Silverware Wind Chimes

Craft Project: Silver Spoon Windchimes

Approximate Time: 2-3 hours

Supplies:

• 5 silver (not stainless) spoons
• 1 wire whisk (Dollar Tree)
• 18 gauge (or whatever you have around) wire
• String, cotton yarn or twine
• Hammer
• Wire cutter
• Needlenose pliers
• Large beads or decorative stone (optional)

Instructions:

Flatten the spoons by hammering them against something sturdy like a stone walkway or concrete drive.

Cut the loops of the whisk and use the pliers to curve the outwards and up, with a little loop on the end.

Cut 5 pieces of wire into about 9" to 12" long.

For each spoon, wrap wire tightly around the bottom of the handle and twist to secure.

Wrap the wire loosely around the handle and finish with a loop at the top.

Cut the string into two 8" lengths and 3 9 1/2" lengths.

Attach the string to the whisk "arms", leaving an empty arm in between spoons.

You can add beads or decorative stones wrapped in wire on the empty arms.

Another way: Cut jut 2 loops on the whisk to hold the spoons, with the fifth spoon tied into the center.

I saw this project years ago in a magazine in a crowded doctor's office and didn't feel comfortable ripping the page out. (Might have been different had I been the only one in the waiting room.) I kept an image of those chimes in mind, although who knows how much that image and the magazine picture have in common by now? I got the idea for using the whisk from Mark Montano, a designer on TLC's "While You Were Out."

By the way, the spoons make a lovely bell-like sound when they hit each other.

By Pugi from Ingram, TX

Silverware Windchimes

Materials:

Use old silver silverware for the best "sounds", and usually they are more ornamental than what you find in a dollar store or such.

• 1 fork
• 1 spoon
• 4 other forks or knives
• Fishing line
• Drill and small drill bit
• Pliers

Directions:

Drill small holes in the handles of each utensil.

Using the pliers, bend the tines of one fork out in each direction (think west, north, south, east), and then curl the ends upwards. Tie a length of fishing line to the spoon. The spoon will hang in the middle, so tie it to one of the middle tines of the fork, as close to the center of it as you can get. Next, tie a length of fishing line to each of the other utensils and hang them from each curl of the fork.

The sound of the chime is beautiful. If using the knives, the sound will be lower. Other forks make a tinkling sound. You can let the spoon hang naturally, or bend the ladle part up so as to hit the other utensils more frequently.

By Dawn Salisbury from Ogallala, NE