Jewelry From Electrical Wire

Jewelry From Electrical Wire

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I recently had a wedding anniversary and wanted to do something different this year.

So I decided to make her some unique Jewelry using some old copper electrical wire.

She loved them!

In this Instructable, I will show you how to make some Jewelry that will make a great gifts.

Items Needed:

- Electrical wire

- Heavy Duty wire cutters

- Pliers

- Small diameater pipe (about 1/2 inch)

- Drill

- Vise or heavy duty clamp

- Small file

- Clear paint

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I first started by straightening about a two foot section of the wire.

It was a little stiff to bend, but it kept the shape well.

I had to use some old heavy duty cutters because the wire was pretty thick.

The next step was to remove the plastic coating.

The outer layer was a little difficult to remove, but after slicing long ways a few inches on one side, I was able to pull the wire out.

The center wire was bare, but the two outer wires had a second layer of plastic.

Fortunately this plastic came off with a good hard pull.

Twisting the Wire

To start the process, I wanted to twist the copper wires together, but this would be too difficult by hand, so I grabbed my drill.

I inserted one end of the wires into the drill and cinched it down as tight as I could to prevent them from slipping out.

The other ends of the wires were then clamped into my vise.

At this point, I had to be extremely careful with the speed of the drill.

If I spun it too fast, the wires could overly twist and I would have to restart the process.

So I very slowly twisted the wire until there was an even design across the entire strand.

Since the wires are thick, they stayed in position and the twist looked professional.

Making a Bracelet

The end that was clamped into the vise still looked decent, so I took some small pliers and bent each one of the wires back towards the inside.

This gave them a smoother and nicer appearance.

I then slowly bent the entire strand into the shape of a bracelet.

It was a little challenging to do this by hand, but it was possible.

Once the shape was close to the right size, I trimmed the remaining wiring.

I then used some pliers to unravel the trimmed end into separate wires.

I then reassessed the size and trimmed the ends to length.

And as before, I bent the ends inward to create the pretty shape.

The bracelet looked wonderful, but if I left it as is, it would slowly discolor.

A nice coating was needed for its beauty to last.

To accomplish this, I grabbed a can of clear spray paint and gave it a couple coats before hanging it up to dry.

Making a Ring

Looking back at my bench, I still had a long strand of spun wire, so it was time to make a ring.

But not just a twisted ring, I wanted it to have a flattened texture.

I trimmed off a short section and grabbed a small hammer.

Using the flat surface of my vise, I started tapping the wires.

The copper started to take shape with each impact, but it also started to bend upward.

So I had to flip the metal over several times during this process.

The quality of the final shape amazed me.

I them used a piece of 1/2 inch CPVC as a sizing tool.

You can use about any hard round tubing or metal for this step.

I carefully wrapped the copper around the pipe with just a slight offset so the thread would just bypass each side.

To get the final shape, I clapped one end of the wire in my vise and used pliers to tighten everything.

I then trimmed the excess with the pliers and pushed the two ends together.

To remove any sharp edges, I used a small file to make them smooth.

After a quick coating of clear paint, the ring was finished.

My son loved this ring.

Words with Copper Wire

I then started wondering if I could make words using copper wire, so I started playing with my writing style.

As I was writing, I realized that it would be a little difficult to make some of these bends by hand.

I needed a way to hold the wire and still bend it.

So I took the best design and glued that paper to a piece of wood.

I grabbed a bunch of small nails and placed them at most of the bends in the writing.

Realizing at this point the original wire would be too thick to make some of these shapes, I had to step down to a smaller copper wire.

With a slow and careful wrapping process, the copper took shape and looked great.

I then had to remove all of the nails to gain access to the word design.

It turned out great.

I finally gave it a quick spray of paint for protection.

Be Creative!

I also played around with some other designs and made another bracelet and ring to go along with the first two.

There are so many different ways you can make Jewelry using copper wire, that you are only limited by your imagination.

This process is very simple and easy, if you are willing to take the time to make your creations look great.

I hope this project inspires you to make some of your own copper Jewelry to give away as gifts or to sell at a craft show. In either case, you will make people happy.