Basic Beading Tools For Jewelry Makers

Beading is actually an easy craft to master if you start with basic beading instructions for beginners. Even the simplest patterns that require little more than stringing beads on beading wire can look impressive.



Before You Begin

If you're a novice beader, you should probably start with a set of instructions for a simple project. A beaded necklace comprised of medium to large beads is a good beading project for beginners. Once you know what you're going to make, you'll need to gather all of the supplies-a pair of pliers for crimping, wire cutters, beading wire, two crimp beads, a clasp, the beads needed to create your necklace and a bead board or towel to act as your work surface so the beads don't roll away.

Beading Toolkits



Plan Your Design

Whether you're following a particular project or creating a pattern on your own, you'll want to plan before you start stringing. Lay the beads on the bead board as you want them to look. Feel free to play around with the pattern before you start. Then decide how long you want your necklace to be. You may want the beads to cover the entire length of your wire or you may want to leave some of the wire exposed. Once you choose a length, cut a piece of wire a few inches longer than you want the piece to end up. Then, use a crimp bead to attach one end of the clasp to one end of the wire.

String It On

Now simply string the beads onto the wire, one by one, in the order in which you laid them out. When working with big beads this process is generally very easy, but with smaller beads you may want to check the pattern from time to time to make sure you're sticking to it. Keep going until you reach the end of the pattern you laid out.

Finishing It Off

To complete the necklace place the other end of the clasp onto the end of the wire, securing it with a crimp bead. Finally, use the wire cutters to clip off excess beading wire and then your necklace is complete.

Author: Julie Knapp

Source: http://www.life123.com/

How to Make a Friendship Bracelet

Friendship bracelets are easy to make and could look great on your wrist for ages.

For traditional friendship bracelets, you tie a bracelet to your friend's wrist and they leave it there until it falls off by itself. There are many different kinds, including round ones, flat ones, and the cross knot friendship bracelet, but the candystripe friendship bracelet, shown here, is the one of the easiest to make.

1 - Buy embroidery thread, sometimes called embroidery floss, at a craft or sewing store. Embroidery floss is thicker than normal sewing thread, and comes in many colors. You must have more than one color to create a striped effect. The more colors you choose, the wider the bracelet will be.


Friendship Bracelets



2 - Take the first color and wrap it around your wrist 2 times,or from your shoulder to your finger tips(More accurate!). The length you now have is the correct fit for your wrist, but if you use more string than this it makes it easier to keep going at the end of the bracelet.

3 - Cut a piece this length from each of the other colors.

4 - Tie a knot at the top.

5 - Cross the far left string (red) over the string to the right (green) creating a shape like the numeral four.

 6 - Pull the first string through the "opening" in the four and then pull it up and tighten to make a knot. Repeat this step again on the same string.

7 - Pull the first string over to the right and repeat the steps above, but using the next string in each case.

8 - Work this way for all the strings to complete the first row of all the same color horizontally.

9 - Start the next row using the string to the far left (green).

10 - Repeat all the steps until you have the row finished.

11 - Keep going until the bracelet is long enough to fit around your wrist comfortably. To make sure it fits well, try it on your wrist, there should be enough extra room that you can fit about 2 fingers in next to your wrist, since the bracelet can shrink in water and become too tight (although it will stretch back out when dry).

12 - Tie the loose ends of your fitted bracelet with a square knot, just like how you started the bracelet.

13 - Tie the bracelet onto your wrist (or your friend's) at the right length with a knot, like the first part of tying a shoelace, but do it twice - this is a square knot. It helps if you can get someone to help you here, but it can be done alone.

14 - Trim any loose ends. You can also add charms or beads to the ends for decoration, simply slip them on the floss and tie a knot beneath them.

15 - Bracelets are excellent to show true friendship, so give your finished bracelet to a good friend!