DIY Jewelry Tutorial - Wire Wrapped Earrings

Sorry I have been MIA for a few days! I have been working my tail off, doing orders for my Etsy shop. If you're not familiar, or haven't taken a peek of late, please do. Pop on over and say hi!

Working away on new designs has made me think it would be nice to share a little jewelry tutorial. These earrings are lovely for bridal wear but they're also simple enough to be worn on a regular Spring day!(Which can't come soon enough!)

This is a popular and I'd say the most basic wire wrapping technique. I'm demonstrating it here below on Keshi freshwater pearls. However, you can certainly create this kind of design using other beads, gemstones or crystals. There are so many options to choose from but a briolette or horizontally drilled pear shape is best.

Personally, I love these freshwater pearls...  They gleam and catch the light so beautifully and even have slight tinges of blue and pink.
I'm about to share a few of my own 'pearls' (pardon the pun) with you now so if you're up for some DIY jewelry making, lets get started :)

Supplies Needed:

• 26 gauge wire

(depending on the bead)

• Top drilled pearls or beads

• Kidney ear wires

• Cutters

• Chain nose pliers

• Round pliers

 

• Notes: If you're new to jewelry making, you'll find that wire is measured by 'gauge'. The higher the number, the thinner the wire. The gauge of the wire you use to make these particular earrings here, is largely dependent on the type of bead you choose. Be aware that genuine pearls and gemstones are very delicate, so a 28 ga. may be better suited. Subsequently, beads with a larger hole can be wrapped with 24 ga wire.

Also it may be wise to practice with craft wire first before moving onto sterling silver or gold if that's what takes your fancy. Wastage is going to happen. There's no way around it, I'm afraid!

Steps 1 & 2 - Getting started

First measure out 2 pieces of wire, each, about 5 inches in length. Take the first piece, for the first earring and thread the wire through the keshi pearl, bead or whatever you've chosen.

 

Then bring both wires up vertically and together. You should have the left side longer and right side shorter (about an inch is fine). Pinch the base above the center of the pearl to form a triangle.

Steps 3 & 4 - Positioning the wires

Then you'll need to take your round nose pliers and hold the wires so they're perpendicular and what will be the front of the bead, facing left. Make sure the longer wire is bent 90 degrees backwards and away from you and the other shorter wire the opposite way, coming forwards.

 

Reposition your pliers so that one prong is sitting in the nook of the wire 'triangle' and the other is outside of it (shown above).

Steps 5 & 6 - Creating the top loop
Still with me? Ok, so now you want to remove your pliers from the nook and reposition them so you can guide your long wire up, around and in between the two open plier prongs. If held taught, this should give you a nice curve or a 'hook' shape.

Repositioning your pliers again, ensure the outer plier prong is facing away from you (with the wire 'hook' coming towards you) and pull the end of the long wire around and down, crossing over itself at the base.

Steps 7, 8 & 9 - Wrapping downwards with the long wire
Still holding your pliers, as your crossing the wires over (as per step 6), continue around the base of the triangle as if you're wrapping the wire. Yay! You're doing it - keep going!

Then spiral downwards until you've created a little 'cap' on top of your pearl or bead. You can either make the wrap quite neat or a little messier (good for practice or a funkier design).

To finish, I've just snipped the end off and tucked it in with my flat nose pliers along the side of the pearl where the hole is.

Steps 7, 8 & 9 - Wrapping upwards with the remaining short wire
Take your flat nose pliers again and gently (you don't want to mar the wire) hold the loop still and wind the short piece of wire upwards just a little until you're happy with the finish. You also want to try to keep the pearl as still as possible. Then you can take your clippers and carefully cut the end off

A tip to make this end even more secure, is to make sure you've threaded the last little bit through the loop first before you cut.

Squeeze where you've finished to ensure everything is taught and you have no edges sticking up.

Now, you can take the second pearl or bead and repeat steps 1-12 for the second earring.

Steps 13 & 14 - Adding the earring hooks
To finish off, take the ear wire/earring hooks of your choice (I've used kidney ear wires here because I love the long shape against the face) and just thread the pearl onto it like a pendant and to secure it, I've just squeezed the earring loop together to ensure the pearl doesn't fall off.

I recommend you wire wrap each pearl one after another rather than doing one, then placing it on the earring hook and the same again. That way, you can look at the first wire wrap as you're working to try to keep the two earrings symmetrical.

And that's it! Easy peasy! Now you have yourself a lovely pair of earrings and a jewelry making technique to try out on a whole manner of beads to create different styles.

Let me know below if you tried out my tutorial and how it went. I realize instructions can be hard to follow so if you have any troubles, just leave me a question below. Of course, I would LOVE to see your creations, just shoot me a message.

 

You're also welcome to pin this DIY jewelry tutorial for later :)

 

Enjoy...