How To: Wire-wrap leather for jewelry

Wrapping leather is the least of your worries when it comes to the meticulous and dexterous art of making jewelry. IIf you have the basic jewelry making skills down, doing this wire-wrap on leather should be a cinch.. This demonstration video will help walk you through the process of wire-wrapping leather.

The Leather Wire Wrap End is the combination of leather working and wire wrap techniques, and is also among the more difficult ways to finish the end of an accessory. This example uses 24 Gauge Sterling Silver Wire and some Wide Flat Leather Strand, but it doesn't really matter what you use as long as the leather is flat so the end of the wire can be hidden. You will also need a set of chain nose pliers and a set of wire cutters. If you don't have wire cutters, nail clippers are a surprisingly effective substitute.

Performing the Leather Wire Wrap End:

Slide the leather through the ring and fold back approximately an inch of it. Now slide an inch or so of the sterling silver wire (you can always trim it later, so be fairly liberal) through the leather fold, outside the ring, and pinch it through the leather to keep it steady. With that part held together, use your other hand to begin coiling the sterling silver wire around the leather. Try to coil the sterling silver wire tightly around the leather, and try to keep the coils very close together as you wind it. When you've wrapped the sterling silver wire around five and a half times, the end of the sterling silver wire will be sticking out in the same direction as the original piece of wire you had tucked between the leather. Twist these two pieces together until the wire is very tight and secure- you'll find it helpful to grip the twisted sterling silver wire with the pliers while you spin the leather and ring underneath, generating more torsion. When the whole thing is very tight, fold the wire twist in between the leather, and use the wire cutters to trim most of the excess.