The Beading Gem

I make a lot of my own ear wires.  It makes sense as my designs are truly handmade save for actually making the wire!  I like using my large bail forming pliers and before that, a dowel or marker pen, as shown in the links below.  The pliers come in handy for other wire manipulations.  The bail forming pliers, however, do need practice to make ear wires the same consistently.

As with many things, there are other tools to do the same thine.  A wire jig is one.  This will suit those who aren't that comfortable with wire or if you want to make loads of the same size earring wires. And in different styles.

Ann Benson of AnnBensonBeading is an accomplished bead artist based in Florida. Many of you probably already know about her Beads East Youtube channel which is full of beautiful beadwork tutorials.  It also shows her skill in so many bead techniques - bead weaving, bead embroidery, bead crochet and bead looming.

Ann said, "I've been beading, crocheting and embroidering since age 8; my mother and grandfather were master-crafters and thankfully the drive to create passed down to me! My hands never stop, my brain never stops, I find my truest joy in bringing ideas to life. My goal is to make it possible for others to enjoy the thrill of creativity in the same way I do."

I have to admit I too struggle with bead crochet. I believe you have to be doggedly persistent at practicing to properly start off the rope.  No wonder so many beaders were captivated with an alternative rope technique, the Peyote with a Twist. See my first post here about PWAT and the followup message from the inventor.

But during one Techniques Night at the Grand River Bead Society, fellow member, Gillian Clarke of GentleForceChainMaille showed how we can easily overcome the start of bead crochet. Gillian is accomplished at many jewelry making techniques, not just chain maille. She had many beautiful crochet ropes on hand to show us!

Die cutters like the Sizzix are useful for jewelry making - see this past tutorial of mine on how to make denim earrings where I put my Sizzix to use.  But I wanted to do much, much more and not be limited by the dies available.  So I did some research and decided on and bought my Cricut Explore (they now have newer models which are currently on sale). The Cricut machines could cut not just the typical paper and cardstock but fabric, leather, suede and so much more.

Infinity Stamps is a US company which specializes in high quality, custom metal stamps.  They also sell other kinds of non-custom jewelry stamps for professionals as well as hobbyists.  It is a family business which began in 1999 with a husband and wife team, Jack and Billie Eglick.   They recently sent me their TagMate custom jewelry tag system to try out, going from the design phase to actually putting the TagMate through its paces.

Not too long ago, someone asked me what sort of beading software tools might be useful for creating your own patterns for both loom and off-loom work.  Well, there are a number, both free and paid. Which you choose will depend on not only how much you are willing to pay but why you need them. Here is a review guide to beading software tools for you to explore and consider.

EasyBeadPatterns

There is nothing wrong with using several sheets of sandpaper to smooth down edges of your metal work, polymer clay or resin pieces, etc. It's fine when you only have a small area to cover or just one piece to deal with.  But it becomes a dreadful chore if you have to sand a lot.  So if you were to only get one power tool, let it be a drill!  Most households already have one so you likely don't have to buy one. It will make sanding less time consuming and will save your sanity.

There have been some designs I like where there is more emphasis on the back of the earlobes.  See the first two links below.  Ear jackets are yet another variation.  I love this tutorial by Meredith Joy Designs (link no longer available) .  It shows the use of a jig to make a wire work ear jacket pearl earrings!

I have pressed flowers before the traditional way - between paper and under some heavy books.  It not only took a long time, the floral colors faded somewhat.  I never knew one could speed up the process considerably using the microwave until I read it in fellow Canadian, Shireen Nadir's excellent book "Resin Jewelry".  I also wrote about her gorgeous Nature Inspired Resin Jewelry here.  The flat effect is very different from the 3D style of real flower jewelry I tried before.   I used crystal cat litter to dry the flowers then.

Upcycling is a great way to reuse unwanted material such as plastic bottles. The Plastic Bottle Cutter is a nifty tool for turning plastic bottles into strips which then can be used in many ways.  As twine, as a rope and also as a craft material.  This French project is still within the fundraising period but the Kickstarter project has already reached more than 20x the original goal.  It is clear many people can see a lot of functional and creative potential in this device.