All about jewellery making

Many people get married in the summer so I thought I would write a tutorial for some earrings that would be suitable for brides and/or bridesmaids.  This design is very quick and simple to make.  Here’s what you need:

2x   6 inch lengths of 26 gauge wire
1x   pair of ear wires
2x   focal bead (8mm)
20x  Swarovski crystal bicone beads, 4mm (I used 8x vintage rose, 8x chrysolite and 4x clear)
26x 3mm pearl beads (I used ivory)
1x   6mm pearl bead
1x   4mm metallic bead
Round nose pliers
Flat nose pliers
Wire cutters

1.  The first step is to thread the beads that form the main loop of the earring.  Here is a diagram to show you how:

2.  Once you have the beads in the desired order draw both ends of the wire towards each other and make a neat and tight wrapped loop at the top.  You will need to trim the wire that you have used to create the wrap so that you end up with a wrapped loop bearing a single wire out of the top like so:

3.  The next thing you have to do is to cover the wrap you have just made.  To do this take the 6mm pearl bead and thread it onto the wire.  Hold the wire with your flat nose pliers and pull the bead down firmly to cover the wrap.  When you have done this then thread on the 4mm metallic bead followed by the 3mm pearl and finally create a wire wrapped loop at the top to hang the earring from the ear wire (see diagram below).  Repeat for the other earring.

In my last post I talked about the beaded snowflakes design in Dorothy Wood’s book ‘Simply Sparkling Christmas Beading’.  My challenge was to find a way to create the wire frame for making beaded snowflakes using cold connections.  Here is a tutorial for my beaded snowflake wirework frame which I have tested out with the following result:

To create the basic beaded snowflake wirework frame you need to cut three identical pieces of wire (I used 0.8 mm).  The length is up to you as it will determine the final size of your beaded snowflake.  Line up the wires next to each other and using a finer length of of wire (i used 0.6 mm) create a wirewrap around the wires at the midway point - see fig. 1.

fig. 1

You are almost done already!  Once the wirewrap is secure you can then fold the arms out like so:

fig. 2

You are now ready to apply your chosen beads to each of the snowflake arms.  Secure the beads by using your round nose pliers to create a small loop at the end of each wire - see fig. 3.

fig. 3

photo of my beaded snowflake at this stage

Don’t worry if your beaded snowflake is a little wobbly. You are about to add the embellishments with fine wire and this will hold it all together.  For my beaded snowflake I created bead picks as explained in Dorothy’s book (pp. 14 - 17) but you could use more crystals, beads, seed beads, ribbons, buttons to suit your own tastes.  I can’t explain here how to create the bead picks because I wish to respect Dorothy’s copyright.  If you want to replicate these delicate beaded fronds please see her book.  However all other forms of decoration can be attached using fine wire (0.2 or 0.3 mm) by twisting and weaving around the centre of the beaded snowflake.  I found it useful to incorporate some beaded loops at the centre as these hide the wire you have used to bind the decoration.  Add a hanging loop by attaching a thread on any one of the loops at the end of the beaded snowflake’s arms. 

fig. 4

If you have a go at creating a beaded snowflake using my wirework frame tutorial do feel free to send me a picture and I will add it to this post.  It would be nice to have a whole page of Christmassy beaded snowflakes!

Copyright 2007 http://www.allaboutjewellerymaking.info
Not to be reproduced on any other website, in printed format or on a portable media device. May be printed for personal use but must not be used for commercial purposes.

Just a quick ’show and tell’ and a teensy tutorial.  I am loving wearing these earrings at the moment.  They are very simple to make using a basic hoop finding.  Here’s how I made them:

Materials:
2x hoop earring findings (or make your own from wire)
1 pair ear hooks
0.2 mm wire
Small handful size 9/0 seed beads
Small handful size 11/0 seed beads
3 large drop beads
4 small drop beads

1.  Un-hook the wire hoop at the back of the pre-made hoop finding and thread on your chosen drop beads in the following order - 1 small, 1 large, 1 small, 1 large, 1 small, 1 large, 1 small.  For the moment forget about these beads, just let them hang on the hoop out of the way.

2.  Take some fine wire, approx. 0.2mm in diameter, and wind it a few times around the hoop at the top.  Once the wire is firmly attached thread on your first seed bead (I have used blue size 9/0).  Position this bead up against the hoop on the outer edge and wind the wire around the hoop a couple of times to secure it.  Now you are ready to thread on your first group of 3 smaller seed beads which will sit on the inner edge of the hoop (I have used pale grey size 11/0).  Here is a close up picture to give you the idea:

As you can see from the photograph I have repeated this process 3 times plus one blue size 9/0 seed bead before incorporating the drop beads into the design (the drop beads essentially replace the 3 seed bead unit that you have been adding).  Each drop bead is separated by a size 9/0 seed bead and the wire should be wound around the hoop a couple of times between each bead so that they are all secured in place.

3.  Very nearly there!  Continue until you have incorporated all 7 drop beads into the design and then resume wiring on seed beads just as you did at the beginning so that they match the first side.

4.  Attach ear hooks and you’re done!

Copyright 2006 http://www.allaboutjewellerymaking.info
Not to be reproduced on any other website, in printed format or on a portable media device. May be printed for personal use but must not be used for commercial purposes.

  These earrings are fairly simple to make although they do take a bit of patience and you may have sore fingers at the end!  They are an excellent way to practice wire-wrapped loops (if you do not yet know how to create wire-wrapped loops see this post that gives links to tutorials on the net).

N.B. To see a bigger picture of these earrings please visit the original post where I first introduced them.

Here’s what you need:

2 x length of chain consisting of 9 fairly large links (if you don’t have any loose chain you can appropriate necklace extenders such as these for the task)
72 x headpins.  I used 2 inch silver-plated headpins
72 x crystals or 4mm beads of your choice
Round nose pliers
Flat nose pliers
1 pair of ear hooks

For my example I used 3 shades of crystals to create a gradient effect.  You could use any combination of colours, a solid colour or even create a rainbow effect.

Start by adding 4 beads on wire-wrapped loops to the link at the bottom of the chain like so:

diagram 1

As you proceed to add beads up the length of the chain add 2 wire-wrapped crystals/rounds on one side of the previous set and 2 on the other side like this:

diagram 2

This will ensure that they hang nice and evenly.  That’s all there is to it!  Just keep adding beads as you wish.  To achieve the gradient effect I changed colour after 3 rows.  Once complete add to an ear hook and hey presto just the other one to do.

Besides changing the colourways you could also experiment with the length of chain and the number of beads.

Hope you enjoyed this mini-tute.

Copyright 2006 http://www.allaboutjewellerymaking.info
Not to be reproduced on any other website, in printed format or on a portable media device. May be printed for personal use but must not be used for commercial purposes.

The All About Jewellery Making Mini-Guide to Wire Jigs

What is a wire jig and how is it used?

A wire jig is a device used by jewellery makers to shape wire.  It enables you to create wire shapes that are the same size over and over again.  This means that a wire jig is particularly useful for creating ornamental links for a bracelet, necklace or a pair of matching earrings.  It is essentially a board with holes into which you place pegs of varying sizes.  The pegs can be positioned in many configurations allowing you to create a wide variety of shapes.  To give you a better idea I have taken a photo of my own wire jig:

Here is a close up of the wire jig pegs - as you can see there are a variety of sizes:

Now for an example of a piece of jewellery made using a wire jig:

 The framework for this pineapple quartz chandelier pendant was made using my wire jig.  For this particular result I used one large peg at the base guiding the wire around two medium peg pegs up to one small peg at the top.  If you have read my post on this pendant you will know that this piece intially started out as one half of a pair of earrings.  I was able to successfully create a matching pair because I used the wire jig.  Unfortunately I over-estimated the size and they were rather enormous for earrings!

Once you have decided on your desired configuration of pegs you can starting creating shapes! A good way to start is to post the end of the wire you are using into one of the holes in the pegboard prior to wrapping it around the first peg.  This helps to create some tension so that you can pull the wire round evenly and it can easily be trimmed off once you have completed your design.  Don’t rush, try and take the wire round smoothly keeping it as close to the board as possible.  Practice is the key here.

What types of wire jig are available and how should I decide which one to buy?

There are a large range of wire jigs on the market from very basic plastic ones to much more sturdy examples such as mine and those produced by the well known company ‘Wig Jig’.  Initially I started with a cheap plastic one but I found this to be inadequate for my needs and actually not terribly effective at creating wire shapes.  The plastic was just not up to the job.  My current wire jig, illustrated above, is excellent as both the pegs and the board are metal.  I got this particular one from International Craft.  

I have never used a ‘Wig Jig’ but my research has shown that their pegs are metal and their bases are acrylic.  They have by far the widest variety of jigs: these include super-size pegs and a spiral maker as well as jigs with boards offering layouts of circular, square and semi-circular holes for the pegs.  Their range can be seen here.

You can of course make your own wire jig.  The easiest way to make a simple model is to hammer nails into a block of wood in the configuration you want to use.  This would be very sturdy but you would have to make a separate jig for each pattern you want to make.  Althernatively you could make an adjustable jig by drill holes to take small dowel.  If you do this remember to not drill all the way through the wood or your pegs will fall out.

What size of wire should I use?

The best thing to do is have a little experiment but here are my guidelines.

I personally suggest that anything finer than 22 gauge is a bit too flimy.  It all depends what you are using it for.  If you want to create links that will retain their shape then 20 or 18 gauge are best.  Anything thicker will probably be a bit difficult to bend round the pegs and anything finer will not hold its shape.  It is advisable to ‘work-harden’ your wire with a mallet after you have removed the wire from the jig as this will strengthen it. 

If you are making wire shapes for card embellishments that do not need to be particularly durable a thinner wire such as 24 or 26 gauge would be ok.  These gauges of wire often comes in a variety of colours and so are particularly suited to this purpose.

See my guide to wire gauges if you need further explanation as to the thickness of the wires mentioned. 

Where can I learn more?

There is lots of information on the internet but the best place to start is the ‘Wig Jig’ website.  Besides lots of information about jigs there are also lots of tutorials for wire components. 

Useful wire jig links

http://www.wigjig.com
http://www.jagwearjewelry.com/wirejig.htm - how to make your own wire jig