Things You'll Need
20-gauge wire
Needle-nosed pliers with wire snips
Bead wire (optional)
Beads and crystals (optional)
Silk or dried flowers (optional)
Floral tape (optional)
Ribbon (optional)
Wearing a circlet headdress conjures images of medieval princesses, fairies and brides wearing the romantic head gear. Lightweight and secure, a circlet can be a simple braided wire for a maiden or a more elaborate piece to replace a crown or veil. Creating a circlet is simple, and the headdress can be any style, depending on the intended use and your imagination.
Step 1
Un-spool a section of the 20-gauge wire, cutting it to a 2-foot length. If you desire a braided or twisted wire circlet, cut 2, 3 or 4 lengths of wire depending on the configuration you want. Wrap one piece of the wire around your head. Place it above the ears and above the hairline at your forehead, then down around the back just above the occipital ridge at the back of your head. That is the area where the skull tapers in towards your neck. You don't want the circlet beneath this ridge, just above it.
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Step 2
Extend the wire about 4 inches if you are braiding sections together. If you are making a single wire circlet, add 1 inch to the wire. Clip the wire. Measure your other wires if you are using any against this first one and cut them to match the size.
Step 3
Braid or twist the wires if you making this type of circlet.
Step 4
Wrap the circlet gently around the shape of your head in the same position as before. This time, cross the back of the wire ends over each other and twist just slightly to mark the spot where they come together. Lift the circlet off your head.
Step 5
Disengage the wires from each other -- where you marked the spot -- but leave the twist in the ends to see where you will be working. Use the needle-nosed pliers to create a hooked half circle on each end. The hook should bend the wire back to the direction it came from. You can use two methods to finish this off. You can double this hook with the wire and twist it on itself to make a smooth end, then clip the end at the bottom of the twist. If you are covering the wire, simply clip it at the top of the hook. Make hooks on each end of wire, both sides of the circlet. When you wear it, the hooks will latch over each other to hold the circlet in place.
Step 6
Decorate the circlet as desired. You can choose to wire a single large bead or crystal to the front at the center of the forehead, or bead the entire circlet. To do this, wrap bead wire in the location of the single bead and put it in place, or string beads on bead wire and wrap them around the entire circlet. Clip the stems of silk or dried flowers and tape them in place around the circlet, and wrap the entire headpiece in ribbon leaving the flowers exposed. Seal the ends with floral tape, and add hanging bits of ribbon in the back if desired.
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