Make Earrings from Copper Pipe and Wire

Before: copper pipe

My daughter and I both love the lush, elegant look of copper ....and it is an added bonus that we have an abundance of copper around our house leftover from renovations.

Today, we went back to our stash of copper pipe and cut pieces of pipe to make lightweight but large, elegant earrings.

After: Earrings by GeltDesigns.com

Materials
Copper pipe
16-gauge round copper wire
20-gauge round copper wire

Tools
Jewelry saw & blades
3M wet/dry sandpaper
Nylon jaw pliers
Chain nose pliers
Needle files (optional)
Round nose pliers or

Gather your too

Wire looping pliers
Mandrel or Wrap n' Tap pliers
Wire cutters
Flex shaft and 19 gauge cup bur or wire rounder
Rawhide or plastic mallet
Lortone Tumbler (optional)

Cut the pipe

Step 1
Create the copper beads. Cut the copper pipe with a jewelry saw. Use sandpaper to sand the edges of the copper pipe smooth.

Step 2

Slide the pipe on the wire

Create the beaded dangle component. Slide the copper pipe onto the 16-gauge copper wire. Form the wire around the copper pipe. Hit the wire with a rawhide mallet to harden the wire.

Make the ear wires

Repeat to create a matching component.

Step 3
Make the ear wires using round nose pliers to make the ring and a mandrel or Wrap n' Tap pliers to shape the ear wire. Hit the ear wires with the rawhide mallet to harden.

Step 4

Attach the ear wires

Attach the ear wires to the dangle component.

Step 5
Place the completed earrings in the tumbler to further harden the copper wires, prevent the earrings from becoming misshapen when worn and adding sparkle and shine by burnishing.

Related Tutorials
How to Make an Ear Wire Jig 
How to Straighten Wire
How to Smooth Edges on Wire
How to Measure Wire
How to Use a Wire Gauge
GeltDesigns Tutorials by Topic
Make an Enamel Necklace from a Copper Pipe
Make a Beaded Bracelet with Copper Pipe & Wire
Make a Neck-Ring from Copper Pipe
Make a Bangle Bracelet from a Copper Pipe
NJAD Index (Days 1 to 60) by Type of Jewelry
NJAD Index (Days 1 to 60) by Type of Found Object  

Further Reading 
"Contemporary Copper Jewelry w/DVD: Step-by-Step Techniques and Projects";  Sharilyn Miller; 2010.
"Complete Metalsmith: Professional Edition";  Tim McCreight; 2004.

Day 88  Month 4. Jewelry from Found Objects.  $ spent to date: 0
Found materials: copper pipe, wire
New Jewelry a Day.

Make an Enamel Necklace from a Copper Pipe

Before: Copper Refrigerator Tubing

We demonstrated how to make copper pipe into a neck-ring. In this project, we enameled the copper neck-ring to add color.

Materials
Copper pipeEnamel


Tools
Jewelry kiln or torch

After: Copper Enameled Neck-Ring by GeltDesigns.com

Tripod or other kiln furniture (to hold enamel when firing)
Fork or spatula (to move enamel)

Step 1
Make a neck-ring. Follow the instructions in our tutorial "How to Make a Neck-Ring from Copper Pipe."

Step 2
Paint white liquid enamel on the copper pipe using a paint brush dedicated to enamel.

Step 3
Sift powder enamel over the liquid enamel. We used a pale blue. The powder will stick to the liquid enamel an add color.

Step 4
Fire the enamel using a kiln or a torch. We fired this neck-ring with a torch to get a rough, earthy look.

Step 5
Remove the fired enamel from the kiln or the flame of the torch. Allow the enamel to cool to room temperature.

Step 6
File the edges of the copper enamel neck-ring to remove oxidation or fire-scale, if any.

Related Tutorials
Make a Neck-Ring from Copper Pipe
Make a Bangle Bracelet from a Copper Pipe
Make a Beaded Bracelet with Copper Pipe & Wire
How to Make a Copper Bead
How to Make a Copper Necklace

How to Torch Fire Enamel 

Further Reading 
"Enamels, Enameling, Enamelists (Jewelry Crafts)"; Glenice L. Matthews; 1984.
"The Art of Enameling: Techniques, Projects, Inspiration";  Linda Darty; 2006.
"First Steps in Enameling";  Jinks McGrath; 2003.
"Enamelling (The Art of Crafts)";  Joan Bolton King; 2001.
"The Art of Fine Enameling";  Karen L Cohen; 2004.
"Color on Metal: 50 Artists Share Insights and Techniques": Tim McCreight, Nicole Bsullak; 2001.


Day 49.  Month 3.  Jewelry from Found Objects.
Found materials: copper pipe
New Jewelry a Day.

Make a Neck-Ring from Copper Pipe

Before: Copper Pipe

Earlier we made a bangle bracelet from a copper pipe and we added a blue patina to made the bracelet colorful. For this project, we used copper pipe to make a striking, but

After: Copper Neck Ring by GeltDesig

simple neck-ring that looks great with a turtleneck and an open collar neckline.

Tools
Jewelers saw and saw blades
Bench pin and anvil 
Half-round file
220-grit wet/dry sandpaper 
400-grit, 600-grit, 800-grit, 1000-grit, 1500-grit
Necklace mandrel
Forming hammer, rawhide or plastic mallet
Renaissance Wax


Step 1
Determine the amount of material you need. Must neck-rings measure are about 16-inches long, but you may need a neck-ring that is larger of smaller depending on who will wear the jewelry.

Step 2
Cut the pipe. Coat the saw blade with beeswax to prevent the saw blade from slipping as you saw.  Use your jewelers saw and saw blades to cut the pipe. We used a size 2 jeweler's saw blade, but you may need to evaluate the pipe you use to determine the size blade you need. Steady the pipe on a bench pin and anvil as you cut. Some folks use a tube cutting jig to hold the pipe steady while you saw, but we did not use a jig since we found it more cumbersome when cutting from a long length of copper pipe.

Step 3
File the ends of the cut pipe with a half-round file to remove tool marks from sawing the pipe.

Step 4
Sand the ends of the pipe using 220-grit wet/dry sandpaper to remove tool marks caused when filing the pipe ends. Switch to 400-grit, 600-grit, 800-grit, 1000-grit and then 1500-grit, if needed, until the ends are very, very smooth. Remember: sharp ends are not comfortable to wear as jewelry-- especially around the neck.

Step 5
Bend the copper tubing around a necklace forming mandrel. Use a forming hammer, rawhide or plastic mallet to move the metal into shape, if needed.

Note: If you are having trouble bending the copper tube, then the copper pipe may be work hardened from cutting, filing and sawing. If the copper pipe is difficult to bend, anneal the pipe with your torch to soften the metal and make it easier to form. Pickle the copper pipe with Sparex another pickling compound in a crock-pot or pickle pot  to remove oxidation formed when annealing the copper pipe.

Step 6
Finish the necklace. Polish the neck-ring. Texture the neck-ring or patina the neck-ring to add color. Treat the neck-ring with Renaissance Wax to protect your finish and prevent tarnish.

Related Tutorials
Make a Bangle Bracelet from a Copper Pipe
How to Make a Copper Bead
How to Make a Copper Necklace
How to Use a Jewelry Saw
How to Use a File for Jewelry Making
How to Use Sand Paper
How to Anneal Metal for Jewelry Making
How to Make an Acid Pickle Bath
How to Use Alum as a Pickling Solution
How to Create a Scratch Finish in Your Art Jewelry
How to Buff and Polish Jewelry
How to Oxidize Silver Jewelry with Eggs
How to Use a Dremel to Make Jewelry
How to Create a Blue Patina on Copper 
All about Patina
How Use Renaissance Wax
GeltDesigns Tutorials by Topics  

Further Reading
Contemporary Copper Jewelry: Step-by-Step Techniques and Projects
Mixed Metals: Creating Contemporary Jewelry with Silver, Gold, Copper, Brass, and More
Copper Art Jewelry: A Different Luster
Complete Metalsmith: Professional Edition

Day 16. Week 3. Jewelry from Found Objects.  $ spent: 0
Found materials: copper pipe (for ice maker and refrigerator)
New Jewelry a Day.