Wire wrapped paper hearts tutorial:
1- I used a piece of thin chipboard that I colored with a variety of ink sprays. You can use any sort of sturdy material, but a chipboard works best. After spraying I stamped my heart shape, then trimmed. (Note: you can free hand or machine cut hearts, too. Precut shapes would also work - wood or even the tops of candy boxes. They can be any size you’d like.)
2 - I cut just enough of the border off my heart to leave the stamped heart bit. I took a white Pitt Pen and made some quick streaks (not pictured) as I wasn’t happy with the color of my background) before I used a second stamp and black in (Versafine) to stamp the XO’s.
3 - You can use any wire you have on hand. I prefer 24 gauge bead wire because it’s thin and easy to bend/mold without tools. Cut a length of wire (I used almost 2 feet) and tape an end to the back of your heart.
4 - To cover the back and the wire/tape combo you’ve got there, I just used some strips of double stick tape then laid the heart onto decorative paper. Trim carefully and push down to assure that you’ve gotten your paper to stick. To clean up some of the rough edges I took an emery board to the edges. (Note: you can also use fabric or canvas or strips of washi tape)
5 - Start wire wrapping. I always start at the closest edge to where I’ve taped down my wire end. Wrap and bend over edges as you go to prevent slippage. Don’t wrap so tightly that you bend your chipboard if you’re using a thinner one. To secure the back, I just threaded my end through and twisted it together (think: the way you would finish off stitches if you were sewing or embroidering)
6 - the beads: totally optional. On my last wrap before securing, I made sure my bend was secure on the right side of the heart, then strung tiny glass seed beads onto my wire before finishing with step 5. (You can also use charms or found objects in place of beads.)
Add a shorter length of wire or ribbon for a hanger.
(If you don’t have wire and want to use what you have, try: twine, ribbon, bakers twine, strips of fabric, thin rope, embroidery floss, layers of thread)
