The first thing I learned about how to make jewellery

So, a good while ago now, I went to a Christmas craft day at my church where I was teaching a few card techniques and helping the ladies put together (some SUPER cute! hahaha) Christmas cards.

Someone else was teaching a relatively quick and simple jewellery-making technique, and I, being friends with this person, was super stoked to sign up and learn.

I've been addicted ever since.

The first, and I would argue, most important technique at least in MY jewellery-making arsenal, is this fancy little loop & twist that my friend Angela taught on that craft day.

So, without further ado, you will need:

22 gauge, dead-soft wire (I usually use a non-tarnish silver plated brass - it's beautiful and affordable); round-nosed pliers, flat-nosed pliers (mine have a slight point to them); wire cutters; beads!

NOTE: you don't HAVE to use 22 gauge wire, but I personally found it a FABULOUS gauge to learn with - it's flexible yet strong enough you don't go crazy... if you can't find 22 I'd lean toward 20 gauge (thicker) over 24 gauge (thinner). For this purpose, at least.

1) Okay, so pick yourself a bead.  And then I like to slip my wire through it before I cut just so I can see exactly how much wiggle room I'm giving myself on each side of the bead:

Give yourself at LEAST an inch on either side. Probably closer to an inch and a half, at least while you're mastering it. You don't want to be caught with too little wire 'cause that's kind of super difficult to work with. And you can always trim excess off.

20) After I've cut my wire to the desired length I grab it with my round-nosed pliers,

and bend the wire over the pliers into an 'L' shape, AWAY from me. Result:

sorry about the photo orientation - working a camera with one hand while crafting with the other is harder than it looks! O:-)

3) Next, I find this is easiest done by grasping the shorter end of the 'L' with my flat-nosed pliers, and bringing the wire BACK towards me, going the opposite direction around the round-nosed pliers. You end up with:

See how the wire has moved to go back up and around that top, uh, plier? (I'm sure there are all sorts of technical terms I'm not even gracing with BUTCHERING here...)

4) Okay, now, grasp that short end again with your flat pliers, and wrap that sucker around the long piece of wire. You're making/closing the loop off, yes? Do you see?

I pulled the round-nose pliers out so you can hopefully see the loop... I can see it!

Then you're going to keep wrapping that short piece around the long piece until you've wrapped 2-3 times. Make sure you don't hold onto the wire with the flat pliers non-stop as you turn or your wire is going to get all wrapped around the pliers as you go! Wrap, open them, adjust, re-grasp. Wrap, open pliers, adjust grip, re-grasp.

The whole thing should look like this when you're done

5) Perfect. Now trim the tail off that sucker so you have a nice flush cut that's not going to stick out, get caught on, or scratch anything with your cutters.  Yup, just like that.

And now you're ready for your bead! Pop the bead on the unfinished end, and then start the whole thing over again on that side!

Slip the bead on the wire...

Make your loop and twist around...

 And you're done your attachments for your first bead!!

voila!!

Now, there are different options for attaching this to something - you can just keep looping through beads and string that together, or add chain, or you can use jump-rings or split-rings.... really anything you want. If you WANT to slip something directly into the loop, you need to do it immediately after step 3 BEFORE step 4 - you've begun your loop but haven't started wrapping the wire around itself yet, slip the chain/other loop/charm/whatever-the-heck-it-is into what's becoming your loop. Capice? Excellente!

This is it! This is the one thing I learned how to do on that first day! With this skill you can make this

http://www.leifayre.ca/store/index.php?act=viewProd&productId=21

Or this

Design by Angela Chung Jewellery Designs. Bracelet at http://www.leifayre.ca/store/index.php?act=viewProd&productId=4

Or something like this

http://www.leifayre.ca/store/index.php?act=viewProd&productId=198

Well, you get the idea. You can make OODLES. And with a slight variation on this technique, you can make even more.

So go, get yourself some pliers, some wire, and some beads, and welcome to the jewellery-making craze! You're going to love it' I know I do! :)