1. -Thick wire for the outline (height and length)
-Medium wire to show the width

2. -Use thin wire to show inside details

3. -Create 2 identical outlines and then attach them to show the width

5. -Outline the body (2-D)
-Create four legs, two ears (3-D)

6. Some birds made by Elizabeth Berrien

8. Wire bird-making video! Watch closely….

9. First step is to get the basic shape of your bird.
You can make adjustments later.

10. This is what the weaving/knitt-ing should look like on the inside of your bird.
This will create texture and direction, just like you would make with a pencil on paper.

11. Starting an attachment

14. If you are attaching a short piece or the end of a piece of wire, still loop it around like you would normally

15. Cut off most of the excess wire

16. After cutting the excess, wrap the rest of the shortened wire with pliers if you can’t get it with your fingers

17. Compress the looping firmly with pliers (not too hard—try and avoid plier marks in the wire)

18. Finished attachment

19. Recommendations/Reminders
ALWAYS start in the middle of a piece of wire
Use hands as much as you can, then use pliers (tends to work best. Everyone’s different)
Get general shape of bird first
Once general shape is established, start working at one end and go from there
Think of this as drawing with wire—try and get the same lines/directions as you did with your pencil
Weave pieces to hold them in place
Keep wrapped attachments to a minimum—try to hold wire in place by weaving the pieces together
Feed wire through areas when weaving (vs. pulling it through)
Dark/shadowed areas: denser weaving with smaller spaces
Try not to wad up your wire to create dark spaces
Different style than what’s on the wall, but you can use those for ideas
Forewarning: this will beat your hands up a little bit