How To Wire Wrap A Gemstone Donut

Gemstone donuts are versatile components that can be used in a variety of jewellery designs.

This page gives step by step instructions on how to wire wrap a donut, which is a great technique to learn to enable many design options. 

You can use your wire wrapped donut to feature in a bangle, hang from eawrwires or incorporate into a necklace design.

Jewellery Making Supplies Needed

Gemstone Donut

They are donut shaped, with a hole in the middle which makes them really easy to hang from threads or to wire wrap.

In this tutorial, we've used a 20mm labradorite gemstone donut but you can choose your favourite! Please note that many of our donuts range in sizes.

METAL WIRE

Choose from our selection of metal wire to complete your beading chain! Including plated, sterling silver, 9ct gold, copper, brass and more.

For this tutorial, we used 0.5mm sterling silver round wire - remember that the thinner the wire, the easier it is to manipulate.

JEWELLERY MAKING PLIERS

This tutorial requires a few pliers to complete the look including round nose pliers, snipe nose pliers and side cutters. All of these are available individually or in our popular pack of pliers.

Follow The Step By Step Tutorial On How To Wire Wrap A Donut...

Step 1

Take a 30cm length of wire and put the wire through the hole of the donut. Wrap this around the donut 5 times. You want to have roughly equal lengths left over both sides. To end up with this, start with one side of the wire double the length of the other and use the longer side to wrap around the donut.

Step 2

Use your snip nose pliers to pinch the ends of the wire together so they are flush with each other.

Step 3

Take your round nose pliers and about 5mm up from the top of the donut, bend to an angle and then create a loop around the pliers.

Step 4

Hold the loop with the round nose pliers, then tightly wrap the wire around itself downwards towards the donut, once at the bottom wrap it back up towards the loop to create a thicker bail. This will use almost all of the wire.

Step 5

Use your metal shears or side cutters to cut the wire off as close to the bail as possible.

Step 6

Use the snipe nose pliers to squeeze the loose wire ends into the wrapped wire bail. You want it so that when you run your finger along it you won't be able to feel anything sharp.

Step 7

Your Donut is now a pendant and ready to hang from either a necklace, bracelet or earrings! To make your donut pendant into a connector, repeat the same process on the opposite side of your donut.

Finished!

Your wire wrapped donut is now complete and ready to incorporate into your jewellery designs.

Wire wrapped gemstone donuts can be used in many ways, for example, you can use it as a bangle top, linked together to make a bracelet, as part of some earrings or attached to lengths of chain to make a necklace.

Here are two designs we have made with wire wrapped gemstone donuts!

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4 Ways To Use Gemstone Donuts

We share with you easy projects aimed at jewellery making beginners using our gorgeous gemstone donuts.

We show you designs using donut bails, threads and how to create simple earring hoops.

If you have any further questions, feel free to call our friendly team who will be more than happy to give you some advice through Facebook, Twitter, Email or simply calling us on 01872 573888 8.30am-4.30pm.

Alternatively, for more information and how to's on all areas of jewellery making visit our other Gemstone Setting Advice pages.