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Thursday, December 06, 2007

Ornament Thursday

I came across Katie Hacker's invite to join her Ornament Thursday blogging group last week and thought it was a great idea! For several weeks, crafters and artists are making and posting ornament ideas every Thursday. I've found some really fun ideas for both adults and kids!

My December 6 contribution to Ornament Thursday is this simple wire and bead ornament. Fast and easy to put together, you can make several for your own tree or for inexpensive gifts. Note that while I use sterling silver wire for jewelry, in this case I'm using silver-colored craft wire - otherwise you'll be polishing your ornament constantly, especially if you have a real tree!!

It's a Ball Holiday Ornament

Materials
18g silver-colored craft wire
6mm Siam and Emerald Swarovski Crystal Bicones (3-5)
Headpins (3-5)
4mm jump ring

Tools
Round nosed or stepped (wrap & tap) pliers
Ring mandrel or large wooden dowel (1 inch diameter, more or less)
Flush cutter
File

I keep my wire on the spool until I'm ready to finish off a piece to reduce waste. Below are some step-by-step instructions and photos that help illustrate some of the steps!

























Create a simple loop at one end of the wire using the largest section of your round nosed or stepped pliers.

At the base of the loop, wind wire around the largest section of your ring mandrel or wooden dowel, going in the opposite direction as the loop at the end.

When you reach the spot where you meet the first loop, continue to wind the wire around the mandrel or dowel a little further (not overlapping the first section of wire, but wrapping next to it). You want it just enough to give the wire some curve.

Cut the wire about one half inch from where the large circle meets. Using the smallest section of your stepped pliers or the middle of the round nosed pliers, create another simple loop back toward the inside of the large circle. The top small loop and the inside small loop should line up underneath each other - you can slightly curl the large circle a little tighter if you need to.

Create dangles using a wrapped loop technique with the crystals and headpins. Hang the dangles from the jump ring, and attach the jump ring to the inside loop.

You can now hang your ornament using a conventional ornament hanger or make Beading Help Web's wire ornament hangers using the same 18g wire used for the ornament.


Other bloggers participating in this week's Ornament Thursday event include:




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