Skill Level - Advanced (they are quite tricky)

 

Here I discuss how to make a cage. Cages can have a bead inside or be empty, the choice is yours.

 

On the right is a picture of an ear ring that I made to give you an idea of what we are doing. In this example, you will notice that the silver cage has a bead inside. It also is made like an eye pin, i.e. it has a loop at the top and the bottom. You can make them with a flat bottom (for a drop) if you prefer - the choice is yours!

 

This process needs practice. The more you practice the better the shape of your cages.

 

The only thing you will have to remember is to work our how much wire you need for the size of the cage you are making. Once you start making your cage, you can't add more wire; so make sure your piece of wire is long enough, before you start!

  1. Select your wire. In this example I am using 20ga wire. I will be putting an 8mm bead in the centre, so I will need 6 inches of wire. The type of wire is up to you, just remember that the lower the gauge, the more wire you will need.
  2. Put a loop in one end of the wire.
  3. Now you will need to coil this end of the wire. If you don't know how to make a coil, check out "Making Coils". You will need a coil about 1cm in diameter (about 3 rounds).
  4. Hold the remaining straight end of the wire in one hand, with the coil pointing towards you.
  5. Coil this straight end, but in the opposite direction. Remember to make your starting loop first.
  6. Continue to coil both ends until they meet in the middle (coils should be fairly even if possible). You will end up with a piece of wire that looks like this...

  7. Fold the coils so that they are now one on top of the other. Be careful to maintain their shape.
  8. Use round nose pliers to gently lift the inital (central) loop from the centre of a coil. This will be the eye loop for the cage. Make sure that it is a complete loop and is sitting up at 90°.
  9. Repeat step 8 for the other side of the cage. If you need to have the cage like a head pin (for a drop) do not do this step - leave this side of the cage flat for a better look.
  10. Now we are going to open up our cage. So hold both loops of the cage with your pliers (one in each hand) and gently pull the loops apart. This forms the 'cage'. The centre of the two coils should have a large hole.
  11. Put your 8mm round bead inside the cage's hole in the centre.
  12. Use your fingers to gently close the cage around the bead and to work the wire into a nice even cage shape. Take your time, this becomes easier with practice.
  13. Finished!

 

 

Tips

  • When making your starting loops for the coils, make sure they are nice and closed. This makes it easier when pulling the loop out of the coil centre.
  • When coiling, hold your nylon pliers tightly, so the wire loop does not move. Just don't squash the wire as your coil will end up flat!
  • When bending the coils on top of each other, hold the wire in the centre with your round nose pliers. Then bend the coils over the pliers for a more even appearance.