Which gauge for small decorative twists?

by Jan
(Huddersfield, United Kingdom)

Which gauge wire do I use for small decorative twists? Jan

Stacy's Answer:

Hi Jan! I'm not certain what you mean by, "small decorative twists", but most gauges of wire can be twisted together to create a single piece of twisted wire. The smallest wire I personally use for this is 24ga which is slightly smaller than your 23ga. For the twisted jumprings I often use in my pieces, I use 16ga wire (1.3mm). 15ga wire is 1.45mm and 17ga wire is 1.15mm.

I use the 16ga wire for twisted jumprings because it is heavy and when made into unsoldered jumprings, it holds without pulling apart. If using a smaller gauge like 18ga, say, then I would recommend doubling up those jumprings so that the joints hold.

For the coiled wire areas done with twisted wire, the most common I use is 20ga and 22ga as accent areas on bangles and 18ga when the entire bangle is twisted wire coiled around the core.

Hope this helps!! If I've missed completely your question, please rephrase and I'll try again!

Thanks and happy wiring!

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