VALENTINE TUTORIAL
February is that time of year that all crafty makers are
thinking about 'heart' motifs to incorporate into their
designs!  Even if you don't want to make a piece of
jewellery or home decor, it's always nice to attach a wire
heart to the front of a card for a loved one, or friend!

I have created hundreds of styles of hearts over the years
and for this tutorial, I thought a decoration, rather than a 
piece of jewellery would be fun and different ... however, 
all the elements and techniques are there for you to pick 
apart and choose how YOU would like to be inspired by it ...

1.  I've chosen to use 0.9mm black steel wire, as I wanted
a rustic feel to the frame, however 0.8mm silver plate will
do just as well for a completely different look.  Decide on
the scale of your frame and then, working from a spool, 
wrap the wire around creating about 5  rough circles
(less for a thinner and more for a chunkier frame). 
Cut the wire from the spool, leaving a long tail ...

 















2.  Use the long tail of wire to wrap around the circles
of wire.  Don't worry about being too neat, that's half
the 'rustic' charm of the piece! To create the heart shape,
place the tips of your chain nosed pliers at the edge
of the circle and push down to make an indent.

3. Using your fingers and pliers, continue shaping
and molding the wires until you are satisfied with 
the overall heart frame.

4.  Place the 'heart' on a steel block and Whammer the 
frame until it is work hardened and flattened.

5. Choose beads or semi-precious chips, to decorate the 
top of the frame and bind these on with a fine wire, such
as 0.4mm.  (I used Rose Quartz chip beads and pearls,
only because they are synonymous with 'lurve' as
Barry White will warble!). 

6.  Keep binding the entire frame with beads, 
and cut off any spare wire and neaten the ends.

7. Optional: to make a small inner heart to suspend
within your frame - cut approx. 4" of 0.5-0.6mm wire.
Place your round nosed pliers at the centre and cross
the wires over on each side (it's what I would classify
as a 'flying bird' shape).

8. To form the side 'shoulders' of the frame: 
place your round nosed pliers on each side (near the
central loop) and bring the wires around until they 
meet together to form the base tip.

9. Thread each of the wire ends with small seed beads
of your choice, pushing them right up to the central
loop.

10. Once you finished threading beads on each side,
wrap one wire around the other to secure, leaving a 
projecting stem. Using the tips of your chain nosed pliers, 
twist the central loop 90 degrees.

11. With the tips of your chain nosed pliers, pull the
central loop upright, to the top of the frame - this might 
misshape the heart, so just spend a little time re-adjusting 
it again.  Thread a chosen bead onto the projecting end 
(I used a Rose Quartz chip) and create a head pin to secure it.

12. Attach and suspend the smaller beaded heart into the 
centre of the larger frame and if desired, connect a further
bead to the very end (of the larger frame) for extra 
embellishment and movement.

I have chosen to create a little 'heart hanger', 
but you could use this idea to create a pendant, 
a card decoration, or even set it within a box frame ...

And finally, may I just add, that where there is a 
HEART ... there is ART!