Maple Leaf Earrings

by Judy Larson

Category: Metalwork
Technique(s): Butane Torch Techniques
Skill Level: Beginner

I created my leaf template years ago. If I had made these earrings then, and wanted to recreate them now, there is NO WAY I would be able to remember exactly how I made them. That is why I take a few photos, make notes on metal, wire and tools, etc., to print out and put in a binder to refer back to later.

Materials

18 Gauge Round Half Hard Copper Wire

H11-18H

Lesson Quantity: 7.00 inches
Purchase Quantity: 1.00 1FT
Price: $0.81
Gold Club Price: $0.61

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24 Gauge 0.020 Dead Soft Copper Sheet Metal - 6x12 Inch

MET-705.24M

Lesson Quantity: 1.00 pieces
Purchase Quantity: 1.00 each
Price: $11.34
Gold Club Price: $8.51

Out of Stock

20 Gauge Round Dead Soft Copper Wire

H11-20D

Lesson Quantity: 3.00 inches
Purchase Quantity: 1.00 1FT
Price: $0.49
Gold Club Price: $0.37

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Tools

7 Piece Mini TruStrike Hammer Set with Stand

HAM-520.70

HAM-520.70
Lesson Quantity: 1.00 pieces
Purchase Quantity: 1.00 each
Price: $140.54
Gold Club Price: $105.40

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Blazer ES-1000 Angled Head Micro Torch, Red

TRCH-1000

TRCH-1000
Lesson Quantity: 1.00 pieces
Purchase Quantity: 1.00 each
Price: $74.95
Gold Club Price: $56.21

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Copper Solder Paste, 1/2 ozt, Soft

SOL-824.10

SOL-824.10
Lesson Quantity: 1.00 pieces
Purchase Quantity: 1.00 each
Price: $9.95
Gold Club Price: $7.46

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Metal Cutting Shears

SHR-536.00

SHR-536.00
Lesson Quantity: 1.00 pieces
Purchase Quantity: 1.00 each
Price: $14.97
Gold Club Price: $11.23

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Round Nose Wire Pliers

G2-507

G2-507
Lesson Quantity: 1.00 pieces
Purchase Quantity: 1.00 each
Price: $32.95
Gold Club Price: $24.71

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Chain Nose Wire Pliers

G2-508

G2-508
Lesson Quantity: 1.00 pieces
Purchase Quantity: 1.00 each
Price: $32.95
Gold Club Price: $24.71

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C.H.P Milano Italian Flush Cutter, 5 1/2 Inches

PLR-487.00

PLR-487.00
Lesson Quantity: 1.00 pieces
Purchase Quantity: 1.00 each
Price: $16.97
Gold Club Price: $12.73

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Instructions

Step 1:

Cut out and texture

In my article on Fall Leaves templates (https://www.wirejewelry.com/jewelry_making_articles/Fall-Leaves-for-Your-Designs_363.html) I show you how to create the shapes for these earrings.

They can be textured with any texturing hammer.

Judy Larson's Maple Leaf Earrings - Cut out and texture, Metalwork, Butane Torch, Soldering, Solder, maple leaf earrings

Step 2:

Add embellishments

Cut 3½" of wire (oak leaf would need longer wire)

Make rounded bend on wire at 2"

Ball both wire ends trying to make both wires equal lengths

Make loop at bend using smallest step on 3 or 6 step pliers

Make mirror image curls and loops on both wires

Balls are 3/8" of 20 gauge wire cut in half and balled together with the torch.

Step 3:

Solder

Use solder paste to attach the embellishments.

Pickle, rinse and dry.

Add ear wires to the loop in the vein wire.

Reviews

Judy Larson

My philosophy has always been "I will never live long enough to learn everything I want to learn, go everywhere I want to go and see everything I want to see!" So, what I make and how I create it is always changing and evolving. I was born shortly after WWII to parents who grew up during the Depression. They always had a "we can do it, we can make it" attitude which rubbed off on my two younger brothers and me. My brothers are amazing and can make and do ANYTHING! When I was a little girl, my mother gave me an old carved cigar box, which I cherish, filled with pop beads, wooden beads and yarn for stringing. That was the beginning of my jewelry making journey.

On a visit to the Grand Canyon when I was a young woman, I was fortunate enough to help a Native American silversmith sand cast my first silver bracelet and bezel set a large turquoise nugget on top. I was in love, hook, line and sinker! While working full time and having a family here in northern Minnesota, my artistic endeavors slowed down but never stopped. I am an artist, scrapbooker, seamstress, woodworker and jewelry artisan. Now that I am retired, I am able to indulge in all my hobbies. However, there just never seems to be enough time in the day to do it all, but I try!

I have been teaching community education beginner and intermediate jewelry making classes since my retirement. Many of my students have been bitten so hard by the jewelry making bug that they say I have turned them into monsters-they just can't get enough. Making jewelry, seeing something take shape from small bits and pieces, is so rewarding that I hope it brings out the "monster" in you, too!