Wire wrapped faceted gemstones. How to Wire Wrap a Faceted Gemstone Pendant. How To Claw Set A Stone. This step by step tutorial teaches you how to make a prong or claw setting for faceted stones.
How to wire wrap stones
Table of Contents
I have been making wire jewelry and natural stones for many years. Before I start creating a new wire jewelry piece, I think about how to attach the stone to the jewelry piece. For me, this is the first priority. And only then, I figure out how to decorate the jewelry with a stone and weaving the wire.
For my jewelry, I use not only cabochons of natural stones. I also often use faceted stones for pendants, rings, earrings and bracelets. There are many ways to attach faceted stones with wire. So, today I will tell you something new about Wire wrapped faceted gemstones.
Claws are one way to attach faceted stones. I also attach cabochons and other shapeless stones this way.
Before you attach faceted gemstones with silver or gold wire, I think you should try it first with cheaper materials because Wire wrapped faceted gemstones can’t be made with the first try.
What kind of wire is needed to attach faceted stones.
I use different natural wires to create jewelry. And all of these wires are suitable for attaching stones. You don’t need any special wire to attach the stones.
Today we are going to use ordinary, cheap, silver-colored (coated) wire. The thickness of wire is 1 mm. For weaving, we use wire of the same color. The thickness of the wire is 0.4 mm.
Wire wrapped faceted gemstones. Tools for working with wire.
We will need a small set of hand tools. I will allow myself to give advice to beginners – do not buy a lot of expensive tools at once. To make amazingly beautiful jewelry, you only need a few tools. To making Wire wrapped faceted gemstones tools are not really important, but your skills are. I have been making wire jewelry for 20 years and you can take my word for it.
I always recommend that everyone be sure to get a pair of silicone tipped pliers. For working with weaved wire, this is a very useful and necessary tool. You can buy silicone tipped pliers in an online store, it’s quite easy to find.
Wire wrapped faceted gemstones
Today we are going to make a very simple pendant out of wire and a faceted drop-shaped stone. It is actually a faceted glass. The back side of the glass is covered with silver paint.
The coating on the back is of poor quality. If you accidentally hit it with a tool, it immediately falls off the glass. I recommend reinforcing the paint in an affordable way. I coated the back side with nail polish of a suitable color. You can use colorless nail polish.
How to Wire Wrap a Faceted Gemstone Pendant
We need a piece of 1 mm silver colored wire about 30-40 cm thick. For the weaving, we will use 0.4 mm thick wire. Today I will show you only the way of attaching a faceted stone. After attaching the stone, you can add beautiful weavings to the pendant. Attach the stone and create your own jewelry design.
I have a faceted drop-shaped glass with a size of 30 x 20mm. I additionally coated the back side with nail polish.
Let’s begin to work. Bend the wire in half.
Make the first claw to attach the stone. Bend the wire. Try it on the stone. The attachment place should follow the shape of the stone and should hold it well.
Let’s try on and bend the second claw.
You may not get it right the first time. Don’t worry – that’s why I advised you to practice on the cheap wire. It takes practice to master this method of attachment. Only practice leads to perfection.
While working, always try the stone on the place of attachment.
Make two more claws.
Let’s try on the stone. The wire should repeat the shape of the stone from below. It is easier to work with a cabochon made of stone, as its back side is flat.
Grab the pendant by the top two wires with your fingers, shake it, if the stone does not fall out of the mount, then everything is fine. You can continue to work.
Next, weave together two wires by any method of weaving.
We need to make a loop for the cord or necklace. Bend the weaving.
Continue weaving. In the process of weaving, attach the framework of the mount with the thin wire, then the stone will be even more securely fastened.
Cut the excess wire and nicely bend the ends.
The pendant is ready! As you may have noticed, Wire wrapped faceted gemstones are not as tricky as they may seem. Add a cord or necklace. Faceted stones of any shape can be attached in this way. Cabochons of uncut stones also can be fixed very well with this method of attachment.
Now you know how to claw set a stone – why not try out some other setting techniques? Many more detailed step-by-step instructions on interesting jewelry can be found on this blog by Valery Vorobiev.
Wire wrapped tutorials Valeriy Vorobev
