Free Tip Friday: Wire-wrapped Components... the perfect earring!

SO excited to share this favorite technique.

The recipe is easy and so is the making... Here is what I used.

Briolettes. Larimar, Peach Moonstone, Citrine, Garnet, Green Amethyst and Rutilated Quartz. Earwires in Copper, Silver and Gold.

4mm Hematite Rondelles. I used Golden and Coppered.
4mm Rounds. I used Garnet.

Hoops. Medium, Small and Mini, as well as Drops and Rounds.

Chain. I used Endless Love and Three Worlds.

As well as 26 and 28G wire for wrapping.
Find all the pliers I used in the broadcast, here.

Enjoy and I can't wait to see what you make!

Free Tip Friday: Wire Components and ParaWire!

Hey Gang!
Thanks for joining me today. It was a fun and free-form exploration of wire working.

As promised, here is the finished piece:

Here are some detail shots:

16G and 24G wire with 6mm Etched Vitrail Firepolish and 8mm Black Onyx.

20G Free form wire over the 8mm Onyx.

20G wraps the Pyrite 30mm Pi.

16G used to make the clasp. Ends are strung using .014 Soft Flex, Wire Guards and Crimp Covers.

The list of materials I used:

Titanium ParaWire in 16, 18, 20 and 24G.

6mm Etched Full Vitrail

6mm Matte Black Onyx

8mm Black Onyx

Pyrite Pi 30mm

.014 Satin Silver Soft Flex

Antique Silver Wire Guards

Antique Silver Crimp Covers

2x2mm Silver Crimp Tubes

Antique Silver Queen Shadows

Check out the entire broadcast here and enjoy exploring and experimenting with wire!

Free Tip Friday: Wire Earrings with Briolettes and Antiqued Wire (Plus Hammering!)

So much fun today on FTF!
I just love these earrings.

Just a few twists of wire and a briolette wrap and you have a stylish pair of earrings!

Here is a list of the bare copper wire that I used:

Bottom wrapped unit: 16G wire armature and 22G wire coiled over the top.

Top armature: 18G wire.

Briolette wrap: 26G wire.

I pre-oxidized the wire using Liver of Sulphur and polished with a Pro Polish Pad.

London Blue Briolette

Niobium Ear Wire

Tools:

Round Nose Pliers

Chain Nose Pliers

Bent Chain Nose Pliers

Flush Cutters

Nylon Jaw Pliers

Watch the entire broadcast here to get the complete tutorial. Enjoy and I can't wait to see what you make!

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Free Tip Friday: Deco Earring!

Thanks for watching today's broadcast. I hope you'll enjoy creating with our new Sand Bar Chain.

Here are the materials I used for the project:

Materials:
Sand Bar Chain Antique Brass
8mm Soldered Jump Rings Antique Copper
8mm English Cut- Amethyst Blue
Crystal Grey Rainbow-12mm
Daisy Spacer Copper
1.5 inch Copper Headpins
4mm Antique Brass Oval Jump Rings

Tools:
Chain Nose
Bench Chain Nose
Round Nose
Flush Wire Cutters
Bench Block
Chasing Hammer

Find all of the "how-to" in the Free Tip Friday Video below. Have fun!

Free Tip Friday: More fun with wire frames!

Hey Everybody!
Thanks for joining me today on FTF. These broadcasts are always an off-the-cuff adventure and today was no exception!

After the broadcast I finished up my earring design and changed things up just slightly. You'll see the center wire with the briolette has been slightly redesigned. I shuffled the beads around to make everything fit symmetrically across. I also took it off, and finished wrapping the armature and then added it back on, as the poor wire was getting pretty mangled in my wrapping process.

I really love the way these turned out. Kinda Boho with a bit of a '70's vibe thrown in. 

As promised, here is a list of the ingredients I used in the design.

• Round Hoops- Antique Silver
• 1.5 inch Head Pins- Antique Silver
• Niobium Ear Wires- Gun Metal
• Silver Tone 26 Soft Wire
• Oval Antique Silver Jump Rings - 4mm/20g
• 3mm- Snake Olivine
• 11-4481 Duracoat Opaque Eucalyptus
• Tierra Daisy Spacer - Antique Silver
• Hematite- Matte Light Gold 2mm
• 2mm- Aqua Celsius
• Lemon Quartz Briolettes

Tools Needed:

• Chain Nose Pliers
• Bent Nose Pliers
• Round Nose Plier
• Maxi- Shear Flush Wire Cutter
• Eurotool® Nylon Jawed Pliers

Hope you enjoy the project and let me know what you make! Check out the entire broadcast below.

Free Tip Friday: Let's do the Herringbone Weave!

Hey all!
Thanks for joining me today. As promised, here is a wrap up of what I used on the broadcast:
Matte Green Aventurine Round-6mm
Azure Hematite Faceted Rondelle- 4mm
London Blue Quartz Briolettes
Canoe Wires- Sterling
Silver Wire in 24 & 26G

I used the materials to create the earrings and bracelet pictured. The technique is simple and so adaptable to many bead and wire sizes.

You can download the handout at this link and view the broadcast below. Enjoy and let me know what you make. 

Free Tip Friday: Let's make some Wire Earrings!

Hey Gang!

On Free Tip Friday today we had a bunch of fun creating a mixed media earring with Wire and Irish Waxed Linen.

My inspiration came from member Tracey Watsen, in our Facebook Group, Beadshop Community: The Bead Table. (If you'd like to join, click here and answer three questions.) Thanks so much Tracey for your inspiration and talent. I have added the photo of her creations below.

Great job Tracey!!!

Here are the materials I used for my version of the earring:

 Tribal Heishi in Copper, Little Shadows in Brass and Picasso Montana Matte 8/0 seed beads.

Gold Tone Wire in 18G & 20G.

Bronze Dot Ear Wire and Irish Waxed Linen in Chocolate.

Tools include, Bench Block, Nylon Jaw Pliers, Round Nose, Chain Nose, Chasing Hammer and Flush Wire Cutters.

One thing I wanted to note when I was making the second pair,  in the first step of wrapping the beads with the waxed linen, I went back through the beads to secure them so they are not loose. Kind of like securing your first stitches in a ladder bracelet. Take a look at the following photo to check out what I mean.

Check out the entire tutorial in the video below and let me know what you make with this technique... I'd love to see it!

Free Tip Friday: Wire Rings and Buttons!

Hey Gang!

I am so excited to share this fun and easy technique for making wire rings. All you need are a few materials and tools and you are on your way!

You'll need the following tools:

• Bent Chain Nose Pliers
• Chain Nose Pliers
• Nylon Jaw Pliers
• Maxi Shear Flush Wire Cutters
• A round mandrel that approximates your ring size. I used a highlighter. 
• An emery board to smooth out any nicks in the wire.

Materials needed:

Buttons. I used the following:

Czech Glass

• Full Moon Red Luna
• Star Rainbow
• Lotus Bright Lavender
• Daisy Light Peridot

Metal

• Honeycomb
• Celtic Waves
• Circle Coil
• Celtic Knot
• Cubist

I used a variety of wire, but mostly 16 and 18 gauge for the ring bands. I wove with 26 and 28 gauge and used Gilding Matte 11/0 Seed beads to embellish the weaving.

I think the results are really great and it's so easy to create a ring for every finger! (Plus... they will make great holiday gifts! It's never too early to start gift making.)

Check out the entire FTF video below and let me know what you make! I'd love to see it. Email photos to kate at beadshop dot com.

Have fun!

Free Tip Friday Silk Road Necklace with Boho Components!

Thanks for watching our #FreeTipFriday on FB LIVE. We had a lot of fun creating our NEW Silk Road necklace on air together. If you haven't watched it yet, here is the link to Youtube.

In addition to the Modern Woman Bib component, and Plum tassels, Kate used the following beads:

• 6mm Melons- Ivory Turquoise Wash
• Little Shadows Antique Brass
• Bugle BGL2-2008 Matte Teal AB
• Purple Mix - 8mm

 The findings and stringing materials used:

• Beadsmith Crimp Tubes- Assorted Colors
• Softflex .014/Copper
• Leafy Toggle- Antique Brass
• Antique Brass Jump Rings - 5mm/18g
• 1.5 inch Head Pins- Brass
• 2 inch Eye Pins- Brass
• 3mm Crimp Covers- Ant. Brass
• Wire Guardians-Antique Brass

You can follow along in the video for exact details on constructing the piece. Kate began by adding the dangles and tassels to the bib component.

You can find more details on wire wrapping using a headpin in our skill builder on beadshop.com. Kate also referenced the how to wire wrap a briolette skill builder for tips on how she wrapped the tassels.

After completing the embellishment on the bib, it's time to string. Along with the techniques in this episode, find more tips on stringing with Soft Flex in our FB LIVE broadcasts Soft Flex 101 parts one & two as well as our skill builder; Using Crimps, Guardians, and Covers.

It is a fun and fast project to create! Thanks for watching and we'd love to see what you make using our fantastic bib components. 

Beadshop in Tucson

FB LIVE Special Edition Calm Waters Kit

Some of the beadshop gang were lucky enough to visit Tuscon, Arizona at the end of January 2017 and enjoy the gemstone and jewelry goodness that settles on this town during the end of January and on into February every year. Kate and Grace were kind enough to share part of their trip live through Facebook. The impromptu show, which was broadcast in front of the Gem Mall tent, was recorded so that you can watch it on YouTube if you missed it. It was a jump packed episode. 

Part of the show included a how-to from Kate on wire wrapping gemstone beads, and she demonstrated with some chunky howlite nugget beads that were dyed and stabilized to look like turquoise and 18 gauge craft wire. If you want to make the same necklace yourself, a kit is available. Along with showing how to make the necklace, Kate reviewed various types of hand-tools you need, such as Maxi Shear Flush Wire Cutters, and she also discussed how you can use different beads and wire gauges but should be careful to test them out first. It is important that your wire fits easily through your bead holes, for example. 

If you ever decide to head to Tuscon during the shows, the Tucson Show Guide website is a wonderful resources, highly recommended by Kate, to help you navigate and plan your agenda. Other tips to consider once you get there is staying hydrated, wearing comfortable shoes, and bringing a rolling cart for your gemstone purchases. 

Watching Kate at Tucson, at least, is one way you can get a feel for Tucson.