a white Carolina Wren in a dark red circle

Sefa Sews

Trying Wire Weaving

June 2022 - July 2022

I'd been interested in trying wire weaving (also known as Viking wire weaving) for awhile when I attended Lilies War this past June. When I saw there was an intro to wire weaving class I was stoked! It was taught by Æsa, an extremely talented Calontiri wire weaver and photographer, and she made it easy to get started.

If you're interested in learning more about the history of woven wire jewelry like this, look no farther than one of my fave researchers, Dawn (Drífa at lækjamoti) from Dawn's Dress Diary, and her fantastic in-depth research on Viking Knit & Trichinopoly chain

Æsa had everything we needed packed into a fantastic little kit that we could use just for the class or could purchase for a small fee, which I definitely chose to do. The kit included a spool of 28-gauge copper wire, a dowel to use as a mandrel, and a three-hole draw plate made of wood.

A spool of wire, a block of wood with three small holes of different sizes drilled into it, and a wooden dowel about 6 inches long
A hand holding a block of wood with three holes of different sizes drilled into it

I don't have photos of the main part of the weaving process since I started it, wove it, finished weaving, and pulled it through the draw plate all while I was on-site. However, after I got home I found this video from Lily-Tree Weaving which is extremely similar to the process Æsa taught us. If you are curious about how to start your weaving and what it looks like in-process then I highly suggest you check Lily-Tree's video out! I ended up making mine a double weave, as seen in this second video from Lily-Tree. I love the look of double and triple weave so much.

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Here are pics of finishing the piece, which I decided to make into a bracelet. I think the hardest part was cutting the completed wire weaving down to bracelet size. It was a bit fiddly & created more small wire bits to clean up than I anticipated. I got the fittings at Joann's. Æsa had shared some examples of finished pieces & how to finish both with and without pre-made caps. If you don't have a pre-made cap, you can create one from thicker wire coiled into a cone shape.

Several items arranged on a white leather footstool. Those items are a length of copper woven wire, a coil of thicker wire, two end caps, and a circle clasp set.

It was a fairly simple thing to take some thicker wire, hook the end of the weaving, feed the thick wire through a cone cap, and create a loop. I added a bead on each end between the cap and the loop to keep the wire from wiggling around.


A piece of thick wire with a small hook at one end. The hook is attached to the end of some woven copper wire

A circle clasp, white bone bead, and cone end cap attached to a length of woven copper wire

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And here it is, all done! It did not take long to finish at all.

A finished copper woven wire bracelet on a wooden table

I used a toggle clasp for the bracelet, which was the only dark copper closure Joann's had at the store when I went. It looks great, but is actually a bit too heavy for a bracelet & would be much better for a necklace. If I could do it again I'd be more patient and find a hook & eye clasp in dark copper. I may replace the current closure at some point.

A photo of the inside of someone's wrist as they are wearing a bracelet of woven copper wire fastened with a cirle clasp

I like the finished product! I'll definitely make some more pieces sometime soon, it was really fun to do. I love how easy the wire weaving is to tote and work on while sitting fieldside or fireside, much less fussy than my sewing projects. Big thank you to Æsa for the excellent class! You made it easy to learn!


Sources and Additional Info

Dawn's in-depth research on Viking Knit & Trichinopoly chain

Lily-Tree Weaving's YouTube tutorial video on How to Viking Knit with a Dowel

Lily-Tree Weaving's YouTube tutorial video on How to Create Double and Triple Viking Knit


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Gallery

A spool of wire, a block of wood with three small holes of different sizes drilled into it, and a wooden dowel about 6 inches long
A hand holding a block of wood with three holes of different sizes drilled into it
A length of copper wire woven into a round shape, with some long wires at one end creating a taper
A close up of the end of a woven copper bracelet, showing the round shape and the weaving
Two small clear bags of copper bead fittings, one bag is of cone end caps and the other bag is circle clasps
Several items arranged on a white leather footstool. Those items are a length of copper woven wire, a coil of thicker wire, two end caps, and a circle clasp set.
A length of woven copper wire laid out on a white leather footstool to estimate the length of the finished bracelet, with unattached end caps at each end and an unattached circle clasp
A piece of thick wire with a small hook at one end. The hook is attached to the end of some woven copper wire
A circle clasp, white bone bead, and cone end cap attached to a length of woven copper wire
A photo of someone's forearm with a woven copper wire bracelt around the wrist
A photo of the inside of someone's wrist as they are wearing a bracelet of woven copper wire fastened with a cirle clasp
A finished copper woven wire bracelet on a wooden table