Skill Level: Beginner/All
Technique: Pendant
As a stained-glass artist I spent many tedious hours repairing original Tiffany windows and to relax I enjoy making fused and dichroic glass pieces for my jewelry making "hobby". I designed the following pendant as a way to use some glass pieces I had made with holes across their tops.
Clean, straighten and then cut the one 12" piece of wire. Measure and mark the center. Place the wire with its center mark on a ring mandrel at the largest size, (or use any round object that is at least 1" in diameter, but no bigger than 1½" around), and wrap the wire around the shape until it crosses over itself. Remove from mandrel.
With the front of the pendant bead facing you, thread it onto the wire loop; and pull the wire ends until your desired size is formed. Where the wires cross each other, use flat nose pliers to make a 45° bend in the bottom wire, heading up and away from the circle.
Still working with the bottom wire, measure and mark ½" up from the bend just made. Place round-nose pliers on this mark and roll the tool and wire away from you, toward the back of the pendant forming the bail.
While using flat-nose pliers to hold the bail just formed, use the shorter wire on the front to wrap around the bail, 2 times to show, and ending with this wire sticking out to the side of the pendant.
Bend the bail tail up and out toward the opposite side of the wrap wire, and use fingers to swirl it to the front of the pendant.
Use round-nose pliers and fingers to shape, swirl and form, adding any embellishments you like or not, to finish the pendant.
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