[sophisticated hippie]

I shared this with a friend awhile back and she thought it was a great idea. I came up with it out of frustration. I use wire guards (or what ever name you may call them) as extra protection and finishing when using watch faces. I never liked the look of the beading wire going through the hole but more than that I was concerned about the durability. I always used two strands of high quality beading wire but never felt extremely confident. Now I have no worries and although it is obvious I still think it looks a little better or more finished.

[Bejeweled]

i do the exact same thing.i forget where i learned it from.

[FloridaCoqui]

Great idea. Thanks for sharing.

[koolbraider]

I recently found another use, from a bracelet tutorial: sewing through and using the guardian to hold a jump ring without damaging the thread and then you can put just about any clasp you want on the bracelet.

[BeadSire]

That's a great idea - thanks for sharing!

[JacksMom]

BeadSire, on Feb 2 2009, 05:16 AM, said:

That's a great idea - thanks for sharing!

Good idea! I love wire guards. I don't know how we ever did without them.

[Livewire]

Are the holes in the watch face large enough for the ends of the guard to slide through? I have never used them, but I'm very interested, as the 49 strand beading wire that I used was cut by the rough holes in the watch. I want to do it your way when I do the repair.

Thanks,
Joyce

[sophisticated hippie]

Hi Joyce,
The watch faces I use have holes (as close as I can measure) approx 1.3 to 1.5mm. I use the are the smaller diameter of .022 but they are plenty wide enough to accomodate a single strand of even the thickest stringing wire. If the part of the watch with the hole is wider than that shown in the picture you may have to wiggle the wire guard a bit to get it in since its curved. With some watches I have had to put the wire guard in first and then thread the stringing wire through the guard. It might take a try or two but for me the extra few moments of wiggling and threading wire is well worth the confidence of knowing its secure and durable. If you give it a try I hope you are as happy with the results as I was.

Lisa