https://www.cutoutandkeep.net/projects/planets-jewellery-set • Posted by Beads Unlimited
The chain in this set is made up of different sized, handmade jump rings, which are hammered flat (hammering not essential). Glass beads are added on eye pins to give a splash of colour. You will also learn how to make your own catches. Try different colours or sizes of beads to give this set your own touch.
The chain in this set is made up of different sized, handmade jump rings, which are hammered flat (hammering not essential). Glass beads are added on eye pins to give a splash of colour. You will also learn how to make your own catches. Try different colours or sizes of beads to give this set your own touch.
Make 17 small jump rings and 21 large jump rings for the complete jewellery set. Take a cylindrical dowel, of the same diameter that you wish to make the rings. (A marker pen approximately 15mm in diameter for the large jump rings, and a ball point pen approximately 9mm in diameter for the smaller, or use what you have available). To make several jump rings at once, wind the wire around the dowel tightly in a coil. You do not need to cut a length of wire as you can work straight from the reel. When you have made the coil, line up the cut end with the coil above, with your cutters snip through to cut a perfect jump ring. Continue along the whole coil in this way.
Place a jump ring on a steel block, starting opposite the join in the jump ring gently tap with your hammer and work around until it is slightly flattened all over, close the jump ring. To avoid distorting the shape, close the jump ring by gently moving one wire just past the other. This ensures that the wire wants to spring back onto the cut join and close on itself. Repeat this step on all your jump rings.
Take the first large jump ring and attach an eye pin. The eye pin sits across the widest part of the ring. Hold the eye pin in place and measure approximately 5mm outside of the jump ring. Trim using your cutters. Thread a 10mm bead onto the eye pin.
Beginning approximately 1mm from the end of the eye pin, use your round nose pliers to make a loop around the jump ring. With your flat/half round pliers, squeeze each loop of the eye pin flat to hold it in place covering the join in the jump ring, to make a neater finish. Repeat for all of the jump rings.
With your flat/round nose pliers open a 7mm jump ring, place one of your small links, and one of your large links onto the open jump ring, close the jump ring. Repeat for each join, alternating link sizes to create the chain.
Using the tip of your round nose pliers, curl the end of your silver plated wire into a small loop. Position the pliers on the other side just above the loop and curl around the pliers to create a hooked shape. Cut to length, leaving enough wire to bend around into a small loop at the end of the hook. If you are making a hammered piece, hammer the hook flat. To make the eye of the catch, make a loop at the end of the silver plated wire, approximately 1cm along the wire from the first loop, make another larger loop. Wind the wire back around stem down towards the first loop and cut the wire. It should form a coil around the stem with the loop at the end. Again, if you are making a hammered piece, hammer the larger loop.
Earrings: Join three links together with the large link in the middle. Join to a long ball wire using 7mm jump ring. Bracelet: Join links together starting with a small link, alternating sizes using five small links and four large links, until the bracelet is the desired length. Add the catch with a 7mm jump ring to each end of the bracelet. Necklace: Join the links together starting with a small link, alternating sizes using 12 small links and 11 large links, until the necklace is the desired length. Add the catch with a 7mm jump ring to each end of the necklace.