How to Make a Human Figure Out of Wire

Things You'll Need

Wire cutter
Wire
Needle-nose pliers (optional)

When making an armature, add hips and shoulders instead of making a simplified stick figure.

Bending a human figure out of wire is a quick way to make toys or create a sculpture armature. Preschoolers may enjoy playing with a pipe cleaner twisted into the shape of a tiny person. Sculptors can use thicker wire to create a structural "skeleton" for a clay human figure.

Step 1

Cut a piece of wire whose length is double the sum of the desired lengths of the body, both arms, both legs and the head's height.

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Step 2

Find the halfway point of the wire, and bend it into a circle, then twist the ends a few times to make a neck. If the wire is too thick to twist by hand, use needle-nose pliers.

Step 3

Bend the wire at the point whose distance from the neck equals the desired arm length (including one shoulder if creating an armature). Double the wire back along itself until you reach the neck. Twist the doubled wire to create an arm. Repeat with the other end of the wire to create the other arm.

Step 4

Twist both ends of the wire together to create a torso. Bend the remaining length of each end in half, and twist each doubled wire to form legs.

Step 5

Pose the limbs into the desired position. When creating an armature, leave a short section of each limb approximately horizontal to represent shoulders and hips, then make bends at the shoulders, elbows, wrists, hips, knees and ankles.

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