How to Make Peruvian Thread Earrings
Handcrafted jewelry lends a certain exotic, earthy charm to any outfit and few things are more satisfying than making your own. Peruvian thread earrings are colorful, intricate and surprisingly easy to make. The design is amazingly versatile, too. You can make Peruvian thread earrings in one color or as many as you like. All you need to create Peruvian thread earrings are a few simple tools and some imagination. Follow the steps below and you'll be making Peruvian thread earrings in no time.
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Things You'll Need
- 14-gauge wire
- Wire cutters
- 24-gauge wire
- Coiling Gizmo
- Embroidery floss in two to three colors
- Needle-nose pliers
- Clear-drying glue
- Earring wires
Instructions
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1
Cut the 14-gauge wire into two lengths, both 12 inches long. Bend one into a teardrop shape, with one end much longer than the other. Repeat with the second length of wire, matching their shapes and sizes as closely as you can. Lay one teardrop aside.
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2
Cut the 24-gauge wire into a length that is four feet long. Follow the instructions on the Coil Gizmo to curl the wire into a tight spiral. If you don't have a Coil Gizmo, you can hand wind the wire around anything that is the same width as the 14-gauge wire but it will take you much longer.
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3
Slide the coiled spiral onto your teardrop shape, being very careful not to stretch the spirals out. You want to keep them uniform and tight.
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4
Close the teardrop by wrapping the two ends around each other and squeezing them tight with the needle-nose pliers. Do not trim off the excess, you will need it later.
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5
Separate the strands of embroidery floss into individual threads. Keep them separated by color. Choose your first color and use a square knot to attach one end of the thread to the top of the teardrop.
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6
Wind the floss around the teardrop by pulling it straight down to the bottom and placing it between the two center coils. Bring it back up behind the teardrop and place it between the two coils that are next in line to the right of the square knot. Bring the floss back down to the coils just to the left of the center ones.
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7
Wind the floss the rest of the way around the teardrop, moving to the right at the top and to the left at the bottom, one coil at a time. When you have made a full circle, tie the floss off at the square knot..
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8
Choose your second color and attach it to the top of the teardrop with a square knot. Bring the floss down in front as you did the first one. When you bring it back up, catch it between the coils that are at the 3:00 position if your teardrop were a clock face.
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9
Wind the floss as you did the first time, advancing one coil to the right at the 3:00 position and to the left at the bottom, until you have covered the bottom half of the teardrop. Pull the long end up behind the earring and tie it off at the top.
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10
Make a third layer by starting out as you did with the first two, but bring the floss up to what would roughly be right between the 4 and the 5 on a clock face. This doesn't have to be exact, do what looks best to you. Wind the floss as you did before, moving one coil to the right at the top and the left at the bottom and then tie the floss off at the top.
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11
Cut off any long ends of the floss and coat the knots with clear-drying glue. Let it dry completely before continuing.
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12
Make a tiny loop for the earring wire with your needle-nose pliers. Wrap the long end around underneath the loop several times, until it is secure. Cut off the excess wire, or coil it into a design just below the loop for the earring wire.
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13
Attach the earring wire to the little loop that you made for it and repeat the entire process for your second earring.
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Tips & Warnings
Use heavyweight spool thread, if you don't like embroidery floss.
Metallic floss looks great but it is incredibly difficult to work with in this case.
