I finally found a spool of wire with a label still on it. I buy my wire at JoAnn's Fabrics and Crafts. They only stock size 28 and 24 gauge. The 28 is too fine and breaks so I use the 24 gauge. Sometimes it's a tad on the thick side. Wish I could get 26 gauge.
This is made by Darice Inc in Strongsville Ohio. Each spool holds 40 yards and sells for well under $10. I can't remember what it is. A spool will do over a hundred bobbins. I like to run the wire through the bobbin from both sides, as mentioned by someone else, but I twist each end around the loop wire on each side of the bobbin without going back through any beads. The problem comes when the bobbin hole is too small to take two thicknesses of the wire. I can redrill the hole, ream it out by hand, or use a different approach. If the biggest bead can take a double wire, I can work from it instead of the bobbin and twist the wire ends around the loop wire on each side of the big bead. If the bead hole is too small also, I have to put one wire through the bobbin and just twist the wire ends together on one side if the bobbin. When I twist an end around the loop wire, I go three times. The end is trimmed very short before doing the last half twist, then pinched tightly to the inside of the wire loop. The end must not be able to be felt when holding the spangle tightly. No sharp points. I use a very narrow needle-nosed pliers to pinch the wire between the bobbin and the first bead. I know there's a way to hook the two ends of the wire together inside the biggest bead but I've never been able to do it neatly. I have seen it done, though. Some people use fishline which makes a very flexible spangle. Someone else will have to explain how it's fastened so it doesn't slither apart. Beware ..... Getting into spangling takes a set of tools and supplies, and can be as addictive as lacemaking itself. If you only have a few, you may be wise to hire out the spangling instead of doing it yourself. Alice in Oregon -- where my wrist alternates between hurting like hades and feeling halfway human again. Finished a lace rose at lace meeting today. Now I have the challenge of winding bobbins. The left fingers have about 10 percent mobility right now. --- Noelene Lafferty <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > Does anyone know the thickness of the stainless > steel wire used for > spangling? I've done some Google searching here in > Australia, and the > finest I can come up with so far is 1.5mm diameter, > sold at 80 cents per metre. > > Noelene in oppressively hot Cooma - To unsubscribe send email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] containing the line: unsubscribe lace [EMAIL PROTECTED] For help, write to [EMAIL PROTECTED]
