Page 3      Making Loops in Jewelry Wire Jewelry Making Technique

The below pictures show some common mistakes that can be made in making loops.  Each one of these situations is certain to get you a citation from the Loop Police for "Improper Looping" if they happen to catch you making these loops.  (Editor's Note:  Getting a citation from the Loop Police is not a good thing.)

Loop  Not Round

Loop Made with Sharp End of Wire

Loop Not Closed

Loop Not Straight

The loop that was not round happened because too much wire was placed initially through the jaws of your round nose pliers.  It is important that you minimize the amount of wire sticking through your round nose pliers.  You should have 1/16" of wire showing or less. 

When cutting wire, your flush cutters will generally cut the wire and leave one end with a "flush" or flat cut and the other with a sharp end.  In the second loop shown above, the sharp end of the wire was used to make this loop instead of the flush end.  This is a serious looping violation!  The sharp end of cut wire should always end up in the trash can and not on your finished jewelry.  Please note that this is a level 2 loop infraction that can lead to loss of blood if you are not careful.

The third loop above shows a loop that is not fully closed.  This is a minor looping infraction and shows that the maker did not complete the task.  You can easily close this loop before you incorporate it in jewelry by inserting one jaw of your round nose pliers all the way into the loop and grasping the loop and twisting it fully closed.  Once this loop is incorporated into jewelry, you will probably require Loop Closing Pliers or Bent Closing Pliers to close the loop.  These pliers have a groove ground into the jaws of the pliers so that the wire will not slip as you squeeze the loop closed.  You can view this tool at right. 

The fourth loop above is the opposite error of the loop not closed loop.  In this case, the loop was fully closed and then the wire was pushed even further so that the back of the loop is no longer straight.  This loop should be cut off as it is almost impossible to straighten this loop.