Beach STAR Tutorial

I wanted to produce a wirework project that
evoked 'Summertime' and the first
thing that popped into my head was beach
holidays, shells and starfishes ...

So, without further ado, here is a Starfish
pendant design that can be created as earrings,
necklace, bag/basket charm, keyring ...
Have a go and make it your own!

You will need 0.4mm and 0.8mm gauge wire and you
can choose to weave in between the points, or thread
with seed beads and if desired, you can fix a flat
backed 'stone' or crystal, to the centre for some extra
summer sparkle!

STEP 1

Working from a spool of 0.8mm wire, use the tips of
your round nosed pliers to create a link at one end. Then,
proceed to wiggle the wire, back and forth to make
5 even wiggles. Cut off the spool, just below the last
wiggle. (My wiggles were about 15mm in height).

STEP 2

Tease each of the wiggles out with your fingers, so
that they form a circle and thread the cut end through
the link at the opposite end.

STEP 3

Bend the cut end of wire over the link, securing both
ends together to form the frame.

STEP 4

Spend a little time adjusting each of the star peaks,
straightening out the sides with your flat nosed
pliers and squeezing the tips of the points to shape
the starfish frame.

STEP 5

Once you're satisfied with the overall frame, hammer to
work harden on a steel block, avoiding the linked area!

STEP 6

Working directly from your 0.8mm spool of wire,
create a tight spiral that is right size, to fill the central
space of your starfish frame. Cut the wire from the
spool, leaving a short projecting tail.

STEP 7

Using the tips of your round nosed pliers, curl the end tail
into a small link and twist it at right angles, so that it doesn't
protrude from the top of your spiral.

STEP 8

Open the link on the spiral and attach to one area of your star
frame.

STEP 9

Cut some 0.4mm wire and use this to 'stitch' in the outer frame
of the spiral to the inner frame of your star.

STEP 10

Continue using 0.4mm wire to weave more beads
of your choice, to fill each of the star points.

STEP 11

Use the tips of your round nosed pliers (or a pen) to push out
the back of the spiral, to create a domed area at the centre of
your star.

STEP 12

If you wish to add colour and embellishment to the centre
of the star, you can use a dab of glue to fix a little stone,
or crystal, to the centre point of your projecting spiral.

Finally, all that's left to do is to suspend the
star from a jump ring from any of the points
and then onto cord, chain or ribbon and your
BEACH STAR is born!

If you have some seed beads to hand, you can always
'colour in' the star, by weaving the beads into the peaks.

Or, just stick to wire and weave inside the star peaks with 0.4mm.
And if you have no flat back stones or crystals to glue to the
centre, create a tiny spiral of different coloured wire and glue that
to the centre instead!

I hope that you enjoy creating this Summer Star ...
and in winter, it will also be perfect for all your
Christmas gifts and decorations too!