Bead Sparkle

The most important purchase in jewellery/ jewelry making

2012-02-09T21:36:00.000-05:00

The best site that I have found for the purchase of beading and jewelry making supplies is
Artbeads.com - Weekly specials (click for specials).

I will be posting basic items and others needed in jewelry/ jewellery making in my blog with direct links for purchase, do check them out!

The first thing needed to start off are the tools.

The cutters in this set are recommended for use with 22 gauge wire and finer.

Back to Jewellery Making Basics

2012-01-31T20:20:00.000-05:00

My routine of blogging has been interrupted massively, and after a long time ( a month and a half) I decided to sit down with my wire and crochet hook to make a fabulous piece. What turned out was an average, normal not that attractive looking bracelet and this got me thinking. Am I thinking too rapidly and trying to step in all different kind of areas in jewellery making, when I should be concentrating on only one area and after becoming proficient/ expert in it than look in areas?

And I concluded that YES! I am thinking way too fast and need to slow down and practice one area before stepping into other areas.

So I am back to point zero........ the start........ starting off with earrings.....and only concentrating in earrings now.

I will try my best to give a step by step guide in my blog on how I made the earrings, because initially my purpose was to help out newbies like myself and share the information that I learn with others in plain words and simple steps.

I might post random blogs as well not related to jewellery making or anything close at all and share photograph with you that I love (I have started to enjoy photography ALOT).

"Wrapped around love" - Pink CZ (Cubic Zirconia) Heart ring/pendant/loose CZ

2011-10-13T16:20:00.001-04:00

SOOOO I got my CZ shipment two days ago!!! and man, they are quite sparkly!!!

My first attempt was with the pink 8mm x 8mm Pink heart CZ to make a pendant but in the end made it into a ring. And of course am keeping it for myself ( I can't help it ).

The materials I used are 18 gauge black wire and 20 gauge brown wire (coloured copper wires). These stones are not drilled, so I had to find a way to work with the wires that secure these stones and not completely cover them.

As I just mentioned the first piece of jewelry that I made with CZ was the ring and following are the pictures. ( I also made a pendant after which is for sale at my Etsy store allsparkle)

Also loose Cubic Zirconia are for sale at allsparkle.

"Wrapped around love" ring

The pendant for sale on Etsy is:

"Wrapped around love" pendant

Loose CZ

8x8mm Pink Heart

5mm x 7mm Champagne Pear

More Swarovski Crystals on ETSY!

2011-09-30T19:30:00.001-04:00

Please click here to visit my Etsy store "allsparkle"

Cubic Zirconium coming very soon!!! Keep checking :)

(ok the following image is of Czech fire polished crystals not Swarovski, but it's a new addition to the store)

Switching to selling supplies

2011-09-28T00:16:00.001-04:00

I realized I'm not doing that great coming up with ideas or my creative side has gone on a vacation. And now I'm thinking it may just be permanent vacation.

So I'm switching over to selling supplies! I ordered amazing swarovski crystals and glass beads. These are the supplies that are the initial selling items, and my long term plan includes selling Cubic Zirconia in supplies in Etsy very soon!

Following are pictures of few of the many supplies I am going to add to my Etsy store (allsparkle)

6mm Citrine Swarovski Crytals (Bicone)

6mm Amethyst Blend Swarovski Crystals 5328

Once in a while when my imagination kicks in, I'll definitely make something along the way, but until than I hope selling supplies gives me some luck =)

Take care

How to take Jewelry photograph

2011-09-22T15:49:00.001-04:00

I think I am still struggling on how to take perfect, professional looking photographs of the things I make.

Reading through one of the blogs that I follow (http://inspirationalbeading.blogspot.com) I discovered a link that made me almost cry in happiness!

A link on how to take Jewelry Photograph

This website (http://www.photographymad.com/pages/view/jewelry-photography-tips)post gives all the Do's and Don'ts of jewelry photography..... I'm going to try it out and see how successful and professional my pictures now are going to turn out.

Take care ^_^

Pendant to match :)

2011-09-22T09:09:00.002-04:00

Hi, hope you are doing great! I sat down looking at my supplies and looked at this "jig" thing that I bought and thought I'd experiment around and lo and behold! I use a bit of jig and the ideas started popping in my mind.......I made a matching pendant for the earrings I recently made (click here for the post on them).

I took 20 gauge wire, twisted it around a fat circle peg, made a loop and hammered it flat. I did not know before that hammering a round wire down makes it strong!

i than twisted the end with a round nose pliers and attached the few links chain with real turquoise to match the earrings.

Here it is, hope you like it =)

^^^TURQUOISE LOVE^^^

2011-08-23T00:53:00.000-04:00

Simplicity is the spice of life =)

Real Turquoise hanging from simple silver plated chain links hooked onto the silver plated ear hooks

TURQUOISE LOVE

"Strangled beads" .....a come back struggle

2011-08-11T02:30:00.000-04:00

So my plan was to crochet and make a bracelet. Something different. Something new. Something unique. Well let me tell you it did turn out to be QUITE unique, but not in a good way hahaha. Maybe the beads and the wire that I used for this project didn't flow together, or maybe I still have to learn how to crochet properly, I don't know..... but it's a beady mess.
Ladies (and gentlemen if any read my blog) I present to you my latest come back project:

STRANGLED BEADS ( hehe)

I am back!

2011-07-25T22:12:00.000-04:00

Life sometimes becomes so strange at times, it becomes difficult to decide what emotions to feel. God tests the emotional tolerance level to the max during those times. On one hand he gives life changing joy, that makes it oh-so-hard to hold tears of happiness in and are poured out like a water fountain but in joy. On the other hand he takes away the cloud of protection that is always there in the shadows as a silent support providing all the love and comfort, taking pain of the stones of evil being thrown in our direction and here we cry for them once they are gone but this pain of sadness remains inside. These tears of heart ache don't flow out, because no one will understand them if they come out. It's strange that even with these tears locked in, the heart doesn't feel burdened and heavy and the acceptance that life goes on makes it that much more bearable.

SOOOOO that was my mushy explanation of my absence without giving full personal information out. I know, I know people say " it's just a blog, why bother telling why you didn't post anything" but I felt like sharing my thoughts with the people that do read my blog even if they follow me or not :).

I hope I didn't confuse many of you and that I made sense because in here *pointing to my head* I make complete sense.

NOWWW..... jewellery making starts tonight my peeps! and hopefully it continues on steadily.

Hope that you continue reading my blog =) Take care

Glamorous Pearl and Crystal bracelet

2011-05-30T18:42:00.000-04:00

Here is one of my first wire crochet project.

It's made up of Light taupe pearls and clear glass crystals.

I think all area of jewelry making are a lot of fun and I just want to make more and more and more, I think I should setup and add items to my online stores now =)

New Supplies: Stepping in to Crochet Territory

2011-05-21T00:14:00.001-04:00

So I went to the craft store right by my house and bought some new supplies. I loved wire crochet in these two blogs ( CrochetHookeds and Be~Jeweled by Jana) and these are the blogs that inspired me to take the first step to get the crochet needles and wire. With the help of Youtube and Google I am teaching myself how to crochet with wires to make necklaces and bracelets and earrings!!

Granted I have not 'specialized' in one area of jewelry making, but hey what the heck! Might as well dive here and there and explore all the possibilities =)

Now it's time for me to say.........gnite and see you at the next blog

( You can kinda see my struggle with the unfinished pearl crochet bracelet)

Pearly dangle

2011-05-17T10:42:00.000-04:00

I had a pearl necklace laying around which I never wore and had no idea what to do with it. I don't know what kind of Pearls these are but I decided to cut the string open and use them for earrings

The big Pearl on each earring is the one used from the necklace and the two small pearls are Freshwater Pearls. The findings on this piece are all silver plated.

A few other projects

2011-05-17T10:36:00.000-04:00

Pretty in Purple- Earrings with Fire Polished Crystals!!!

2011-05-13T20:40:00.002-04:00

So a really weird thing happened! After the update in Blogger, my most recent post disappeared and I had changed the layout of my blog to the old one and that disappeared as well (figured it out thanks to Azure Islands Designs =) ).

Two nights ago I made these purple earrings using 4mm and 8mm fire polished Czech glass crystals on Silver plated pins and ear hooks.

Also I am experimenting with the photographs to see if I should have a plain white background like I have had for most of my previous pictures or to have something funky

(The pictures in this post qualify as funky for me =) ).

!!!!!!!!Fly me high, up in the pastel sky!!!!!!!!

2011-05-02T23:20:00.001-04:00

One of my experiments include these lovely earrings that I call "Fly me high, up in the pastel sky".

I fell in love with these pastel glass butterfly earrings when I was done making them!!!

Initially I made it to sell on my Etsy store (allsparkle), but I decided that I can't part with these, and will have to make another pair to sell.

I think the main reason is the pastel colours, and the feeling of SPRING season that I got when I looked at them =)

Peachy with Gold - Hoops with Bracelet (Set)

2011-04-28T23:29:00.001-04:00

My first time working with memory wire, and I was amazed at how easy it was (actually every time I make a piece of jewellery I get amazed hehe). I think I used the wrong cutter to cut the wire.

Memory wire is harder than the ear findings (pins, ear hooks etc) and comes in a package all coiled together. It looks like a spring with big diameter, OR a better example is that it looks nearly exactly like a Slinky. Following is my first set made using memory wire and I'll include what I used to make it and a brief description of how I made it.

PEACHY WITH GOLD

Czech Faceted Round Crystals 6mm

Peachy Pink Fire Polished Crystals 8mm

Gold Plated memory wire

Round nose pliers

First I took the memory wire and cut a little more than a full circle from the memory wire (the extra was taken to make the 'lock'. I cut three circles in total; 2 for hoops and 1 for bracelet. Than I put two Clear Crystals followed by one Peachy Pink Crystal followed again by two Clear Crystals. I repeated the same procedure for the other hoop. At one end of the hoops I made a loop (How to make a loop video is available in my previous blog, click here to access it) facing upwards and on the other end I turned about 6mm of the wire ninety degrees to the side, creating a 'lock' for the hoops.

For the bracelet I made a loop on one end of the wire and beaded 6 Clear Crystals followed by one Peachy Pink Crystal, repeating the procedure until the end of the wire was reached leaving approximately 6 mm for the loop to be made to close off the bracelet. For the lock for the bracelet I took around 2.5 cm of the Gold Plated wire and made a loop sideways on both ends, facing the opposite ways creating an 'S' shape. I did not close the ends completely of the loops and put one end in one of the loops in the bracelet than closed it with Flat Nose pliers and left the other loop a bit open so that the bracelet can be unlocked to be worn and locked when worn =)

Under the stars

2011-04-24T19:12:00.001-04:00

Glass crystals on silver plated flat head pins with glass butterfly and silver plated ear hook. I will be setting up my etsy store pretty soon =)

Pink Sparkle --- I see improvement

2011-04-20T01:30:00.004-04:00

I received my order from Shipwreckbeads as well (sighhhh $30 shipping *tear---> heart breaks) on Thursday and forgot to update on my previous blog (I know I can go back to the post and edit it....but I like to add it on here before I go on to the next topic). It was nicely packed and most of the items were of decent quality. My main tools (pliers and cutters) were coming in this order and as soon as I got it I started experimenting! My first attempt was Pearl Crystal Dreams and now I am on to the next one.

I call my next project Pink Sparkle.

For each earring I used one straight flat head pin (silver plated), 6 Czech Crystal Diamonds in Pink and 2 clear glass crystals as well as one earring hook. I am starting to get a hang of it now, creating those loops take time though! I have successfully broken quite a few wires before I cam even close to what it is suppose to look like. For the newbie like myself, the following youtube video helped a lot!

It may look easy but these wires bent easily from places you don't want it to bend. This is KEY to learn as every single piece of wire (well, most) need loops somewhere in them.

I am finding it fun to create earrings and come up with designs and am also thinking that I might as well start selling them. I don't know about the price I will sell them for though.

Pearl Crystal Dream Cluster- My first attempt!

2011-04-18T16:14:00.000-04:00

My first attempt of making cluster earrings!

I used glass crystal beads and pearls, ball head and flat head silver plated pins and ear wire hooks.

It's a little messy, but hey it's only my first attempt =)

Basic supplies needed to make earrings

2011-04-16T21:37:00.003-04:00

As I was reading over my last blog I realized that I mentioned that there are suppliers from China that can be trusted, but forgot to mention which one I used hehehe. So the site of the supplier that I ordered from is www.ayliss.com . The best part is that they offer free shipping all over the world and their prices are extremely reasonable. I received my order within 10 business days, it was packed nicely AND the quality of the items was good as well. I ordered Silver plated pins and ear wire to experiment with, and later plan on ordering sterling silver findings. I still have to find a good wholesale site that offer superb pricing on sterling silver products.

Now that I am done completing my previous blog, on to this one. There are numerous tools and supplies to make jewelry but there are a few basic ones that a person needs to definitely have. These are:

Round nose plier
Chain nose plier
Cutter
Pins (flat head or ball)
Ear wires ( hook or ball head pin etc)
and of course beads/ crystals/ gemstone

There are many different kinds of materials that the findings (ear wire, pins, clasp, bead caps etc....google ear findings to know all different kinds =) ) are available in. Some for example are silver plated, gold plated, sterling silver, gold filled, surgical steel, vermeil, steel, copper, 18K gold, 14 K gold. Most of these words are defined here:

Silver plated: A thin layer of pure/Sterling (usually Sterling) Silver plated over base metal
Gold plated: A thin layer of Gold plated over base metal (usually Steel or Brass)
Fine Silver: Contains 99.9% Silver, sometimes stamped .999
Sterling Silver: Alloy containing 92.5% Silver with 7.5% base metal (usually Copper) usually stamped .925
Gold filled: 5% or 1/20 of the weight contains Gold. These are not actually filled with Gold but have multiple sheets of Gold covering the base metal (usually Brass or Copper)
Surgical Steel: contains 8% nickel
Vermeil: ...Pronounced Vermay....Sterling Silver that has been Gold plated
Karat: Measure of purity of Gold, how much gold is mixed with an alloy. 24K is pure Gold, 14K contains 58% Gold and 18K contains 75% Gold.

most definitions taken from: http://craft.ontheinternet.com.au/beads/gold-filled.htm

If there is something that I may have forgotten to add, feel free to add it through your Comments. I'll add it to this Blog and also put your name for reference =)

Baby steps into beading and jewelry making

2011-04-13T02:29:00.003-04:00

In the last week of March 2011 while "youtubing" a few how to sugar videos, I came across a video on how to make earrings. After watching the video, I suddenly had the urge to start making my own jewelry. There are a lot of actions that I take impulsively (which sometimes end me up in trouble) and so I started looking into instructions on "how to make earrings with beads". People, when you type that in Google there are approximately $11 million websites in the result! Now I did read a few articles and postings, and got a rough idea of beading terminology. Wanting to start ordering my supplies, I made a list of basic tools and supplies I will need to get started ( shared in the next blog). The websites that I found most useful are:

On to suppliers... where do I begin?! There are retail, wholesale and middlemen claiming to be wholesale. A lot of times wholesale websites want the business number, but there are a few that will allow you to make an account without the need of registered business and this way you can get very good material at a fraction of price.

How would a person know which ones are genuine and which ones are just there to rip you off? In most forums that I read, people said that if the online store is doing there business from China stay away from it. I whole heartedly disagree! Yes, there maybe 75% (it's a guess, now don't you go on quoting me on this) that may not turn out to be who they claim they are, but the remaining 25% are not scamming you and are still there to give you the best they can. When dealing with an international online store, obviously one has to do their research and Google everything related to the website they can, reading others experience with the company, and better yet if they have an eBay store and/or Facebook page, checking the feedbacks and comments.

As I live in Canada, I am always checking out the shipping cost first after seeing the home page of a site. I made a mistake by not checking out the shipping price for one of the site (Shipwreckbeads.com).

Now I ordered from this site because they have great products and the prices are amazing as well, it's just the shipping cost that made my heart twitch when the customer service rep told me. My total was $70 (Can) out of which $30 was shipping! The mistake I made was in a hurry I placed my order and shipping was to be calculated automatically and deducted off so it did not appear when I paid through Paypal. If you live in U.S.A I think this is a great site to buy your supplies from, but if you are outside of this country just be a little careful with shipping charges. I don't want to cancel my order because obviously shipping and handling is non-refundable so it will be useless. I am waiting for my order still and it was shipped on April 6, 2011.

The website that I found absolutely fantastic is eebeads.com. You do not have to order a huge quantity and their rates are reasonable. Plus with $3.00 shipping to Canada I was in heaven. I placed an order on Friday April 8, 2011 and am waiting for it, lets see how it turns out ( I spent about $75 (Can) ). Oh and the order was shipped within few hours of placing it so they are super fast as well.

It is difficult to find one website that contains step-by-step information on how to get started, so here I am combining my two new hobbies (blogging and beading) and sharing my step by step journey and experience, hoping one day that it will help some one and point them in the direction they want to go :) .