Wrapping Coils Along a Wire
Okay. So we've done the flat spiral, the one that lies down flat like a snail shell, and now we're doing something different. A coil that wraps along a wire instead of around a center point. Some people call this wire wrapping around a core, which is a little confusing since the whole class is called wire wrapping, but stick with me.
Here's the picture. You've got one wire sitting still, that's your core, and you take a second, thinner wire and wind it around the core wire like thread around a spool. When you're done you've got a little sleeve of coiled wire sitting on top of your straight wire, and you can slide it, position it, use it to cover a joint, or just leave a section of it showing as decoration. It shows up in a lot of pendant designs, usually right below the loop, like a little collar.
What you need
- A piece of your practice copper, 20 gauge, about four inches, for the core
- A thinner wire for wrapping, 26 or 28 gauge, cut about ten inches long, more than you think you need
- Your round-nose pliers and your flush cutters
- Something to hold the core steady while you work, which for most people is just your own hand and a little patience
The actual wrapping
Hold your core wire in your non-dominant hand, horizontal, like a little rod. Take your thin wrapping wire and lay it across the core at whatever point you want the coil to start, leaving a short tail, maybe half an inch, sticking out one side.
Now here's the part people rush. Bend that short tail so it points straight down, perpendicular to the core, and hold it there with your thumb. Then take the long end of the wrapping wire and start winding it around the core, away from that tail, going the same direction each time. Over the top, around the back, up and over again. Snug against the last wrap, not on top of it, not leaving a gap either.
I feel like the instinct is to go fast here because it looks simple, and that's exactly where it goes sideways. Slow down. Each wrap should touch the one before it. If you see a gap, you can usually nudge it closed with your fingernail or the tip of the pliers before you do the next wrap, but it's much easier to keep it tight from the start than to fix it after.
Keep going until you've got the coverage you want, five wraps, ten wraps, however long you're going for. Then cut the working wire close with your flush cutters and press the cut end down flat against the core with your fingernail or the pliers so it doesn't stick up and catch on something, including you.
That little tail you started with, the one pointing down, tuck it in the same way. Trim it close, press it flat.
Where this actually goes wrong
The tension. It's always the tension. If your wraps are loose the whole coil spins around the core like a loose sock, and if they're too tight you'll kink the core wire underneath, which you won't notice until you go to shape something and it just snaps. Somewhere in the middle is what you want, snug enough that it holds its shape when you nudge it, not so tight you feel resistance in the core.
Honestly, I still don't have this fully figured out on the small stuff. Tight coils, like the really fine ones people do for magic rings or delicate collars, I cannot get consistent tension on to save my life. Mine come out a little uneven, a wrap slightly proud here and there. I've watched every video I can find and I still can't nail it. What I do instead is wrap a little looser than I think I need, on purpose, because a loose-ish even coil looks better to me than a tight one with a bulge in it. That's just what works for me. It's not a real fix, it's a workaround, and I want to be honest about that instead of pretending I've got it.
This is also a good place to remind you, don't wrap so tight your fingers are cramping to hold it. If your hand starts aching, put it down for a second. There's no piece of jewelry worth a strained tendon, and this is slow, repetitive hand work, the kind that sneaks up on you.
The one I actually finished
My daughter Hallie found a piece of green glass near a trailhead a few years back, all frosted and rounded from tumbling around, and asked me to make her something with it. I redid the wrap on that pendant six times. Six. Partly the stone was an odd shape, but a lot of it was this exact coil, the collar wrap right below the loop. I kept getting it a little uneven and kept telling myself it wasn't good enough for her.
Eventually I made myself stop and just finish the thing, because that's the opinion I hold pretty firm on: you finish the piece even when it's going badly, because the last stretch is where you actually learn something. I finished it. It's not a perfect coil. You can see a little unevenness if you look close. She still wears it, and she's never once mentioned the coil, because she's not looking at the coil, she's looking at the glass she found and the fact that it's hers now.
Before next time
Practice this coil on scrap wire until you can do ten wraps without a gap showing, and don't worry if the tension is a little inconsistent, mine still is too.