By Black Dog Jewelry
This lesson will show you step by step how to make a wire wrapped Octopus pendant using the spiked technique tutorial from Artey Creaciones on JewelryLessons.com.
The spiked technique consists of wrapping a wire using only a pair of pliers. This tutorial requires you already know the spike technique.
Materials:
2.5 yards 22 gauge dead soft round wire
6 inches 26 gauge dead soft round wire
(wire can be copper, bronze, silver or craft wire)
1 6mm Swarovski pearl
1 8-12mm oblong crystal
Tools: Round nose pliers
Chain or flat nose fliers
Flush cutters
Making the octopus body:
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Step 1 :
Start with the tip of the round nose pliers and the 22 gauge wire and wrap around one side of the round nose pliers 2 times.
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Step 2: Making the tentacles
Start making your levels of “spikes” as taught in Carmen Barrera’s Spike Seahorse tutorial.
Your first spike will be 9 loops high.
Your second spike will be 11 loops high.
Your third spike will be 9 loops high.
Your fourth spike will be 10 loops high.
Your fifth spike will be 10 loops high.
Your sixth spike will be 9 loops high.
Your seventh spike will be 10 loops high.
Your eighth spike will be 9 loops high.
At this point your spikes may start to twist on you (especially if you are working from the spool). This is ok, we can straighten them out.
Step 3:
When all the tentacles are complete, wrap the wire
1 extra time next to the last loop.
Cut wire from spool with flush cutters. Straighten out the spikes that twisted up. At this point you can bend the end loops of the spikes pretty easily to get it straight.
It will kind of look like a crown with 8 “spikes”. These are your tentacles.
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Step 5:
Take your 8-12mm oblong crystal bead and thread it onto one end of the 2 wires you just pulled tight. This will be the head of the octopus.
Push the head down close to the base of the tentacles and bend the wire from the top of the head to the bottom of the head.
Wrap it around the base of the head 3 or 4 times.
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Step 4:
Take the 26 gauge wire and thread it through the bottom loop of each tentacle as shown.
Using the same wire, thread it through each tentacle one more time. You will have made 2 passes through each tentacle.
Take each end of the 26 gauge wire and pull it tight. You should have a small, tight little circle in the middle.
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Snip both end wires with flush cutters and tuck into loops
Step 6:
Thread your 6mm pearl onto the other wire. Insert the wire through the middle of the tight little circle you created when pulling the wire tight.
Continue to wrap the end wires around base of the octopus and through the center to tightly secure your pearl.
Expect to be asked lots of questions when wearing!
