Working with Wire

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Working with Wire

• Wire work for Jewelry

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Wire made from metal

• Metalsmiths have used wire for thousands of years
  create components for jewelry such as jump
  rings and clasps, and pieces of wire are also
  soldered together to build cuff bracelets and
  pendants. You can make a large variety of jewelry
  by simply bending wire into various shapes and
  connecting these shapes together.

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Copper Wire

• Copper is widely available and can be found in
  local hardware stores as well as specialist wire
  suppliers. Copper is relatively low cost and has
  many positive features. Copper is soft and
  malleable and can easily be formed and bent
  making it ideal for twisting into shapes. It is
  also available in a variety of thicknesses and
  grades. Copper will tarnish, and not only will it
  develop a slight patina on its surface it will
  also share this patina with a wearer! So when
  designing jewelry it is worth remembering that it
  may discolor. Saying that, many people believe in
  the positive qualities of copper and wear copper
  items to help alleviate the symptoms of arthritis.

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Size or gauge of wire

• Wire is measured in gauges. The higher the gauge,
  the thinner and more workable the wire. 26 gauge
  wire is very thin - almost like thread. 24 guage
  is good for stringing through small beads. 14
  gauge is about the limit for wire that you can
  handle easily.
• 20 gauge wire is the size we will begin with.

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Malleability of Wire

• Wire comes is many degrees of softness or
  hardness. The copper wire that we use is called
  dead soft. As you work with your wire it will
  become harder and less flexible. This is called
  work hardening If you work it too much it will
  become brittle and break. You want soft wire
  while you shape it and you want the wire to be
  hard and hold its shape after you have made your
  piece.

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Wire Cutters

• Small wire cutters work best for jewelry. There
  are 2 essential sizes- flush cut - one side of
  the blades is angled and makes a V-shape cut in
  the wire. The other is flat and makes a straight
  cross-cut in the wire.

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Round Nose Pliers

• Both jaws of these pliers are rounded on all
  sides. They are used for making various sized
  loops and smooth bends in the wire.

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Chain Nose Pliers

• The inside of the jaws of these pliers is flat
  and the outside is rounded. The tips taper to a
  narrow point to make it easy to reach into small
  spaces. Small textured ridges help to hold your
  work in place but also leave small marks on the
  metal.

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Flat Nose Pliers

• The inside of the jaws of these pliers is flat
  and the outside is rounded. The tips taper to a
  narrow point to make it easy to reach into small
  spaces. It is important that the inside surface
  of the jaws is nice and smooth.

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The first thing

• That you need to do with wire is to straighten
  it. To straighten wire you grab each end of your
  wire with a pair of chain nose pliars and pull
  the wire tight. Then you run the wire along the
  edge of a table until it is straight.

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Jump rings

• Jump rings are the most basic and essential of
  all jewelry components. They link pieces together.

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Making Jump Rings

• Wind STRAIGHT wire around a mandrel that is
  perfectly round.

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Cut the Jump rings

• Cut the jump rings straight across, one by one.

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Open jump rings

• Always open jump rings to the side, never apart.
  That will ruin the shape of the jump ring and you
  wont be able to use it.

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Assignments

• Make 25 jump rings and link them together. Ms.
  Bliss will check these off. Save them- you will
  use them later on this semester.

• Make a jump rings bracelet with 4 coil jump
  rings. You will need about 15 of the coils. Link
  them together so the bracelet fits around your
  wrist. Make a clasp to hold it together.

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Photos courtesy of Cre8it!

• http//www.dotcalmvillage.net/index.html
• http//www.enijewelry.com/jewelry/lessons.html
• http//knitting.about.com/b/2008/06/26/working-wit
  h-wire.htm

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http//www.enijewelry.com/jewelry/lessons.html