Dowel knitting with wire is a hand-working technique that creates

tubes of wire that can be used in a variety of ways. These earrings

are a version of the Captured Pearls Necklace from The Art of Wire made miniature. Make a pair of these earrings to match your

necklace and you’ll have a stunning jewelry set to wear for your

next night on the town.

Finished Size: Approx. 11⁄4" (3.2cm) long × 11⁄8" (2.9cm) wide

90" (228.6cm) of 30 gauge round wire

22" (55.9cm) of 22 gauge round wire

15" (38.1cm) of 26 gauge round wire in a base metal of your choice

12 round glass pearl 4mm beads

6 round glass pearl 6mm beads

2 jump rings—3⁄8" (1cm), twisted wire (see pages 23–24 of The Art of Wire to make your own)

Ear wires (see page 25 of The Art of Wire to make your own)

1⁄4" (6mm) dowel

Masking tape

Mandrel

Dowel Knitted Pearl Earringsbb

materials list

From The Art of Wire by J. Marsha Michler. 2011; courtesy of F+W Media

Use a 15" (38.1cm) length of 26 gauge base metal wire to make a 4-petal harness (see Creating a Harness on page 123 of The Art of Wire). Tape it to the end of a 1⁄4" (6mm) dowel rod. Using 45" (114.3cm) of 30 gauge wire, make a 11⁄4" (3.2cm) long single dowel-knitted rope (see Single Dowel-Knitted Rope on page 124 of The Art of Wire).

Remove the piece from the dowel by cutting away the first round using side cutters to snip each stitch. Keep the harness in place on the dowel. Pick out any loose wire bits, then fold the wire ends to the inside of the tube.

1 Cut 5" (12.7cm) of 22 gauge wire and string on 3, 4mm beads; 3, 6mm beads; and 3, 4mm beads. Center the beads on the wire and hammer the wire at each end of the beads to hold the beads in place. Leave the beads slightly loose on the wire.

2

Center the beaded wire inside the dowel-knitted tube. Carefully smooth the tube over the beads, lengthening the tube until it fits onto the beads and extends approximately 1⁄4" (6mm) past the row of beads at each end.

3 Compact the ends of the tube around the wire past the beads.4

From The Art of Wire by J. Marsha Michler. 2011; courtesy of F+W Media

Use 6" (15.2cm) of 22 gauge wire to make an end cap without a loop at one end of the rope (see End Caps and Loops on pages 126–127 of The Art of Wire). Trim off any excess wire. Repeat at the other end of the tube.

5 Trim each end of the wire running through the beads to 3⁄4" (1.9cm) past the wraps. Make the wire end into a wrapped loop (see Wrapped Loops on page 20 of The Art of Wire).

6

Curve the earring over a mandrel or dowel until the end loops meet. Place a jump ring through both wrapped loops. Add an ear wire. Repeat Steps 1–7 to make a second earring.

7

From The Art of Wire by J. Marsha Michler. 2011; courtesy of F+W Media