I have always admired other wire workers who can weave such intricate designs, in what seems an impossibly confined space. I started to feel an element of doubt to my own abilities and wondered why was it I never included this technique much to my jewellery. Was it because I couldn’t actually do it? So, I started to focus on weaving and gave it a proper go.
I am an impatient artist, I like to work very hard, sometimes for days without rest! But I like to work quickly and freely. So, weaving did not come natural to me.
Tips for weaving that I would like to suggest to fellow newbies to the technique are :
- Take your time
- Use the right gauge of wire
- Weave tightly & pull your wire taught.
- Invest in some nylon pliers to help smooth out any wire that may have got kinked while working.
- Check your work all the time for loose weaves etc. Then you don’t have to undo loads of work to fix it.
This week I managed to incorporate a bit of weaving to my designs. I proved to myself that I did have the technical ability which helped me feel a bit better about things. However, now I have done it I am not sure if it’s very ‘me’. Someone once called my work ‘whimsical and free-spirited’ and now I come to think about it I find the whole process of weaving very methodical.The weaving I managed is by no means flawless but overall, now I have taken my time a bit more the result is neater.
I am still undecided whether to concentrate on this more or return back to my free form style.
Either way your work is gorgeous. But I do like your free form style it is very unique. Thank you for your tips on weaving. I don’t do a lot of weaving myself. But I do need to practice more on mine, to get it neat and tighter.
Hi Linda, I was useless at weaving before I practiced. Practice makes perfect as they say. Glad you found the tips useful.