using 20-gauge half hard wire. What type of wire should I use to wrap these wires?

-Bernard in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada

Answer:

As I am not sure what type of project you are making or the shape of the wire you mention, I’ll share a couple of suggestions.

If the 20-gauge half hard wire is square and you are making a bracelet, I would use the same gauge and temper for the wraps.

However, if you are framing a cabochon, then 20-gauge half round half hard works well for the side or frame wraps, then use 20-gauge square half hard wire for the bail wrap. The reason behind this is, if you do not want a lot of wire between the cab and where the bail opening actually begins, square wire is more powerful than half round, so you only need 4 or 5 full wraps to secure the bail.

Answer contributed by Dale “Cougar” Armstrong

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