Wired Star

When I saw this craft over at Family Fun, I just thought it was the sweetest thing ever. So I got all the supplies and my kids and I got to work.

Some things I realized:

1. The craft at Family Fun calls for 18-gauge wire. For some reason, I can never find it. I used 16-gauge and it was okay.

2. Wire is sharp. Especially the 16-gauge and heavier kind. And it can be a huge pain in the butt if you aren't a wire professional. I am not a wire professional and step #2 just about drove me crazy. I'm just not any good at using wire cutters to twist wire. After that step, though, the rest was a breeze.

3. I would recommend doing this craft with kids older than 3 and 5. We were able to finish three stars each by staggering them over a couple of days, but the wire wrapping can get a little tedious for the young ones.

Wired Star

Supplies

3-foot length of 18- (or 16-) gauge gold (or silver) colored craft wire

Small jump rings like these (or you can use a little bit of the extra lightweight wire to make a loop)

Star-shaped cookie cutter

Wire cutters

20- to 24-gauge colored lightweight wire

Ribbon

Iridescent beads

Make sure a grown-up does the first two steps. And don't yell at me if you cut yourself on the stupid wire.

Grown-Up Job: Press the 16-gauge craft wire around the cookie cutter twice to form a star shape.

Grown-Up Job: Use wire cutter to twist the ends together and cut off any excess. Stupid, stupid step.

Take one end of a piece of the lightweight colored wire and secure it by wrapping it around the star outline.

Wrap away! When you get to the end of each piece of colored wire, just twist it around the star a little.

Use whatever colors your child wants and go for it! For extra fanciness, thread some pretty beads onto the wire as you wrap the star.

Sometimes the stars won't be a perfect star-shape, but that adds to the child-made charm!

Attach the little jump ring to the top of your star and thread a ribbon through.

We gave ours to the grandparents (we love you!), so I printed up some little tags.

So pretty, right?

Peyton and Ella were so proud! I like that this is a very sturdy craft that will last forever. The second step I really, really disliked, that's true. But the end result was worth my pain and irritation. And wine helps, too. I'm just saying.

Happy Crafting!