How To: Securely mount your ear wire former to the Wire Former Mount, a workbench, or in a vice.
There is a line on the #1 arm that is the length of wire required to make this earring. Place 20-gauge, half-hard round wire against this line. Use flush cutters to trim the end at the mark.
Use the tip of a pair of roundnose pliers to make a U-shaped bend in one end of the wire.
Open all three arms away from the center piece of the former. Orient the former base so that it's horizontal in front of you with the #2 arm to the right.
Hold the U-shaped bend of the wire against the inner notch of the center piece of the former. Make sure the U-shape is pointing up (or down, to make a mirror image ear wire) rather than flat on the base.
Press arm #1 against the wire, pushing the wire against the center piece of the former.
Keep pressure on arm #1, and use your other hand to carefully guide the free end of the wire above arm #2, around the top of the center piece, and under arm #3. This will be a little fiddly at first until you get conformable with the process.
Press arm #2 against the center piece. You can now release arm #1, as arm #2 will hold it in place.
Press arm #3 down toward the center piece. This is the final forming step.
Release the arms, and remove the ear wire.
