How to Coil Wrap a Wire for Jewelry
Wrapping wire into a coil to create distinctive jewelry designs is not as complicated as it looks. With the right tools and wire gauge you can make accents for beaded strands, customized clasps and completely coiled bracelets and rings. You can purchase specialized coiling tools, but with a bit of practice, you can achieve the same results using basic jewelry tools and materials. Practice with non-precious jewelry or craft wire and you'll soon get the hang of creating coil wraps to enhance your jewelry designs.
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Things You'll Need
- 22-gauge craft wire
- Flush wire cutters
- Diamond file
- 1/8-inch diameter dowel
- 20-gauge sterling wire
- Nylon jaw pliers
Instructions
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Learning to Coil
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1
Cut 2 feet of 22-gauge craft wire with flush wire cutters. This is your practice coiling wire. Fold the wire in half.
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2
Fit the fold over a 1/8-inch diameter dowel. Hold the dowel and one section of wire steady in your non-dominant hand; hold the remaining half of the coiling wire in your dominant hand, about 3 inches from the dowel. File the ends of the wire smooth.
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3
Wrap the wire in your dominant hand around the dowel away from yourself. The motion is as if you were cranking an ice-cream churn. The coils should lie next to each other, but not too close. The coil wire should slide on the dowel. Coil the wire to the end of the strip.
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4
Turn the dowel around so that you are holding the coiled wire and dowel in your non-dominant hand. Hold the loose wire in your dominant hand, 3 inches from the dowel.
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5
Repeat Step 3 to coil wrap the wire. Remove the dowel.
Coiling Wire over Wire
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6
Cut a 2-foot long strip of 20-gauge sterling silver wire with flush wire cutters. File the ends smooth. Sterling silver wire is sturdier than craft wire. Straighten the sterling wire with nylon jaw pliers. Straightening the wire with jaw pliers also helps to harden the wire. This wire is your core wire.
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7
Cut a 2-foot long strip of jewelry wire 22-gauge or smaller. Use flush wire cutters and file the ends smooth. When coiling wire over wire, you'll have more success coiling a thinner gauge wire over a straight wire that's thicker. Higher numbers indicate thinner wires. For example, a 22-gauge wire is thinner than a 20-gauge wire.
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8
Fold the 22-gauge wire in half. Fit the fold over the straight 20-gauge sterling wire. If you plan to keep the 20-gauge wire as part of your jewelry design, bend the ends up at a 90 degree angle to hold the wire in place. You can turn the 90-degree bend into a loop after coiling the wire.
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9
Coil one half of the wire over the straight wire as you practiced in the previous section. Change hands and coil the remaining half of the wire.
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