How to Make a Beaded Spiral Wind Spinner

A wind spinner can add a bit of whimsy to your indoor and outdoor spaces. However, at $15 or more, it may not always seem practical. Creating your own wind spinner is a way to add fun and color without a hefty price tag.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Two 2-liter plastic soda bottles
• Scissors, straight or decorative edge
• Tape measure
• Hole punch
• 12 inches of wire or a clothes hanger
• Wire cutter
• Needle-nose pliers
• Beads: tri, faceted, pony, plastic, glass or clay
• Marker
• 8 inches of ribbon or leather or nylon cord

1. Cut 12 to 14 strips from the soda bottles, each ½-inch wide and 10 inches long.

2. Using the hole punch, make a hole in the center of a strip, ¼ inch from the end. Repeat until each end of each plastic strip has a hole in it.

3. If you are using a hanger for your wire, you will need to cut it. The cross piece along the bottom is the part you want to use; simply cut it at each of the corners.

4. Make a loop at one end of the wire with the needle-nose pliers. This is considered the bottom of the wire.

5. Thread your first bead onto the wire.

6. Slide the first plastic strip into the wire and add a bead.

7. Alternate the strips and beads until all the strips are threaded on the wire.

8. Measure the stack of beads and strips you have completed, and add 1 1/2 inches for a top loop. Measure from the top of the wire and mark the spot on the wire where the measurement ends.

9. Add beads to the wire to just below your mark.

10. Bring the free end of the first strip of plastic---the one on the bottom---up and slide it onto the wire. This will make the strip bow out, creating an arch.

11. Add a bead, then slide the free end of the second strip onto the wire. Continue until all the free ends of the strips have been threaded onto the wire.

12. Place a final bead on the wire.

13. Using the needle-nose pliers, form a loop with the remaining wire. Do not push the threaded strips and beads together too tightly or it will not spin.

14. Use the ribbon or cord to hang it from the loop you made in the wire. Because you want it to spin in the wind, do not hang it directly from the wire loop.

15. Place your spinner where it will catch the wind, and arrange the strips around the wire in a spiral shape.

Tips & Warnings

• Soda bottles can be clear, colored or even decorated with craft paint. If using a wire hanger, use 6mm or 8mm beads. If you use tri beads, you likely will need two beads to equal one of a more common-shaped bead. If you make a larger or smaller wind spinner, beads of other sizes may be more appropriate. You can add ribbon, strings of beads or a crystal to the bottom ring for added decoration.