uncommon jewelry designs, fine art photography &  adult and youth jewelry classes

San Diego, CA  Visual Artist  & Educator Denise J. Bonaimo

Back to Lesson Plans Menu

Hammered Spiral Instructions

Tools: Round Nose pliers, Chain Nose Pliers, Side Cutters, Ball Peen Hammer, Steel Block.

Materials: Round, dead soft wire- Recommended Gauges- 18, 20 or 22 gauge for delicate dangling charms or 16 gauge for larger centerpiece pendant.

1) With your round nose pliers grasp the tip of the wire with the tip of the pliers and turn a tight, small simple "P" loop. Click here for Simple "P" Loop instructions.

2) With your chain nose pliers, grasp across the entire loop, leaving only a tiny bit of the loop exposed on the side of your pliers.

• If you are a right- handed person, the tiny bit of the loop and the tail of the wire should be projecting out of the left edge of your plier jaws.
• If you are left handed, the loop and the tail should be sticking out of the right edge of your plier jaws.
• Position the tail so it protruding towards is a 7 o’clock position.

3) Squeeze your pliers to secure the spiral.

• Pressing firmly against the wire and the plier jaws with your thumb or finger, push the tail until you bend it into a 12 o’clock position.

4) Lightly release the wire from the plier jaws and swivel the tail back down to 7 o’clock and squeeze to secure.

• Again, only expose a tiny bit of the loop out of the edge of your plier jaws.
• Repeat Step 3, adding another leg to your spiral.

5) Continue repeating until you have your desired outer width. When you reach your desired width, snip the end of the wire so you have about 1/8 “ left from the tip and turn a simple loop, backwards in the opposite direction of your spiral. This is the loop (bail) you will use to hang the spiral dangle.

6) If desired, planish (hammer flat) your spiral on the steel block with the flat side of a ball peen hammer.

• Tape your spiral to the steel block.
• Use the ball peen hammer to planish the coil part of the design. Don't hammer the bail.

Note: Wire spirals tend to lose their shape when you try to do more than 5 legs around the loop on a 22 gauge wire. If you would like to make a wide spiral, use a thicker gauge wire.

Denise J. Bonaimo
Jewelry Designer and Instructor
www.bonaimo.com
artdiva@bonaimo.com