I had someone email me the other day who was frustrated by the fact that her wire loops where not perfect. She wanted to know why, what she could do to make them perfect, and if she could find wire for practicing this technique at a general hardware store. I get this question a lot concerning the "perfect wire loop."

My first response to concerns like this to anyone is to go easy on yourself. You are not a machine, so those loops will never really be 100% perfect. Now, you can always use a wire jig, and that will help a lot with consistency. But some people, like myself, prefer to do it by hand, though either way is really fine. Also, it is important to remember that the more loops you make, the better you will become and the more close to perfect your loops will be.

Now, as far as hardware stores, that depends on the store. Sometimes I have good luck and find wire to use and sometimes I don't. If you are looking for practice wire, then check some of the wire vendors I have links to; many of them sell copper wire in all kinds of different gauges, and I think copper is a good way to go since it is so inexpensive. Plus, copper is becoming more popular now due to the cost of all metals going up. If you do check out your hardware store, I would try to get wire in the 20-gauge range. Anything more will be pretty hard to bend, and anything smaller, like around 24-gauge, I think is too soft if you are trying to practice with the idea of using silver or gold-filled wire.

So go ahead and practice with the idea in mind that you are trying to make your wire loops as perfect as possible, but remember too that you are not a machine. You are a craftsperson making hand-crafted jewelry.