What type/gauge of wire works best for adding beads & swirls?

[Cathy Wendler]

I saw a wonderful piece where the artist added twisted wires with beads and other items all around the "frame". When I made my charms for the charm swap, I used 22 gauge and it was tough, I broke soooooooo many of those tiny green tube beads trying to coil the end of the wire at the top of the charm. Is softer better, and what is too soft? Do the numbers go up/stiffer and down/softer? I'd also like to make some simple dangle earrings too, what gauge for that??

[Pat Upton]

This is something I want to know too! Hey Ginny! What do you say?

[Kay Mace]

I use 20 or 24 gauge wire for coiling. Beads and seed beads have such a wide range of hole sizes, you almost have to experiment. Beads from India usually have bigger holes than those from Chekoslavakia (sp?)- for the tube or bugle beads, they have really tiny holes, you may have to go to 22 or 24. But if you go to 24, it is so flimsy it uncoils on you , You may have to put a crimp bead on the end. I have found that if you pound a wire coil flat with a hammer on a piece of metal , it flattens and strengthens it some . You can get little pliers with round ends to coilwith, that makes it a lot easier.

[Kay Mace]

The higher the number, the smaller the wire, 18 is thicker, 24 is very thin.