Lotsa Little Wire Angels

Regardless of the version you make, the basic materials and directions are very much alike.

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Original Wire Angel Directions

Little angels to put on the tree, place on the table, add to a package or just place around the room to add a little touch of Christmas, can be made in moments with wire and beads. They can range in size from slightly over 1 inch in height to approximately 6 inches. The size is usually determined by the weight of the wire used and the size of the cylinder it is wrapped around. Most of the angels featured on the show were made using 24- or 26-gauge wire and ranged in height from 2 to 3 inches.

Materials and Tools:

24- or 26-gauge wire
cylinder to wrap wire around *
seed beads or other small beads for halo
bead for head in proportion to body
needle nose pliers

*The wire is wrapped around the cylinder to form the body. For most of the angels demonstrated, I used a bottle of Liquitex acrylic paint, which measures 5-1/2 inches in circumference. For even smaller angels, a standard bottle of acrylic paint can be used. For larger angels, use a hair spray can, a pop can or any cylinder that is of the desired size.

Steps:

1. Wrap wire around cylinder, leaving an 8- to 10-inch tail at the starting end. Wrap cylinder anywhere from 15 to 25 times. Try to not overlap the wire when wrapping.

2. When wrapping is completed, cut wire leaving an 8- to 10-inch tail. Carefully slip the wound wire from the cylinder and, holding all the wires together, wrap the tail ends around them one or two times to secure.

3. Select anywhere from three to six wires from the circle and bend them up away from the others. Press them together in the center and press to the top of the circle below. Wrap the tails of wire around them one or two times to secure them to the circles. The loops will form the wings.

4. Bend one tail wire straight up and thread it through the hole in the head bead. String approximately 15 seed beads onto this wire, shape into a circle and push the wire back down through the hole in the bead. Twist the wire together with the first wire. Twist around the neck a time or two; then cut off any excess.

5. Push the body wires up in the center so that a slight upside down heart shape is obtained. Pull the wires apart to separate them. This will give the angel a base on which to stand.

6. Separate the wing wires, and fan them out. Bend the circle of seed beads forward to form a halo.

Laurie Viles of Belton, Mo., has a different take on wire angels. Laurie and her friend Anita Krummel also turned some of their angels into pins, but they made a few more changes. For one thing, they pre-measured their wire (which I found made it easier to make the angels), cutting it into a 2-yard length and on occasion used two differently colored wires together. They also added arms, which made a nice difference. Laurie also sent directions.

Note: Before making the angels, their husbands made them some forms for wrapping the wire by nailing two upright 35mm film canisters about 1 inch apart on a small block of wood. You don't need this form, of course, but the canisters make a nice sized little angel, whichever method you use.

Steps:

1. Wrap wire 8 times around the film canisters in a figure-eight pattern, being careful not to overlap wires. Carefully slide wire off the canisters while holding the center.

2. Wrap loose end of wire around the center twice, pulling tight.

3. Decide which wire loop looks best for body. Bend the other wire loop down in the center and tightly wrap the loose end of wire around the center two or three times.