LEAF TUTORIAL

It's that time of year again ...  and leaves are dropping all
over the place!  Over the years I have designed numerous
'Leaf' and 'Autumn' themed pendants and earrings and I
never get tired of the shapes and colours that nature provides
as a design reference...
So with this in mind, I want to share a LEAF tutorial
with you, it's one that I hope you can adapt and make your
own. My first attempt at this style looked rather more like
a FEATHER, so with that in mind, I am going to combine
the two words together and call this tutorial:
FLEAF DESIGN

So gather together, your usual wireworking tools:
Round and Chain nosed pliers, Cutters, 0.8mm and
0.4mm copper, silver or gold plated wire (whatever
you have to hand will do!). Whammer hammer
with block is optional ... but, it does help
toughen the outer frame.

1) Cut approx. 6" (15cm)
of 0.8mm wire for your
outer frame and bend in
half.  Use your fingers
to shape the curved sides
of the leaf.

Cut a second length of
0.8mm wire which is
approx 1.5"(4cm) longer
that your leaf length.

Straighten this length.

OPTIONAL
2) Place the
leaf frame
on a steel
block and
hammer
the outer edge
to flatten and
toughen.

Make sure
you don't
hammer the
crossed over
wires or you
will weaken them.

3) Using the
tips of your
round nosed pliers,
curl a tiny hook
at one end of the
straight cut
length and attach
this to the
base of the
leaf frame.

4.  Using the tips of your round nosed pliers, curl
small even coils (like you make jump rings) with
any wire you have to hand ... I used 0.8mm gold-
plated, but anything will do!

5.  Cut short lengths of 0.4mm wire (about an 1"
(2.5cm) wider than your frame) and create tiny
loops at the centre of each length, by crossing the wire
over at the centre, around the very tips of your round
nosed pliers.

6.  Begin by threading the central straight wire
with a coil, followed by the looped length of
0.4mm wire.

7.  Push the coil and fine wire to the
base of your frame and connect the
projecting ends around the sides of
the frame. Wrapping the ends a couple
of times around - cutting off any
excess and squeezing or flattening
any protrusions of wire.

8.  Repeat step 7, adding a second coil
followed by the fine wire and continue
attaching to the sides of the frame ...

9. Work all your way up the centre of
the frame and then secure the top, by
wrapping one of the projecting wires of
the frame in one direction around the
straight stem, the other in the opposite
direction.

10.  You can either cut off the excess
projecting wires on each side, or (as
above) curl decorative spirals using
your round and flat or chain nosed pliers.

11.  You could make another coil to thread
onto the projecting wire above the spirals
and then create a double top loop ...

... and
here it
is ...
ready to
wear!

You could also make a few more and
attach together to make a fuller 3-leaf
pendant!

Try adding beads or feathers ...
coloured wires ... thicker gauges!
Just play around with whatever you
have in your stash!

 

         

You could also add beads onto the side wires

to add more colour! Obviously, you would

have to do this from Step 6 ...

... and if you wish (for a fish) you can also adapt it 

to become a FLISH design!!

~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~

As always, use the tutorial as a base guide to fuel your

inner creativity! And please don't be shy in sharing your

experiments, trials and wirey attempts on my Facebook

page!

MNC JEWELS

I spotted Monica Catrullo's work by chance, (on the world
wide windows to the world - the global internet!) and instantly
loved her sense of style and design! As such, I invited her to be
a feature artist ... and she's generously agreed ... all the way
from Italy, to grace us with an interview and insight into her
beautiful and stunning jewellery creations!  Sit back
and enjoy!

FEATURE ARTIST:
MONICA CATRULLO
MNC JEWELS

TELL US A LITTLE ABOUT YOUR BACKGROUND?

I live in Milan, Italy.  I'm married to Roberto and we
have a wonderful eight year old child called, Alessio.  I'm a
chemist by trade and have been working for ENI research
laboratory (ENI is our National Oil Company), for almost
twenty four years.

Since I had my baby, I've been a part-time employee, but
would like to have more time to follow my passion, which
is making jewellery.

I've been fond of wearing and making earrings since I was
a little girl. I used to make long earrings using my mother's
old necklaces ... However, it was only five years ago, that I
discovered my real skill for wirework!

WHAT INSPIRED YOU TO SET UP MNC JEWELS?

MNC Jewels was born, little by little ...
I started beading using small beads and crystals.  Then I
discovered ENI OKEN and her work and I fell in love
with wirewrapping.  It was like a new beginning! It felt
like I had discovered a magic world! The name for my
jewellery business, MNC, is based around the consonants
of my name 'MONICA'.

WHAT INSPIRES YOUR DESIGNS?

My inspiration comes from the world around me, mostly
from nature and its shapes.  I love using wire, and I know
it's a strange thing to say, but it's the wire that drives my
hands (and tells me what to do).  I start with an idea in
my mind, but it's the wire that decides how to turn it into
a real piece of finished jewellery ...

DO YOU HAVE A FAVOURITE TECHNIQUE,
STYLE AND WHY?

As I said before, my favourite technique is wirewrapping -
weaving with wire.  Why? I really don't really know? It
was love at first sight!  Maybe, it is because with wire,
you can create any shape and your possibilities are therefore
infinite.  I also like other techniques such as chainmaille,
peyote and so on ... which I love to mix and combine together.

DO YOU TEACH YOUR CRAFT?

No.  I don't teach classes or courses at the moment.  However, I
write for an Italian magazine that teaches people how to make
jewellery.

HOW DO YOU PROMOTE AND SELL YOUR WORK?

I promote my work on Facebook, my fanpage is:

MNCjewels by Monica Catrullo
You an also find me on Twitter too.

HAVE YOU ANY SPECIAL ADVICE FOR OTHER'S 
STARTING OUT WITH JEWELLERY MAKING?

My advice is to try and find your own way and unique style.
Not to stop at copying other designers work, even if it's an
excellent imitation.  I admire anyone who is able to create
something out of his/or/her hands and mind.  Everything born
from passion is admirable!

WHAT ARE YOUR LONG TERM DREAMS AND GOALS?

My very long term dream is to have my own studio and to be
a real full-time artist.  And of course, have a lot of customers!!!

***************************************************************
Monica, I'm sure in time, you will fulfill ALL your dreams and goals ...
your talent shines very brightly in Milan!  

UPCYCLED & UPDATED JEWELLERY

There are such lovely bold trends in contemporary
jewellery - BIG fashion statement pieces!   
(as shown in the image above) but sometimes, it's hard to
know how to get started or be inspired to make this
type of prominent, original design!

UPCYLING (or, "recycling" as it used to be called
before it became so fashionable!) is such a great way
to give wasted or useless materials and components
a completely new, improved life as well as inspire a
trend setting piece.

Turn your junk into new treasures!

As autumn descends, you'll have more time to
sit indoors and creatively design some special
pieces.  But where to begin?  Well you could
start by asking all your friends and family if
they have any old broken bits of jewellery that
they no longer want ... or maybe, go through
your own jewellery box and find things that
you don't wear any more or need repairing...
You could also try looking at charity and thrift
stores ... Go on a junk hunt and I'm sure you'll
come up with a stash of stuff!

I've put together a TUTORIAL to show you how
I approach an upcycling project ... obviously,
each piece would be different, depending on
the components I'm using (or, the mood I'm in!).

Above - is the stash I picked up to make my new
piece ... an old brooch, broken knotted pearl necklace,
broken earrings, and turquoise chain necklace, some
curtain rings, some brass chain from a hardware store
... all pieces that have been sitting around and seen
much  better days!

1.  The way I get started, is to sift out the largest or
most 'statement' like pieces from the pile, as they
will make up the centrepiece of my design.

2.  Next, I place them on my bead mat to get a balance
for colours.  You can either choose to go down the symmetry
route or create an asymmetric design. I have such a hodge-
podge of styles and shapes, that I've decided to try and retain
harmony and balance with colour rather than shapes.

3.  I now need to work out, how and with what, I am
going to connect and attach my components together
and because of this colour scheme, I've decided to
blend the tones and use copper and gold plated
wire.

4.  Looking at each of my components, especially
the focal units, I decide which ones need adapting
or revising to bring them back to life.  The brooch
(above) needed the broken back pin removing. I've
also disconnected 3 of the pendant tassels and added
some new ones to blend in with the rest of the
colour scheme I'm using.

5.  With a bit of fine wire wool, I've brushed up
the outer decorative edge and managed to prise
off the white ceramic centre 'stone'. Then I've
used some hole-punch-pliers to create holes on
each side for connection to jump rings.

6.  What to put in place of the white ceramic
stone? I could have used liquid resin, done some
decoupage, glued in a new stone, or coin ... but
in the mood I was in whilst making it, I took a
decision to punch stamp a circle of copper and
connect this with spiral rivets to the centre of the
old brooch frame.

7.  The brass rings looked a bit dull when they
were empty ... so wired in some of the beads to add
extra colour!

8.  Then, I started threading some of the beads with wire,
making links at each end ...

9.  These resin beads looked so different to the round ones,
that I choose to link some of the broken turquoise necklace
to one edge on two of them.

10.  And if you want to make larger units out of smaller
components, this can achieved by binding them together
with wire to form a new, much bolder unit!

TA DA!! Here it is the finished piece! A big bold
statement necklace created out of broken, junk
jewellery!

Each piece you create will obviously be completely
different, however, the main things to consider are
BALANCE and HARMONY in shape and colour.

1.  Start by picking out statement, or focal components
for your design.
2. Consider a basic shape, foundation outline for
your piece, by placing your units together. Is it going
to be symmetrical or asymetrical...
3. Work out a colour scheme from the beads and
pieces you have (let them 'speak to you') and if they're 
all very different, introduce a new themed colour 
to create overall continuity to the piece.
4. Look at each component and consider if it needs
extra embellishment, refurbishing or cleaning, etc...
5. Place and plan your design by placing your components 
on your bead mat in a rough design and spend some time
repositioning them until the units and colours appear 
unified and colour harmonized.
6. Connect all units together, with jump rings of the
same colour to retain overal unity and harmony. 
7. Wear the finished piece and look at it on in the
mirror.  This will expose any balance issues and
you will be able to see if it hangs properly and
comfortably.

 I HOPE THIS INSPIRES YOU TO ROUTE AROUND

THE BACK OF YOUR JEWELLERY BOX OR BEAD

STASH ... ANYTHING GOES! BITS OF LEATHER,

BUTTONS, FEATHERS, ZIPS, WASHERS, CUT UP

DRINKING CANS, RIBBONS ... you name it!
It can all come to life in a new form ...
Don't be afraid to experiment!

!!UPCYCLED AND UPDATED!!

Bead Wheel Necklace

Red BEAD WHEEL Necklace by Linda Jones

This BEAD WHEEL project has evolved over
many years, beginning it's life as a smaller scale chain
link system ... and now becoming a much bolder and
more simplistic design! It can be tweaked and altered
to suit your individual style and creativity ... and I hope
it sparks off a new playful route of inspiration in your
wire repertoire!

So, take a minute to read through the tutorial
and once you've had time to digest the
progression of images, you'll be able to adapt
it to suit whatever beads and coloured wires
you have to hand!

1.  The first step is to create 7 circles of wire for the
beaded 'wheel' centrepiece of the necklace.  I wrapped
0.8mm (20-gauge) silver-plated wire around the nylon
head of my Whammer hammer and cut each of the wire
circles off my spool, leaving overlapping wire of just under
an 1". (Because if you cut them like jump rings, or
complete circles ... you'll end up with squashed oval
units - and that's another design altogether!).

2.  Choose a mixture (or palette) of beads you wish to use
together for the 'wheel' decoration.   I used a selection of blue
toned and silver coin spacer beads and I created a thin coil of
0.5mm copper wire, which I cut into small segments (this
coil can be made on the thin handle of a Coiling Gizmo, or
wrapped around a thin knitting needle ... or even the tip ends
of your round nosed pliers). However, anything goes ... as long
as the beads aren't too big and can be threaded onto
0.8mm gauge.

3.  Thread a selection of chosen beads onto one of
the wire 'wheel' circles and create a small link with
the tips of your round nosed pliers - positioning it
on the same plane as the circle. (P.S. some of your
larger beads are going to be a little stubborn about
being threaded onto a curved wire ... so just gently
TWIST them on, so as not to distort the circle).

4. Using the tips of your chain nosed pliers, bend the
overlapping wire upright, where you've made the
link.

5.  Open the link and secure the upright, extending wire
within it to complete your first circular 'wheel' of beads.
Then, using your round nosed pliers, create a small loop to begin
the start of a spiral ...

6.  Spiral the wire down towards the top of the circular
frame and flatten it over the edge, using your flat nosed
pliers.

7.  Now you're on a roll!  Connect the next silver
circle into the first and repeat steps 3 to 6 once again,
but varying the choice of beads slightly to provide
a random, 'organic' feel to the necklace.

8.  Keep on connecting all the circles of beads together
until you have 7 bead 'wheels' all joined up as a chain.
Stop here - and you've got a bracelet, OR ...
you can now connect each side to a ready made chain
or cord and "Ta Daa!" it's ready to wear ... OR ... you
can make my 'Lucky Horseshoe' Chain below ...

9.  For the 'Lucky Horseshoe' Chain: I used a felt pen
as a mandrel and cut 2.5" (5cm) lengths of 0.8mm
(20-gauge) silver-plate and copper wire for each unit.
The centre of each wire was molded around the pen
to create a 'U' shape.

10.  Use your round nosed pliers to create links at
the ends of each unit. (Don't make these links too
small in diameter ... as you'll see below in *step 12.)

11. If like me, you wish to Whammer the rounded
end of each link to work harden and shape: place
each unit on to a steel block and 'stroke' hammer.
(You will need to spend a little time re-adjusting
the shape of each unit after hammering, as it can
distort the top part ... but, just take your time to do
this, as it will toughen the wire, making the overall
chain much more durable.)

12.  Once you've made enough units to create a chain
to your desired overall length, attach to each side
of the beaded 'wheel' centrepiece and connect to each
other, alternating the silver and copper units. *(As
referred to in step 10 - don't make the top links on
each unit too small, as they must be able to be
flexible and have movement when worn.

Here is the finished piece - all you need to do now
is make a wire clasp for one end and you're done!
Ready to wear the dancing Bead Wheel Necklace!

And of course, a pair of matching earrings is easy-
peasy-lemon-squeezy to make, once you've mastered
the necklace!

Now ... try making it in other colours to suit your
outfits!

... OR ... without any beads at all!
Here I have distorted and 'tweaked' the circles, plus
added a bit of therapeutic Whammering to create an
original 'Puddles of Wire' chain!

*********************************************************

GO ON - HAVE A GO - AND DO

LET ME KNOW HOW YOU GET

ON!  I WOULD LOVE TO SEE 

YOUR FINISHED IMAGES

ON MY FACEBOOK PAGE!! 

P.S. I know I have been doing quite a few 'Circular' based wire tutorials lately ... 
but that's because I am 'round the bend'!!

... LOOK WHAT CHRISTINE GAIGNARD, 

from Montreal, Quebec made following my

tutorial ... Well done, Christine!! :D