Wire Wrapped Earrings

These seed bead and wire wrapped earrings are fun and easy to make! The tutorial shows how to make the earring form out of wire and then how to wrap the beads onto the form with fine gauge wire.

I designed these earrings to match the wire wrapped bracelet tutorial I did a while back. If you didn’t see that tutorial, you can check it out here. Also, I have created a video tutorial for this project and you can find that at the bottom of this post.

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The supplies you will need for this project are:

20 gauge wire (6″ or 15cm) in silver or copper
28 gauge wire (30″ or 76cm) in silver or copper
Assorted glass seed beads (best source is dollar or craft stores)
2 feature beads (best source is dollar or craft stores)
2 headpins
Wire cutters
Bail making pliers
Round nose pliers
Flat nose pliers
Chain nose pliers
Optional: 2 earring hooks (if metal allergies are an issue)

To begin, place a feature bead on a headpin and cut to 1/4″ (7mm). Using the round nose pliers, make a small loop. Repeat for the second bead and set these aside.

Next, cut a 6″ (15cm) piece of 20 gauge wire and fold it in half so it looks like a hairpin. Use the flat nose pliers to crimp the wire at the fold so it is nice and snug. Using the second to the smallest size on the bail making pliers, make a loop on the bent end of the wire.

Then, using the largest size on the bail making pliers, wrap about 1.25″ (3.5cm) of the wire in the opposite direction of the lower loop. Flush cut the top ends of the wire.

Using the flat nose pliers, grip the tips of the cut wires and bend them very slightly in the opposite direction of the big loop. Then take the wire cutters and cut the very tip of the small loop to separate the two pieces. You will now have two long earring wires.

Close this bottom loop on each piece, making it tight against the flat part of the wire.

If you have sensitivities to wire and have to use hypoallergenic earring hooks, you can just create a straight piece of wire, and rather than making the large top loop, make a small loop on each piece of wire with the loop in the opposite direction from the lower loop. Follow the wire wrapping directions below and then place the finished pieces on the earring hooks.

Now cut about 15″ (38cm) of 28 gauge wire and make several tight wraps at the base of the earring form, close to the small loop. String on 2 or 3 tiny seed beads and 1 or 2 larger beads.

Begin to wrap the wire and beads around the earring wire, making a few wraps of fine wire between the beads to secure in place (this is where the video is helpful). String the wire back through beads as if you are ‘sewing’ the beads in place.

Continue to add beads, wrapping them all the way around the earring wire in a creative and freeform way. There are no real ‘rules’ to this, just be playful and don’t hesitate to take beads off if they don’t fit properly. This wire and bead weaving is a bit like doing a puzzle and that is why it is nice to have an assortment of sizes and colors of seed beads.

Continue to wrap wire and beads towards the top of the earring wire and leave about 1/2″ (1.25cm) at the top so the earring can fit comfortably in the ear. Wrap the 28 gauge wire around the top of the beads several times to secure. Cut the wire off and crimp it in with pliers. Cut the tail from the starting wire at the bottom and finish in the same way.

At this point, you can add your feature bead by opening the small bottom loop on the earring piece towards you (open it like a door). Place the feature bead in the loop and close again away from you (like you are closing a door). File the tips of the earring wires with a nail file so the wire is smooth and won’t poke your ear. You are done!