What length and strength florist wire do I need for a brooch bouquet please?

Hi

I have am in the process of making my first button bouquet to sell on my website so I know what you mean. I have now bought 5 different sizes of wire, 2 off ebay that were completely wrong. In the end I went to hobbycraft and bought 0.5 & 0.6, the 0.5 was the right one for buttons as it was just right to twist but 0.6 is ok too. So far I have used 50 metres done 80 sprays and am only half way through!! When I have done this one I am going to make a brooch one. I have struggled to find reasonably priced brooches so I have ordered a couple of hundred from Chinese manufacturers and will be selling the surplus. the first ones arrived today. https://www.3djewellery.co.uk/cheap-brooches-for-making-brooch-bouquets.html

Hobbycraft has a useful conversion chart

20 guage = 0.8

22 guage = 0.6

24 guage = 0.5 this isthe one the tutorials recommend but watch out for the precust galvanised ones on ebay they are crap, you want silver plated copper wire

26 guage = 0.4

I'll post a pic soon, but I have been using 0.5 wire from B&Q garden department for mine - works very well, and plenty maliable with the benefit of being stable when twisted twice together. The wire was £5.00 per 50 m I think and im not quite through the whole roll for 60+ brooches.

I basically cut about 2, 50 cm lengths and per brooch and then twisted the 2 lenths together after twisting them doubled over eachother. After that I twisted 3-5 brooches together and used them kind of like larger flowers.

I had bought some satin to make the collar for the bouquet, and sewed and stuffed it. That would be the only other thing you might need if you wern't doing the ribbon collar for it.

Thanks a million both of you.

You've been a massive help.

xxx

Found this if it helps as wire has been my biggest purchase I keep running out! https://www.wires.co.uk/acatalog/craft_non-tarnish_spc.html

You are a darling - thank you