Thursday, November 15, 2012

Ripple Wire Gadget & More

When you get to be 70+ you have a lot of life adventures... my latest is dentures.  I got my new pearly whites yesterday. They look good, I never had straight teeth and now I do.  Of course eating is another story.  I drool a lot, I bit my lip several times and my tongue doesn't know what to do with itself.  I'm not sure I will ever get use to having all this hardware in my mouth!  I can talk okay though, a little lisp but not bad so that is a good thing.  

I had several people ask me about the gadget I used to make the ripple wire.... here it is, a "tube wringer".

Click on the photos for a closer look.


The tricky part is applying the right amount of pressure.... to little and it doesn't ripple evenly, to much and it makes weak spots in the wire and it breaks....  First you position the wire then hold it together with one hand and turn the crank with the other... take it slow, stop when necessary and reposition the wire in the center, it has a tendency to move to the side as it goes through.


The magenta wire is 20 gauge and the lavender  wire is 18 gauge.



Here is a wire and bead pendant I made using "ripple wire" from the tube wringer.  For this one I used 20 gauge yellow wire and wrapped with 28 gauge Peridot green wire to secure the yellow seed beads.


And I played a bit with clay. I made a polymer clay pendant using my last cane and combined it with matching solid color clay that I textured with a simple design. Swarovski rhinestones add a bit of bling.


I love the textured end pieces of Skinner blend canes... I used one on this pendant and made a couple "snail" beads with scraps.


Had to show you great granddaughter Lily holding Heather's big old cat, Dobie.  Heather has 3 cats and a dog, all the other critters run for cover when Lily enters a room, but not Dobie.  Lily loves Dobie and apparently Dobie loves Lily, he is very tolerant of all the "loving" she gives him.... but I think he is most likely relieved when she goes home.


Back to the dentist later today to check for pressure areas... so far I don't think I have any.

My next project is a Fairy Door for the latest swap on Flickr. And I have to make something for the next PCAGOE challenge.  The theme this month is "monochromatic".  I'm trying to decide on a color, maybe green, I haven't done green lately.

That is it for today.... thanks for stopping by.

3 comments:

  1. OMG you are so funny. Straight teeth are great! Bet you look great! Thanks for the info on the tube wringer. I just took apart a paper crinkler because I never used it. Bet it would have worked with wire. I think I got it in the scrapbooking section. Anyway, thank you for sharing your tips and talent.

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  2. My goodness, the cat is bigger than Lily. She sure is a pretty little Great Granddaughter!

    Love your crinkled wire, it creates very unique jewelry and your aqua blue pendants and beads are fabulous!!!

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  3. You're quite an inspiration! So glad I've found you (through Polymer Clay Daily.)

    Lee Luda / Bavaria

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