The Tools Make All The Difference!

If you have not already guessed, I am a jewelry artist that loves to wire wrap. Wire is my soul food. It keeps me sane and lets me be who I am meant to be. Who knew, right? Another thing that you have probably guessed is that wire is metal and with metal comes sharp edges, pokey ends, dirt and grime. Of course, I need tools to work with my medium of choice and I have some very favorites. I refer to my very favorites as my 'Fab Five'. They are the tools I use the most and they are the things I love most, next to my husband and children, of course. My 'fab five' go places with me, they are always present when I sit down to create, they are my utensils that I use most often in my life. They aren't the 'fab five' for nothin', you know. No, they have a purpose in life and they are really good at what they do. They have to be, as often as I am grabbing them and holding them and squeezing them and loving them...OK, enough! I know.
So, today I have decided to tell you about my 'fab five'. I am sure every wire wrapper in the world has their favorites and they may not be the same as mine, but this is my story and I get to tell it how I want to.
My favorite among the five is...well, I don't have just 1 favorite, they are all my favorites so I will tell you about them all and I will be presenting them to you in no specific order, as they all have a job to do and they all do their own job quite nicely.

First of all, I have the Swanstrom Chain Nose Pliers pictured here...

These pliers are used to get into those tough spots where you need a little nose with a mighty grip. These are the best thing ever for that.
Next, I have the Swanstrom Round Nose Pliers...

These I use for making rosettes and spirals, swirls, and circles. They have a wonderful tip that can provide a very crisp circle. I love the fact that they have such a tiny tip. This can make the rosettes and spirals closed in the center and this is the look I really like when I am making these.
Third are the Swanstrom Flat Nose Pliers...

These are the greatest pliers I have ever used to form wrap wires around bundles. They have a nice thin end so you don't have to worry about having a wrap wire that does not hug the bundle tightly. They also have a narrow end and this is really nice to get a bundle wire that is the right fit without losing the sight of it in the jaws of the pliers.
I have used many different brands of pliers in my life, but I have to tell you; I have used nothing in the past that compares to the Swanstrom brand of pliers. They feel nice to hold, they have nice precise ends that do EXACTLY what you need them to do, they are a true PRECISION pair of pliers. I have invested a lot of money into pliers over the years, and I know now that I should have saved up and bought these the very first moment I started looking to buy my own tools. I have not been disappointed with them, only the fact  that I did not purchase them first. They are a little pricey at about $40.00 a pair, depending on where you purchase them, but I have to tell you from experience, they are worth every penny!
The next item in the 'fab five' are the Xuron Flush Cutters...

These are the best things to cut with. I have had many cutters, but these by far are the ones I prefer. They are very strong and I have cut through as many as 6 wires at once with absolutely little effort. Of course, you only want to cut jewelry wire with these and keep the wires at a gauge that is respectable. I don't suggest that you try to cut through 6 wires that are 16 gauge full-hard all at once, you may find a bit of resistance. I usually cut no more than 6- 20 gauge wires at once, half-hard. This is pretty extreme, and these cutters do just fine. They cut through wire like a warm knife through butter. (An old expression used in my dad's day...Happy Birthday Dad, I miss you every single day!)
the last of my 'fab five' are the Bail Makers...

I have 3 different sizes of these pliers and I love each one of them the same. I use these pliers to make the spirals that I don't want closed in my more swirly designs. I also use them to make perfect bails on my pendants. They are precise and even on both sides and I love that. The bail makers have come to be used for way more than bail making in my wonderful world of wire, so therefore they have become one of the 'fab five'.
I want to thank Wire-sculpture.com for helping me become the wire artist I am today. When I first saw things on the internet that I just had to learn how to do, I found Wire-sculpture.com and I have been using their site ever since. I have bought the 'fab five' from their website as well as countless feet of wire that I have used to create my designs. I also borrowed the pictures you see here, in today's post, from their website. If yo are looking for a place to buy quality wire and tools at a good price, go to www.wire-sculpture.com, they may just have everything that you have been looking for.