Textured Earrings Tutorial

I wanted to put together a little tutorial using some metal chain that I had purchased from a garage sale last year.While looking around the house for something to use for texture, I came across it and wondered if the hoops would be hard enough to create texture with. It was. I probably should have annealed the 3/4" disc first, but didn't. As you can see, you can still texture without annealing; it just takes more work.

I hope you like them.....

Materials: 3/4" discs, 18 gauge wire (for jump rings), 24 gauge wire, ear wires, metal hoop (could be done without this), center punch, marker, hammer, bowl for water, torch, mandrel (disc could be held with pliers), hammering block, 1/4" tube, tube cutter (optional), 2 small beads.

1. Set your disc on the hammering block. Center the metal hoop.

2. Watching out for your fingers, gently hammer an indentation into the metal disc.

3. Punch one hole on the indentation.

4. Using the hole as your guide, make marks at 6 o'clock, 3 o'clock and 9 o'clock.

5. Continue to fill in the additional placements that you would see on an analog clock. Using your punch, lightly tap on each mark 4-5 times.

6. This is how it will look.

 

7. Turning punched side away, heat the disc with your torch.

8. Set orange hot disc in cold water. This step is personal preference. You can play around with how to get different colors. I'm not a pink kinda gal, so I kept experimenting until I got a color that I liked. As you can see, if you get it hot enough, adding the discs to cold water adds additional texture.

9. Having already cut your tube to 1/4" pieces (jump rings can be used instead), hammer them lightly until flattened.

10. Using premade 18 ga. jump rings, slide through disc and hammered tube.

11. Using 18 ga wire, make small hoop, slide through hammered tube and slide small bead on. Create hoop on top of bead.

12. Using 24 ga, wire, wrap hoops made on top and bottom of bead.

13. For the last step, I chose to experiment with Stacie's tutorial on adding texture to ear wire. I discovered that I still need a little practice with this. Also, darkening is optional. I used liver of sulfur for my final step to patina.

There you have it.... light weight and fun to wear.

As always, thank-you for supporting artists who create handmade with handmade.

MaryAnn