Wire Heart Pendant with Gemstone Drop

by Judy Larson

Category: Contemporary
Technique(s): Butane Torch Techniques
Skill Level: Intermediate

In one of my Maybe I Can Use It Later boxes, I found two pieces of Argentium scrolled wire that never made it into the project they were made for. While I started digging around in the box for something else, the two scrolled pieces ended up side by side in a heart shape. Light bulb moment!

Materials

16 Gauge Round Half Hard Argentium .940 Silver Wire

H19-16H

Lesson Quantity: 3.50 inches
Purchase Quantity: 1.00 1FT
Price: $10.37
Gold Club Price: $7.78

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16 gauge 3.5mm ID Argentium jump ring

Lesson Quantity: 1.00 pieces
Purchase Quantity: 1.00 each

20 gauge 3mm-4mm ID Argentium jump ring

Lesson Quantity: 1.00 pieces
Purchase Quantity: 1.00 each

18 gauge 5mm ID Argentium jump rings

Lesson Quantity: 2.00 pieces
Purchase Quantity: 2.00 each

7/8” (22mm) of 18 gauge round Argentium wire, balled

Lesson Quantity: 1.00 pieces
Purchase Quantity: 1.00 each

gemstone charm

Lesson Quantity: 1.00 pieces
Purchase Quantity: 1.00 each

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Tools

Xuron Flush Cutter - Pack of 1

G2-504

G2-504
Lesson Quantity: 1.00 pieces
Purchase Quantity: 1.00 each
Price: $29.95
Gold Club Price: $22.46

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Silver Solder Paste Medium SS70 - 1/4 T.O.

SOL-822.15

SOL-822.15
Lesson Quantity: 1.00 pieces
Purchase Quantity: 1.00 each
Price: $18.95
Gold Club Price: $14.21

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Silver Solder Paste Soft SS65- 1/4 T.O.

SOL-822.10

SOL-822.10
Lesson Quantity: 1.00 pieces
Purchase Quantity: 1.00 each
Price: $16.95
Gold Club Price: $12.71

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GROBET FILE - BARRETTE CUT 2, 6"

FIL-31.030

FIL-31.030
Lesson Quantity: 1.00 pieces
Purchase Quantity: 1.00 each
Price: $31.20
Gold Club Price: $23.40

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Single 3rd Hand with Tweezer and Base

HOL-165.00

HOL-165.00
Lesson Quantity: 1.00 pieces
Purchase Quantity: 1.00 each
Price: $18.97
Gold Club Price: $14.23

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Basic Soldering Kit

G15-4

G15-4
Lesson Quantity: 1.00 pieces
Purchase Quantity: 1.00 each
Price: $58.95
Gold Club Price: $44.21

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Flat Nose Wire Pliers

G2-506

G2-506
Lesson Quantity: 1.00 pieces
Purchase Quantity: 1.00 each
Price: $32.95
Gold Club Price: $24.71

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Round Nose Wire Pliers

G2-507

G2-507
Lesson Quantity: 1.00 pieces
Purchase Quantity: 1.00 each
Price: $32.95
Gold Club Price: $24.71

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Chain Nose Wire Pliers

G2-508

G2-508
Lesson Quantity: 1.00 pieces
Purchase Quantity: 1.00 each
Price: $32.95
Gold Club Price: $24.71

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5 1/2 Inch Nylon Flat Jaw Pliers with Replacement Jaws

G2-1

G2-1
Lesson Quantity: 1.00 pieces
Purchase Quantity: 1.00 each
Price: $9.97
Gold Club Price: $7.48

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Half Round Sanding Sticks Set of 6

BUF-751.98

BUF-751.98
Lesson Quantity: 1.00 pieces
Purchase Quantity: 1.00 each
Price: $11.57
Gold Club Price: $8.68

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WET/DRY PAPER 9 X 11 ASST- 20PC- 2EA GRIT 180-3000

ABR-500.90

ABR-500.90
Lesson Quantity: 1.00 pieces
Purchase Quantity: 1.00 each
Price: $24.95
Gold Club Price: $18.71

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Pickle Pot, 16 Ounces

CLN-584.00

CLN-584.00
Lesson Quantity: 1.00 pieces
Purchase Quantity: 1.00 each
Price: $31.95
Gold Club Price: $23.96

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NATURE'S TOUCH CITRIC PICKLE, 2LB PLASTIC JAR

CLN-163.00

CLN-163.00
Lesson Quantity: 1.00 pieces
Purchase Quantity: 1.00 each
Price: $17.95
Gold Club Price: $13.46

Out of Stock

Stainless Steel Shot - 1 lb Bag

G24-4

G24-4
Lesson Quantity: 1.00 pieces
Purchase Quantity: 1.00 each
Price: $43.95
Gold Club Price: $32.96

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Thumlers Tumbler Model T Rock Tumbler Kit

G34-100

G34-100
Lesson Quantity: 1.00 pieces
Purchase Quantity: 1.00 each
Price: $172.76
Gold Club Price: $129.57

Out of Stock

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Instructions

Step 1

Read through the tutorial before starting the project. Follow all safety precautions pertaining to the tools and supplies being used and the space you are working in.

Cut two 1¾" (45mm) pieces of 16 gauge round Argentium wire. File one end of each wire to an angle point to make scrolling the wire easier. Use sanding pads to round the pointed wire ends a bit. Make a 3.5mm ID jump ring at this time is a purchased one is not available. Cutting the wires this length accounts for the differences in how the wire is scrolled and curved by each person. Some people will use most of the wire in the project, some less.

Step 2

On a soldering surface, ball a 7/8" (22mm) piece of 18 gauge round Argentium wire with the butane torch. When the ball is cool, hold the ball with the tips of chain nose pliers and run the back of the ball across a piece of 320 gauge sandpaper on a bench block to remove the debris from the soldering surface as well as flatten it a bit.

Step 3

The scrolled wires are sitting on a 1" grid square (25mm). Use the photo to help with shaping the wires. Coil the end of each wire. Check the scrolls against each other to make sure they are exactly the same. Curve the wire ends.

Judy Larson's Wire Heart Pendant with Gemstone Drop - , Contemporary Wire Jewelry, Butane Torch, Soldering, Solder, wire heart pendant with gemstone drop

Step 4

Place the scrolled wires next to each other in a mirror image arrangement. The bottom ends will probably not be flush with each other. Gently straighten each a bit, check the fit, straighten again, check the fit, etc., until the ends are more or less parallel to each other.

Step 5

Working on a soldering surface, place a small amount of medium paste solder on one scrolled wire where the scrolls will touch. Place a generous amount of medium paste solder on the same piece where the straightened wires will touch. Push the two pieces tightly together so the scrolls and the straight bottom wires touch each other.

Step 6

Close the 16 gauge 3.5mm ID jump ring. Place a small amount of medium paste solder on the seam. Place a small amount of medium paste solder where the jump ring will touch the scrolls when pushed against them, first photo. Push the jump ring into place, making sure the jump ring seam touches one of the scrolls, second photo. Place a small dab of medium paste solder on the back of the ball created in Step 2. Place the ball over the area where all three wires meet. Heat until the solder flows, third photo.

Step 7

Pickle, rinse, and dry the piece before continuing.

Step 8

Trim the heart point back, leaving a short area where the wires are still soldered together. The length of the soldered section left is personal preference, but must accommodate a jump ring that will be us

Step 9

Place the two 18 gauge 5mm ID jump rings through the 3.5mm ring on the heart. Suspend the heart upside down over a soldering surface using the tweezers of a third hand. Make sure both jump ring seams are facing down. Place a small amount of easy paste solder on the seams. Make sure that the 5mm jump rings are exactly opposite each other. Heat until the solder flows.

Step 10

Pickle, rinse, and dry the piece before continuing.

Step 11

Use a flat jaw pliers to make the two connected 5mm jump rings into a slight oval. When bending, the jump ring seams seam should be between the jaws of the pliers.

Step 12

Using the file and sanding pads to clean and refine all the solder joins.

Step 13

Attach the gemstone connector jump ring to the heart frame. Tumble the unit for an hour to polish the piece. Rinse and dry.
While the heart is tumbling, trim the bottom loop from the bezel connector. File and sand the cut end to a smooth finish.

Step 14

Remove the heart from the tumbler and rinse and dry it. Attach the drop with jump ring on the bottom of the heart.

Reviews

Judy Larson

My philosophy has always been "I will never live long enough to learn everything I want to learn, go everywhere I want to go and see everything I want to see!" So, what I make and how I create it is always changing and evolving. I was born shortly after WWII to parents who grew up during the Depression. They always had a "we can do it, we can make it" attitude which rubbed off on my two younger brothers and me. My brothers are amazing and can make and do ANYTHING! When I was a little girl, my mother gave me an old carved cigar box, which I cherish, filled with pop beads, wooden beads and yarn for stringing. That was the beginning of my jewelry making journey.

On a visit to the Grand Canyon when I was a young woman, I was fortunate enough to help a Native American silversmith sand cast my first silver bracelet and bezel set a large turquoise nugget on top. I was in love, hook, line and sinker! While working full time and having a family here in northern Minnesota, my artistic endeavors slowed down but never stopped. I am an artist, scrapbooker, seamstress, woodworker and jewelry artisan. Now that I am retired, I am able to indulge in all my hobbies. However, there just never seems to be enough time in the day to do it all, but I try!

I have been teaching community education beginner and intermediate jewelry making classes since my retirement. Many of my students have been bitten so hard by the jewelry making bug that they say I have turned them into monsters-they just can't get enough. Making jewelry, seeing something take shape from small bits and pieces, is so rewarding that I hope it brings out the "monster" in you, too!