03/28/2012 - Brake Wire Tree

Trees are some of my favorite things. They are beautiful, unique--I can go on and on and on. I was so excited to start the tree once I finished the canvas. I was a little worried this wasn't going to turn out the way I wanted it to when I started the trunk, but as I kept going it came together nicely.

Reclaimed Material: bicycle brake wire
Other/New Material: electrical tape
Tools: brake wire cutters

How I did it: After I washed the wire/cables, I started with the trunk of the tree by using pieces of brake wire that had cable stops on the bottoms, yes, I was just told by my hubby that is the correct name. I threaded the wire through the weaves and twisted them randomly to give it more of a trunk look. I unraveled a strand of the brake wire and used it to hold the trunk in place by looping the strand around from underneath. After the trunk was completed, I spread out the brake wire to make the branches. I unraveled the ends of the brake wire branches to make smaller branches then tucked the ends between the weaves of the canvas.

What I would do differently: I need to be more careful with the brake wire because I got a lot of little cuts. I also scrubbed them before I started this project but there was grease in the nooks and crannies of the wires, so I think I should soak them overnight in Simple Green.

02/11/2012 - Tree Pendant

I really love working with metal bicycle parts and I have been trying to come up with ways to use them without any welding knowledge. I am not sure how I am going to end up using this piece, but I am happy with how the front turned out!

Reclaimed Material: bicycle cog, bicycle brake wire 
Other/New Material: none
Tools: heavy duty metal snipper, pliers

How I did it: The first thing I did was to thread the brake wire through 4 holes on one side of the cog. I only used two pieces of wire so I threaded each wire in a U-shape between two holes. Brake wire is made up of many little wires, and those little buggers are very sharp. I got a few metal splinters when I was digging through the box at the bike shop I got them from. I used the pliers to untwist each of the wires that make up the brake line to separate them. This was a little more difficult than I anticipated. Once all of the tiny wires were separated I bunched them together and twisted them together at the base as tightly as I could with the pliers to make the "trunk" of the tree. I then grouped smaller sections of the wire to make the "branches" and pulled the ends of the wire through the holes along the top of the cog. After the tree design was complete I twisted the wire together in a circle behind the metal part of the cog to make sure no sharp wires were sticking out.
 
What I would do differently: The only thing I am not completely satisfied with is the back of the pendant with the wires leftover from tree. I need to figure out a good way to hold the wires so that this can be used as a pendant. For now I think I will make a small frame to mount this on.