Jewelry piece of the month

I am still working with magnet wire. The goal is not really to create jewelry but it is nice to practice and experiment with the desired material and then actually have a result that can be enjoyed. My goal is still to add more depth to my fiber pieces. 

I bought the book 'crocheted wire jewelry' by Arline M. Fisch. I like the book very much. The information about materials, wire gauges, hooks etc is great. The projects look very interesting, some of them I like better than others. I was a bit disappointed that in quite a few pieces one needs to have more than just crocheting experience. Soldering comes in very handy so does bezel setting. I also think the descriptions could be a bit more precise. I consider myself to be a good crocheter. But I am quite sure that without my very profound knowledge of reading patterns and instructions I would not be able to use the book. Still I am enjoying the book and use it a a challenge in between my other art work. 

Oh before I forget. I think they forgot to mention that the most important tool in creating this pieces for people above 30 years old is a very very good lamp. My absolute favorite phrases in the descriptions are : " count the stitches often as you crochet. Dropping or adding a stitch will greatly disrupt the pattern of the chain". I certainly agree with that but I was never at any point able to count the stitches as you can see on the picture. Or how about that one:" The shape is clumsy at this point, but make note of the stitch pattern. You can open the loops with a scribe to count the stitches and see the pattern more easily". I started bursting into laughter when I read that one, 'clumsy. open the loops WHAT loops, I know they were there just WHERE', I am sure an expert is able to do so, and after I bought a lamp I at least saw traces of stitches.... my friend kept me going by promising cosmos if I finish the project. I LOVE my bracelet and will treasure it. And of course the admiration for the artists working in that field has grown immensely. 

More Work With Magnet Wire

The more I work with magnet  wire the better I like it. Magnet  wire offers a new dimension to my art work. By either crocheting or knitting a separate piece I create a new layer for my work that can then be added to my already layered art piece. The knitted and crocheted parts are very soft and therefore can easily be shaped in all directions and dimensions. The wire mesh can be stitched down by machine without any difficulties. Some attention should be paid when stitching with the machine over densely knitted areas since the pressure foot could get caught while stitching. But this is not a big problem. I have even stitched backwards over my wire meshes. I love the texture and shine the wire adds to my work.     

Magnet Wire

I have been experimenting for a while now incorporating magnet wire into my art work. I have worked with several different wire gauges. The thinner the wire the easier the knitting or crocheting was for me. Right now I am enjoying knitting with the wire and using the created mesh as an element for my mixed media work. I use very large knitting needles (size 19 mm) to get a loose knit that I can easily manipulate and pull or stretch into whatever shape I want to. In the beginning the feeling of using such big needles with a thin wire was very odd. I tried very hard to 'work' with a good tension like I would when using a regular yarn. The less I worried about tension the easier the knitting became  and once I had figured that out  it took only a short time to get used to the new knitting feeling. By now the knitting has become relaxing and I am looking forward to more knitted surfaces.