WireWorkers Guild: CAT Project

PHEW!! Have I worked hard! Don't you find, that it
is sometimes the simplest of projects that cause the most
trouble and take the longest to make!
I promised you a CAT TUTORIAL, following
the publication of my OWL project in MAKE JEWELLERY
magazine Issue 50.

Tu-whit ... tu-whooooo! And having done a quick doodle of one,
I reckoned it would be a 'no brainer'!

(Above: quick wire doodle of Kitty)

But, ... "meow! Was I wrong!'
So, at first, I had a few attempts at different variations ...

(Above: Experiment for a Cheshire style cat!)

(Above: Another experiment using twisted wire frame!)

(Above: is my 'Cheshire Cat'! and this is also when my scanner started playing up!)

Not only did I have problems getting the design right,
my scanner also started to play up ... and eventually, gave
up working and broke down altogether! So, I ended up
having to purchase a new one and then it took me a while to
get the hang of the set up! And I'm still learning!!
(It's just as well you don't get any sound with this blog ...
just vision! ... because the air was 'purple' at one point!)

But, I don't like being defeated by inanimate objects, so
I persevered and the following:
"POODIKAT Project"
was born...
(the emphasis most definitely being on the first 3 letters
of its name!) and this is the result of my endeavours.

1. Cut 12" of 0.8mm
copper, silver or gold
wire. (Use more for
a fatter cat!)

Place a circular
mandrel (about
3/4" diameter)
and bend a curve
into the wire
approx. 3"
from one
end.

2. Place the
tips of your
round/or/chain
nosed pliers
on each side
of the curved
area and
bend the
wire back
down in the
opposite
direction, to
form the 'ears'.

3. Position
a larger round
mandrel against
the curve bet-
ween the 'ears',
(I used the
head of my
Whammer),
and push the
extending wires
around the circu-
lar shape to form
the 'body'.

4. Secure
the short end
around the
base of the
outer frame
and cut off
any excess.

5. Loop the extending wire back around to form the
'tail' and secure around the base of the frame ...
leaving enough wire ...

6. ... to make a small tight spiral, which can flipped over
the wrapped wires underneath to hide them.

7. Once you've adjusted your frame and you're happy
with it, give it a little tap with your hammer on a
steel block, to work harden.

8. To make the EYES: Cut approximately 6" of
0.8mm wire. Thread the 'eye' beads onto it and
using your round nosed pliers, curl a curve into the
ends of the wire. Push your beads into these curves
and begin spiralling the rest of the wire around them.

9. Look at your cat frame to check the width required
for the eye unit to fit in place and holding the centre of
the wire between the eye beads, with the tips of your chain
nosed pliers, push the beads up and in towards
each other, as shown above. Put aside for later ...

10. To create the 'nose & whiskers', cut a 6" plus 3 x 2.5"
lengths of 0.4mm wire and thread them all through the
chosen 'nose' bead, so that the bead is situated at the centre of
all the wires.

11. Take each projecting ends of the longest, 6" wire
and wrap this tightly around each side of the bead.
This will ensure that the bead remains at the centre of
the 'whisker' wires.

12. Now you are ready to join the 'nose & whiskers'
to the 'eyes'! Secure to the centre of the eye unit by
tightly wrapping the extending whisker wires to the
centre of the frame.

13. Cut 4 short (about 2") lengths of 0.4mm wire and
use one of these to secure the top of one of the sides
of the eye frame to the outer body frame. Cut off any
excess and neaten the ends.

14. Use the remaining 3 lengths of 0.4mm to bind and secure
the side of the eye unit to the frame and repeat for the opposite
side.

15. WHISKERS: Straighten and fan out the projecting whisker
wires and wrap the ends around the outer frame. (You could
leave them loose and just curl the ends, but if it is going to be
a necklace, or worn as a piece of jewellery, the fine ends could catch
onto clothing! Therefore, this extra bit of binding will make the
piece more practical for wear!).