DIY: wire heart necklace

Mother’s Day is fast approaching. Since there isn’t much time left until Sunday, I really had to get my stuff together. I wanted it to be something crafty, but it also had to be mailable – which ruled out lots of flowers art and elaborate baking creations. I’ve had this book on wire jewelry lying around for a few weeks now and decided to finally try my hand on it.

This is the first time I’ve ever worked with wire. It’s really rewarding and you only need very few supplies to get started, so it’s a great craft to try out. I already had a pair of wire cutter and straight-nosed pliers (though mine are rippled, which makes ugly dents in the wire so I’ll have to get a new pair), and a quick stop at the craft store left me with round-nose pliers and a bunch of different gauge wire. It cost me about five bucks.

I used gauge 18 silver-plated wire to make the base of the heart. Clip off a long piece of wire, and make a sharp bend in the middle – this will be the top crease of your heart. Then bend each wire end over a sharpie or other big, round pen. I didn’t even try to make my halves the same to give the heart an asymmetric look. Bend the wires towards each other and twist together to make the bottom of the heart. Clip off any excess wire. I wrapped it with some 22 gauge wire, crisscrossing the heart and securing the points by wrapping the wire around my heart frame whenever I changed directions. Easy as that!

Attach a jump ring and thread onto a leather cord to make a pretty necklace. I whipped up a quick wire necklace by bending the 18 gauge wire into a big round shape and twisting together a quick hook and eye at the ends. This took me roughly an hour to put together. It’s my very first hand-made jewelry item and I think it’ll be a great gift for my Mom. Now I only have to get it in the mail!

What are you making for Mother’s Day?

P.S.: My mini windowsill garden is still waiting for some action. It’s day 6 and I’m trying to be patient, but I’ve really got a feeling my black thumb struck again. Nothing green to be seen yet. *sigh*