4. Simple Steps for Making Jewelry
Earrings
Bracelets
Necklaces
Sets
Discover all you need to know about beading!
32Stringing materials.
34Findings.
Bountiful Harvest, page 62.
Introduction:
Release Your Inner Jewelry Designer!
Remember the days when you were little and had a brand new box of crayons? All of those wonderful colors! You threw caution to the wind and started blending the colors together. When you were done, you had created a colorful work of art that brought a smile to your face. You can have that same exciting and creative experience making beaded jewelry.
Fight the urge to say, “I can’t make jewelry! I’m not creative!” I have been teaching novice beaders for many years, and whenever I start a new class, at least one student doesn’t believe he or she can create jewelry. I am here to silence that inner critic and bring out your inner jewelry designer.
Usually those who say they are not creative are the ones who actually end up with a life-long passion for beading. Why? Because they have learned the secret that so many talented jewelry makers know: Beading allows you to make a wearable work of art in a short amount of time using the colors, materials, and textures you love.
Beads call for you to experiment and play with color combinations in brand new ways, and there is no wrong way to design a piece—only your way. With beading, you are able to express your personal style and passion through jewelry. As you read this book, I will be with you every step of the way, with easy-to-follow instructions, practical hints and tips, and lots of encouragement to be the best you can be as you begin your fabulous journey into jewelry creation.
—Suzann Sladcik Wilson
1
Tools
Many of the tools a beader uses can be found in the toolbox sitting in a dark corner of the garage or basement. While it might be temping to use these readily available tools when first starting out, it is best to purchase a set of tools specifically designed for jewelry making. There are several reasons for this. First, jewelry-making tools are specifically made to fit more ergonomically in your hand, enabling you to easily perform some of the intricate tasks required when making beaded jewelry, and saving your hands from fatigue. This means you can spend more time making your beautiful beaded creations. Secondly, the jaws of standard pliers have ridges, while those designed for jewelry making do not. Jewelry pliers will not scratch the metal used to make your necklaces, earrings, and bracelets. If you invest in a good set of tools for your new passion, they will repay you with years of fun creating your wearable works of art.
Toolbox Essentials
Certain tools are “must haves” if you are starting your journey into making beaded jewelry. After years of leading beginners into the world of jewelry design, these are the tools I have found to be absolute essentials. By building your tool kit with these fundamentals, you will have everything you need to make elegant earrings, beautiful bracelets, and knockout necklaces.
Pliers
Every beader should work with a reliable set of pliers. Pliers allow you to bend wire, make loops, get into hard-to-reach places, and add crimp tubes to a jewelry design. You can often find pliers designed specifically for beading as a set.
Bent-nose pliers
Bent-nose pliers: The jaws of bent-nose pliers are easy to identify, because they are tapered like regular “toolbox” pliers, but are then bent at an angle near the tip. These are the pliers to turn to when you need to get into tight spaces.
Chain-nose pliers
Chain-nose pliers: Chain-nose pliers, also known as needle-nose pliers, have a smooth flat surface on the interior of the jaws. The small tapered point allows you to get into small areas. You will typically use this tool for gripping jewelry findings and working with wire.
Crimping pliers
Crimping pliers: Crimping pliers are one of the cornerstone tools of beading and were designed specifically for jewelry making. Their purpose is to flatten and bend a small tube of metal, called a crimp tube or crimp, to securely finish a necklace or bracelet so your jewelry will stay together for years to come. When purchasing crimping pliers, make sure you buy regular-sized ones, not micro or mighty crimping pliers. Regular crimping pliers are meant for 2 x 2mm crimp tubes, which are what you will use when making most of your jewelry.
Flat-nose pliers
Flat-nose pliers: With large