Craft Corner: Jewelled Tree

These attractive little trees make delightful gifts, if you can bear to part with them. This one is made with wire and beads but they can be made with wire and tiny polished stones.

Materials:

12m of fine wire

42 small green beads

15 small pink beads

108 green beads approximately 1cm long

45 pink beads approximately 1 cm long

Small container or vase

Foundation clay (or plasticine)

Cut wire into 57 lengths each 20 cms long.

Stage 1.

Thread small green bead onto 1 length of fine wire. Position bead in centre of length and bring the two ends of wire together and twist wire to keep bead in place. Thread the doubled wire through 4 large green beads. Put aside and make 11 more branches the same way. Place 3 branches together and twist wire. (Always twist the wire the one way with all pieces to give an overall sameness in your finished tree.) At 1cm intervals add an extra branch. Twist each new branch for 1 cm down the ‘trunk’. Continue until all 12 branches have been added.

Stage 2.

Take 1 length of wire and place a small pink bead at the centre. Position bead in centre of length and bring the two ends of wire together and twist wire to keep bead in place. Thread the double wire with 3 large pink beads. Make 14 more blossoms the same way and put aside.

Stage 3.

Take a length of wire, place a small green bead at the centre. Position bead in centre of length and bring the two ends of wire together and twist wire to keep bead in place. Thread the double wire with 2 large green beads. Make 29 more leaves the same way and put aside.

Stage 4.

Take 1 blossom (stage 2) and 2 leaves (stage 3) and twist together for 1 cm to form a spray. Assemble 14 more the same way. Take 5 sprays and assemble b y adding each additional spray at 1 cm intervals to form a branch. Make 2 more branches the same way. Twist the 3 blossom branches to the branch made in stage 1.

Stage 5.

Fill container or vase with foundation clay and put the twisted wire securely into it. Manipulate the branches to shape your tree into an attractive shape.

Gemstone tree

To make the gemstone tree you would twist about 50 lengths of wire into

branches, leaving a small loop at the end of each piece of wire and arranging groups together to form branches. The gemstones are then glued to the loops of wire. When you arrange the branches for your Gemstone tree have the loops at the end of each branch flattened a little to make a tiny platform to allow glue to set without the gemstone slipping off.

Instead of securing the ends of the branches into a vase they would look perfect if they are formed into roots over a selected piece of stone.