Knitted jewellery may sound strange, but it is just one of the ingenious techniques Perri Lewis has picked up from her craft heroes at the Age Concern centre in Camden, London

I have many craft heroes. There are the well-known ones (to us crafters, anyway): guerrilla knitter Magda Sayeg, rebel knitter Rachel Matthews, Faythe Levine of Handmade Nation (the wonderful documentary charting the rise of DIY in the US), and Debbie Stoller, editor of Bust magazine and founder of the 'stitch and bitch' movement (she's the reason it's OK to knit on the bus without getting Coke poured over your head).

Then there are the ones you might not have heard of: Lauren O'Farrell, head of London's biggest knitting group, Sarah Moore (she helped organise that knitting poem you may have seen kicking around the news the other week), Jill Read of the Crafts Council who works tirelessly to promote contemporary makers and their work … I could go on.

Then there is Jean and Beryl and Bella and Jessie, and all the other ladies and gents that I visit on a Tuesday afternoon at the Age Concern centre. Since signing up to the Guardian's volunteer programme last year I've spent an hour a week with them and, inadvertently, I have found myself a new set of craft heroes who have become an invaluable source of knowledge and inspiration.

Last week Jean was having a crack at knitting with wire - something I've never done before - so I spent the weekend following her advice on the best way to do it and made myself this little ring. If you knit, it's an uber-simple project that will take you just half an hour to make. If you want something to get your teeth into, though, make a larger version and attach it to a brooch back, or have a go at making a beaded bracelet like Jean did.

What you need

Jewellery wire (I used 0.3mm wire)
Knitting needles (only use wooden or bamboo needles if you're very careful, otherwise you're likely to break them)
Pliers or scissors
Jewellery fixings (ring base, earring, etc - this depends on what you want
to make)
Beads (for the bracelet or choker)

What it costs

You can make decent-quality jewellery by buying proper gold or silver wire: I bought 10m of gold from Bellore in London for £14. The cheap stuff also works well - I got 22m for about £1.50 from Hobbycraft.

How long it takes

I knitted the ring in half an hour, but a brooch, bracelet or choker will take longer.

What to do

If you don't knit, take a look at knittinghelp.com and learn how to cast on, do a simple knit stitch, and cast off. If you do knit, read on …

There are a few difference between knitting with wire and knitting with yarn: wire is obviously harder on the fingers, it's less pliable, and the fabric that you get from it isn't as neat, nor are the stitches as regular. As you can see from the picture above, I'm happy to embrace this rough look, but if you want everything to be a bit more trim, use the tip of your knitting needle to even out the stitches.

How to make the bow ring or brooch

1. Using 0.3mm wire and 3mm needles, cast on four stitches. Continue knitting for about 30 rows, or until you have a strip twice as long as you want your bow to be. Cast off, but make sure you leave about 2m of wire attached to your strip rather than cutting it short, as you would normally.

2. Lay the strip lengthways on a flat surface and fold each edge to the middle. Use the spare wire to "stitch" this in place (weave the piece in and out of the stitches until it is secure).

3. Take your ring base and position the bow on the front. Wrap the remaining length of wire around the centre of the bow and the ring to secure it in place. For extra security, add a bit of glue behind the bow. Alternatively, to make a brooch, swap your ring fixing for a brooch back.

How to make Jean's beaded bracelet

1. Thread as many beads on to your spool of wire as you think you might need before you start knitting. To work this out, multiply the amount of stitches per row by the length of the bracelet in centimetres (eg if you are doing a six stitch wide, 12cm long bracelet, I'd thread at least 72 beads on).

2. Cast on as many stitches as you think want and knit one row. As you knit the first stitch of the second row, bring one of the beads up to your needles and knit it into the fabric. Repeat for every stitch of the second row.

3. Continue knitting every odd row without beads and every even row with beads - this will ensure all the beads stay on the same side of the bracelet.

4. Once the bracelet or choker is long enough, cast off then fix a jewellery clasp to either end of it.

Perri Lewis