Wire Wrapped Jewelry

Wire wrapped jewelry is always unique, one of a kind, crafted by hand. Using natural stones as the base gives each piece its color and character. Wire is then wrapped around the stone, holding the stone and forming loops for the chain, as well as adding decorative components that are unique to each item.

Different gemstones not only have different physical properties - color, texture, pattern, and so forth - they also have emotional or spiritual impact on people.

For example, Howlite is said to bring balance to the emotions and is known as the “tranquility stone.” The pendant shown here is one my husband made for me, of dyed Howlite. I do enjoy wearing it, makes me feel good even if not completely tranquil!

In some ways making wire wrapped jewelry is pretty simple - the materials are just wire (that you can buy at a craft store) and gemstones (that you can buy pretty easily too). And you just need a few tools, mostly a variety of pliers, to bend the wire. There's no soldering, baking in kilns, painting, or other more expensive techniques or equipment involved. Well, people have been making this kind of jewelry for thousands of years, can't be too hard!

It is true that it's not so hard. But on the other hand, as anyone who isn't artistic knows, all artistic endeavors are pretty much impossible for those of us who are artistically challenged. And that includes me! My husband, on the other hand, is an artist. He studied art, design, and metal craft, so he has no problem creating wire wrapped gemstones that people would actually enjoy wearing (I do!).

But the point is, you need to be able to bend wire, wrap skinny wire around the bent wire, fit it to a gemstone, and finish it off with loops that look attractive. And that's just the beginning! Real experts create some amazingly fancy pieces, not all to my taste of course, but it shows that your imagination is the most significant limiting factor in this craft. So, I'm happy to leave it to the experts - just check out the video below for some fantastic examples!