Create Shiney Company’s Bollywood Chic strung necklace design with CRYSTALLIZED™ – Swarovski Elements and gold plated chain.
This strung necklace is big on techniques, demonstrating how to use a wire guardian, crimps, crimp covers and the split ring tool. Adding the chain makes a strung necklace more interesting. The rich colours and gold metals work well [...]
Step 2
Position the wire on the mandrel (placing it approx. one to two sizes bigger that you require) so the beads are in the centre of the wire and sat on the top of the mandrel. Using your thumb, hold the beads flat to the mandrel and wrap either side of the wire around the [...]
This is such a useful and versatile technique. Flat coils are a great way of finishing
off wire ends neatly. We recently used this technique on a couple of the projects we submitted to Beads and Beyond and Making Jewellery Magazine (see images).
There are many uses for the flat coil; making headpins is just one of [...]
With satin ribbon featuring in many of this seasons jewellery designs, it can be a challenge keeping those edges from fraying.
You can try snipping at an angle with your scissors but the ends still unravell after it’s been worn.
We’ve found the best way to stop fraying is to carefully run a lighter flame over the edge of the [...]
A wig jig is a board (wooden or acrylic) with pegs that sit in the holes. You can arrange the pegs in patterns so that you can wind wire around and create shapes that can be repeated again and again. It can be used to create intricate patterns or jewellery findings. Great for uniform shapes [...]
Making your own tiara and accessories
If you are a complete beginner there are several ways to get started. You may have clear ideas in mind, but need help with materials and tools; visit your local bead store and see if there is a tiara maker in store who can offer advice.
Research the web! A google [...]
It’s a while since I talked about sitting the garden BeJeweling a black Bikini, at last I have an image for you. In addition, I have some images to help you use your BeJeweler successfully.
Before you get started you need to consider a few things:-
Is the material porous (a good test is to see if [...]
If you are thinking about taking up jewellery making as a hobby or to develop into an income, there are some things you might want to consider before you invest in the various tools and jewellery supplies required.
What style of jewellery do you want to make? The images and titles below are just some of [...]
Pinch Bail
I often hear tales of cracked crystal and glass when people first use pinch bails and triangle clamps to attach pendants to necklaces. Many people work with pliers to close these findings, but the easiest and safest way is to use your fingers. You’ll find the triange clamps and the pinch bails generally open easily but [...]
When you are using toggle clasps to finish your jewellery designs, you need to consider the size of the ‘ring part’ of the clasp and the size of the beads near the end of the necklace (and the jump ring if you are using one). If you have beads larger than the inside diameter of the ‘ring part’, you’ll [...]
