Wire-Wrapped Hoop Earrings

Hoop earrings are all the rage - big hoops, little hoops, silver hoops, and gold ones. Hoop earrings are just so cool but dont you ever get tired of your earrings looking exactly like everyone elses? On a boring night or weekend get out a pair of hoop earrings and have fun giving them a unique make-over. Its easy to create wire-wrapped earrings that look much different than those your friends are wearing.There are two basic designs of hoop earrings. One of them is a solid circle that has a built-in link, with a wire earring connected to the link. The other type doesnt have a wire; the hoop opens up and the end of it slides through the hole in your ear. You can wire-wrap either type but the latter offers you more choices.If you have a hoop earring that can be opened you can easily change the shape of it. Just open it, wrap it around an object from your home, and bend the metal around it. Bend it around a perfume bottle, a small bar of soap, a star-shaped ornament, or another choice. Or, just leave the hoops as they are. With an earring that doesnt open, you can squeeze the sides to reshape the earring into an oval, if nothing else.Wire, sold on a thread-type spool, is available in many different colors. Although the wire is stiffer than thread, its as easy to use as thread, particularly when it comes to wrapping the earrings. Just begin at the top of the hoop, and wrap the metal, from one end to the other. Wrap the hoop with wire of the same color or alternate colors. To end one, and begin another, just wrap the new one over the very end of the previous wire, and continue wrapping. Or, finish one and simply butt the new wire against the end of the first one.After youve wrapped the hoop youll then form any type of criss-cross pattern you want, back and forth across the front and back of the earring. Using this technique you could make anything from a cross to a spider web pattern. When youre finished with the design you want, clip the wire, and tuck it under another, or just pinch it tight with needle-nose pliers.If you have no wire you could use for the hoop earring make-over you can also use thread. Also, you can wire-wrap other earrings, too, like wooden circle earrings. If you want to continue with the project you can sew or glue an object onto the center of the wire or thread arrangement. A tiny charm, a miniature from a craft store, a bead, or even a silk flower, will look fabulous. Youll proudly wear the new earrings that look so much different than other hoops.