It’s so simple, you can whip one up in under 20 minutes!

YOU WILL NEED:

• 12mm faux round pearls, 45-50
• 3 ft stretchy beading cord, size .7mm or .8mm ( I recommend Beadalon Original Elasticity)
• scissors

I suggest starting with a 1-foot piece of stretch cord for each strand instead of just longer than your wrist as shown in the video. It’s much easier to tie strong knots when you have enough room to do so!

It’s a good idea to measure the first bracelet to fit your wrist comfortably, and then add one more bead. When you twist the bracelets together they will become too tight if you just measure it for wearing by itself!

After you finish the first bracelet, make the second bracelet with one more bead than the first, then the third bracelet with one more bead than the second. This will help allow the bracelets to twist around each other without showing too much space between the beads.

Cultured pearls are very much genuine pearls, as they are formed by an oyster and may take many years to develop. Pearl farmers encourage the pearls to grow by placing small objects inside the oyster, which irritate the soft tissue of the oyster and causes it to secrete a substance that hardens around the irritants in layers known as the nacre of the pearl. The shape of the pearl is determined by the shape of this ‘nucleus’, so cultured pearls can be round, flat, square, oval, coin shaped, or even shaped like hearts and crosses.

The color of the cultured pearl’s nacre may also be influenced by introducing natural dyes into the mussel during the pearl’s formation. Bold bright colors like peacock blue pearls and rich berry are not beyond the scope of natural pearls these days.

There are many fake pearls on the market as well, made from a range of different materials including glass, resin, or even shell which has been coated with a pearly outer layer. Some are quite realistic and may need a bit of investigation on your part to determine that they aren’t real pearls. The expert in this video discusses 7 ways to assess pearls to find out if they’re the real deal:

2.) Genuine pearls have a lustrous overtone. Fake pearls are dull with a milky sort of color.

3.) Real pearls are highly reflective when held up to the light. Fake pearls have a dull surface and don’t reflect as much light as genuine pearls.

4.) Real pearls vary in size and shape. While a very expensive strand of real pearls may be nearly perfectly uniform, if you look closely you will probably see some slight variations from pearl to pearl. A strand of fake pearls will be completely uniform and all perfectly the same size and shape.

5.) Genuine pearls feel cold to the touch. They warm up to your body temperature when you hold them or wear them. Fake pearls remain at room temperature even when not being worn.

6.) Genuine pearls are much heavier than fake pearls. If a strand of large pearls seems very light, they may not be real.

7.) Genuine pearls have a gritty texture. Try rubbing one with your tooth to test the grit. You can also rub two pearls together to see if there is a bit of grit between them. Fake pearls will slide on the tooth or against one another.

This video tutorial will show you two different techniques to create interesting patterns and textures under the glass, so you’re essentially creating your own beautiful gems to work with! When they’re done, use them for making pendants, rings, magnets, mosaics, or any number of other fun craft projects. (See ideas below!) 

 How to use your pretty new gems:

Using E600, an amazing industrial strength adhesive (and my go-to for dozens of craft and jewelry making applications), you can make all kinds of fun stuff by attaching your gems to any of the items below!

1.) Make a Ring. Attach cabochon to a ring blank

2.) Make a Pendant. Attach cabochon to an aanraku bail (glue-on bail)

3.) Make Magnets. Attach cabochons to craft magnets

4.) Bezel set the cabochon, like any gemstone

5.) Make a mosaic. Use these gems like you would mosaic tiles for any number of mosaic applications (decorate a picture frame, a mirror, a table top, bird bath, etc.)

 Love this project? You won’t want to miss my glass and paper pendant tutorial using these same glass gems!

Got any suggestions for how to use these fun nail-polish painted gems? I’d love to hear your ideas and add them to the list! Leave a note in the comments below!

This particular chain is currently available in my Etsy shop, but you can use any chain you like. You also can learn to make your own t-shirt yarn with this video, and all you need for that is a t-shirt and some fabric scissors! These bracelets are so much fun to make. Are you ready to get started?

• 3.5″ open link curb chain
• 48″ continuous t-shirt yarn
• 2 pairs jewelry pliers (OPTIONAL)
• sharp scissors (fabric scissors if possible)

 
These bracelets are great in sets. I made a bunch of them in all different colors! The blue bracelet is made with yarn from a regular smooth knit t-shirt, and the pink one is made using the exact same technique, but the yarn was made from a ribbed material. It’s a little fuzzy looking, but I loved the color and wanted to try it. I love to experiment!

Love this project? Be sure to check out my chunky finger-knit t-shirt bracelet tutorial too!

Setting a cabochon in a wire-wrapped bezel is a somewhat involved process – the video is almost 30 minutes long – but I was surprised that it wasn’t nearly as difficult as I expected it would be. I encourage you to give it a try too!

• cabochon
• Beadalon 20g Fancy Square German Style Wire
• Beadalon 20g Half Round Wire
• Beadalon Wire Banding Pliers for 20-21 gauge wire
• Round Nosed Pliers
• Chain Nosed Pliers
• Flush Cutters
• Ruler or measuring tape

Featuring sleek metal tube beads and your choice of gemstone, you can whip up these quick little beauties with minimal effort and maximum effect!

This project was submitted by Skrin Handmade Jewelry. Find out how you can get your free tutorial featured!

When the class was over, I was so excited I went out and bought all the tools and equipment I needed to be able to solder at home…

…and then I never did. I was too scared. I was terrified! That is, until I found this class!

In school, I learned to solder using a giant oxy-acetylene torch on a giant bench. It had tons of tanks and valves, and a long hose with another valve at the end to control the flame. Intimidating at first, but I had a teacher standing there with me to help until I got it down.

Now, of course I didn’t buy one of these ginormous beasts for my home soldering station. Besides being way out of my budget and entirely too big for my tiny space, that kind of torch is really overkill for small jewelry projects like soldering jump rings anyway. I bought a handheld micro torch that burns butane.

…And I was totally lost. I didn’t understand how to translate the knowledge I learned in school on the industrial sized tank-torch, and was too scared to just ‘play around’ with it, which is my normal way of figuring things out. You know, silly me – I didn’t want to burn the house down. So I just let it sit there for years, gathering dust.

Fast-forward about 9 years. I found this free course on Craftsy specifically geared toward teaching you to use a micro torch for soldering jewelry SAFELY in your own home! It is for beginners, which is what I considered myself after having forgotten EVERYTHING I learned in school after so long. I watched the video above, which is a segment from the course, and there was no question that this class was exactly what I needed to take away the fear of lighting up that torch for the first time inside my house.

I love Kate Richbourg’s teaching style – she is so clear and seemed to really understand what I needed to hear in order to feel confident and know I was in control of the flame. As with all Craftsy classes, once enrolled, you can watch the video any time and as many times as you want, as well as ask the teacher and other students questions. I definitely went back and rewatched a few segments before I felt I was ready to try soldering alone. It felt like I had my very own personal teacher there with me, encouraging me and answering all my silly questions. Kate walks you through the process from start to finish, all the while giving you great tips and troubleshooting advice for the soldering process.

I still can’t believe this class was free! I learned SO much and this information is so valuable to me. It has had a huge impact on my work. I am excited to report that I successfully completed a set of lovely hammered stack rings as part of this course! I now use soldering regularly in my jewelry designs, which has opened up a whole new world and allowed me to grow so much as an artist and designer!

I highly recommend this class. There’s no catch, no obligation, no membership fee, nothing. It’s totally free to join Craftsy, and it’s totally free to take this class. I think you’ll love it! If you do take this course, I’d love to hear what you think. Come back and leave me a note :)

Learn to create this delicate and feminine lavender hued bangle bracelet, using simple and basic macramé knots and a piece of memory wire. One size fits all!

This tutorial is downloadable in a PDF format, and not only does it contain 40 photos and step-by-step instructions, but the artist welcomes you to contact her with any questions you may have about this project!

 This project was submitted by Vicky at Knots and Sparkles. Find out how you can get your free tutorial featured!

Complete list of supplies and more tips after the video!

• Focal bead (the one I used is available here)
• 1 foot 24 gauge wire (copper, sterling silver, craft wire, etc.)
• round nosed pliers
• flat nosed pliers
• flush cutters
• Wubber’s large round mandrel pliers (or 1/4″ round mandrel*)

* Any smooth round cylindrical object will work as a mandrel, and you can use any size you want  - for example, a pen, marker, dowel rod, etc. Just be sure to use a bit more wire for a larger sized mandrel.

If you’d like a smaller spiral, you could either start the project with a shorter length of wire, or trim the tail to a shorter length before beginning to form the coil.  Likewise, of course, if you’d prefer a larger spiral, begin with a longer piece of wire so you have more to work with at this step.  Approximately 4 inches of 24 gauge wire yielded a spiral that was 9 mm in diameter.

The bead I used is considered a ‘top-drilled’ bead, also known as ‘side-drilled’. For wire wrapping a ‘front drilled’ focal bead, the technique is exactly the same. The only difference is that your wire is going through the short  side of the bead instead of the long side. You will make your spiral the same way on the front of the bead – it will just cover the hole!

If your bead doesn’t have a flat top like mine, don’t worry. Again, the basics are the same. After you thread the wire through your bead, bend the wire up and follow the contour of the bead as best you can, folding the wire up and across the top of the bead until your wires cross.

Find the middle of the top of the bead, and make a 90˚ bend in the longer wire so that it points straight up from the bead. Bend the shorter wire into place as necessary so that it makes an ‘L’ shape, perpendicular to the longer wire. ALWAYS make sure your wire is in this 90˚ formation before you begin wrapping and maintain it as you twist the wire around, and you’re well on your way to perfect wire wraps!

I hope you had fun with this project, and enjoyed my hand-drawn diagrams…what do you think?

More great projects coming soon!

This video tutorial takes you through the steps of creating the cabochon and adding a bail, but once you learn the technique, you can make magnets, rings, or set them in a bezel just like any other stone cabochon.  There are so many possibilities when it comes to decorative paper, but you could also use fabric, or your own artwork for an extra special touch!

Complete list of supplies + tips after the video.