Daily Wire Jewelry Making Tip for
June 9, 2011

Question:

Hi Dale, I just made a wire bangle bracelet out of square half hard wire. How do I harden it to retain its shape? I’m new at this and don’t have a clue! Thanks.

-Lisa in Beaverton, Oregon

Answer:

Congratulations Lisa! You have just made an heirloom piece of jewelry.

It has been my experience that when a bangle bracelet is created from square half hard wire, there is no need to find additional ways to harden it. As you wrapped the wire bundle, the wrap wires hardened, which will keep the main construction firmly together. After finishing the bundle, while you shaped the bracelet around either a found item or a mandrel, the base wires were hardening. Bouncing the clasp ends toward one another helps to further harden the formed shape. Most wire artists make their bracelets in the same oval shape as a human arm. In this manner, when the finished piece is worn, it shouldn’t spin around easily, which could cause the bracelet to lose its shape.

Of course there are some folks who like to play it safe by putting their finished jewelry into a tumbler with a bit of burnishing compound or Dawn dish detergent and mixed steel shot to get a final shine and further harden their finished creation. The choice is yours!

Answer contributed by Dale "Cougar" Armstrong

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Daily Wire Jewelry Making Tip
April 11, 2010

Question:

Dale, in your book, you show making the bracelet so the hook opening points away from the wrist.  Other bracelet patterns often show the hook pointing toward the wrist.  Does it make a difference?

Answer:

Great question, thanks! In my many years of making and selling hundreds of wire bracelets with a hook and eye clasp, I have only ever had one customer request that I turn the hook around to face ‘in’, toward her wrist (which is simple to do ‘on the spot’). With the hook facing ‘out’, away from the wrist, it is so easy for one to be able to put a bracelet on and take it off, with one hand, eliminating the need for struggle or another person to help (especially for those with arthritis). Also, if you think about it, the majority of folks who purchase bracelets are ‘working’, writing or using a computer, and when the hook faces ‘in’, it can dig into the arm. The next question that I am usually asked about facing the hook ‘out’ is if it won’t catch on clothing. The answer here is; that unless one is wearing something with an extremely loose weave, such as crochet, because the hook is rounded in shape, it most often it just glides over most fabric.

Answer contributed by Dale “Cougar” Armstrong

Have a question? Submit your question here

Daily Wire Jewelry Making Tip
March 14, 2010

Question:

Dale, in your book, you show making the bracelet so the hook opening points away from the wrist.  Other bracelet patterns often show the hook pointing toward the wrist.  Does it make a difference?

Answer:

Great question, thanks! In my many years of making and selling hundreds of wire bracelets with a hook and eye clasp, I have only ever had one customer request that I turn the hook around to face ‘in’, toward her wrist (which is simple to do ‘on the spot’). With the hook facing ‘out’, away from the wrist, it is so easy for one to be able to put a bracelet on and take it off, with one hand, eliminating the need for struggle or another person to help (especially for those with arthritis). Also, if you think about it, the majority of folks who purchase bracelets are ‘working’, writing or using a computer, and when the hook faces ‘in’, it can dig into the arm. The next question that I am usually asked about facing the hook ‘out’ is if it won’t catch on clothing. The answer here is; that unless one is wearing something with an extremely loose weave, such as crochet, because the hook is rounded in shape, it most often it just glides over most fabric.

Answer contributed by Dale “Cougar” Armstrong

Have a question? Submit your question here