How To Make A Twisted Wire & Bead Necklace...No Tools Required

Here are some easy-to-follow steps to make your own twisted wire and bead necklace – great for personal, handcrafted holiday gifts or if you’re looking for a creative way to relax and de-stress:

· Measure out and cut approximately six yards (18 feet, 216 inches) of 26 Gauge wire in your preferred metal/color. If it’s easier for you to work with smaller pieces, cut the wire in half, and attach the other half when you reach the end of the first piece of wire (we’ll get to that later).

· Leave approximately 1-1/2 to 2 inches of the wire free on one end, and then start putting beads on the wire. You can wrap the wire around a “stopper” bead at the end or use a Bead Bug to stop the beads so they don’t slide further down the wire than you want.

· String beads for approximately three feet (36 inches) – more if you want a larger beaded section in your finished piece. Just be sure to leave enough wire free on the other end for the next step. In this example, I had approximately 15 feet (175-176 inches) left.

· You can choose beads in a particular size, shape, and color scheme, or be totally random in your bead choices. It all depends on what look you are trying to achieve.

· Don’t worry too much if you realize you have too many of the same color, size, or shape beads in a row. When you get to the next step, you can rearrange them however you wish.

· Take the stopper bead or Bead Bug off the wire from your starting position. If you like, you can put it on the other end approximately 1-1/2 to 2 inches from that end. This will give you more room on the wire to maneuver.

· Slide the first bead down the wire on the starting end until there is 1-1/2 to 2 inches left. These ends will be used later to secure the beaded wire to a thicker neck wire.

· Wrap the wire to the underside of the bead on both sides and then twist the wire three or four times. Slide the next bead down next to the first bead. Do the same thing with the wire. Keep going until all of the beads have been twisted.

· As you go along, use the wire to manipulate the beads into whatever position you like. This is where you can solve the color/shape/size problems, if there are any.

· You can twist the beads and weave them together as close together or as spread apart as you like. Just try to keep your spacing and wrapping tension consistent throughout, if you can. If you find that the spacing changes throughout the process, don’t worry about it too much. You can adjust that when weaving the neck wire through the beaded wire.

· You can also twist multiple beads at one time, if you happen to have two smaller or a number of seed beads next to each other on the wire.

· If you find your piece of wire is too short, don’t worry. Just twist the end of a new piece of wire (1/2 to 1 inch or so overlap) with the end of the old piece, and string a bead with a hole large enough to allow the twisted section to pass through it. Then, twist the wire around the bead as you have been doing, which will secure the bead and both pieces of wire in place.

· Once you’ve twisted all of the beads into place, trim the excess wire, if there is any. Leave 1-1/2 to 2 inches on the end.

· Select accent beads to string on the remainder of the necklace, leading up to the sides of the neck. They can be any size, shape or color you wish…just make sure the holes are big enough allow thicker wire to pass through them.

· Cut a piece of thicker wire that will create the desired length for your necklace, adding approximately 1-1/2 to 2 inches on either end to affix a clasp. Your choice of wire gauge will be determined by the size of the holes in your accent beads and the relative weight of the beaded wire you’ve created. The heavier the beaded wire, the stronger you will want the thicker wire to be. As you may (or may not) know, the smaller the gauge size, the thicker and stronger the wire is. For example, 18 Gauge wire is thicker and stronger than 20 Gauge wire. As long as the thicker wire you use is stronger than 24 or 26 Gauge, it should work fine.

· Weave the thicker wire through the beaded piece to give it some strength, since the 26 Gauge wire is pretty flimsy. Arrange the beads to fall where and how you want them to look.

· Center the beaded wire in the middle of the thicker wire.

· Coil the ends of the 26 Gauge wire around the thicker wire to secure it in place.

· String the accent beads onto both sides of the necklace, leaving approximately 1-1/2 to 2 inches on each side at the end of each piece of wire to attach a clasp.

· Once you have selected your clasp, make sure the loops fit on the wire you’ve chosen. If not, attach larger jump rings to each piece of the clasp, so that they can be connected to the end of the necklace.

· Place the clasp loop (or jump ring) on the end of one wire. Fold over the end of the wire to create a loop beneath the clasp piece. Coil the remaining tail end of the wire around the base of the wire to secure the clasp into place. If you have jewelry pliers, you can use them to help you make a tight coil. If not, you can use your hands. Do the same on the other side of the necklace.

· Don’t worry if the coil isn’t “perfect.” It takes practice to do that, especially with your bare hands rather than with tools. The ends of the necklace most likely will be beneath the wearer’s hairline anyway, so the only two people who will see it are you and the wearer.

· Try to get the end of the coil as close to the base wire as possible, and then clip any loose ends so that they are right up against the base wire, preferably facing away from the wearer’s neck.

· File the ends of the wire, so that there are no sharp edges that can injure anyone who wears or handles the necklace.

· Stand back and admire your finished piece! Congratulations!

If you wish to receive these step-by-step instructions in PDF format, complete with photos illustrating each step, feel free to email me at info@something-tangible.com and put “Factoidz” in the subject line. Have fun!