Beadalon Blog

It was a party during Facebook Live this week! Meredith and Wyatt continued Beadalon's celebration of National Craft Month and challenged each other to make Wine Charms with Memory Wire and a mystery box of treasures from the depths of our beading stash. We had beads, wire, Bead Bumpers , charms, and more beads! Wyatt went the fancy route (of course) and stretched out his Memory Wire for more of a stem climber, while I went a little more traditional and did a complementary set. We had so much fun designing and sharing tips together. Wyatt also made a Wine Bottle decoration, and I showed how to make a knotted headpin and jump rings with Memory Wire Finishing Pliers. You never know what will happen when Wyatt and I design together! Wine Charms sets are super easy and quick to make. They make great gifts for all kinds of occasions - hostess gifts, bridesmaids gifts, birthday gifts, or a gift just because! Here are step by step instructions for making them. We also have a quick

It's National Craft Month, and we're celebrating by featuring crafty projects made with Beadalon and Artistic Wire on Facebook Live! The Really Big Jig is a natural choice for making large garden art like this because of its large design area - 11.25x11.25 inches. The design possibilities are limitless! Our in-house designer extraordinaire, Vlad , designed the template that I used in the video, but you could use any line drawing, or what I really like to use are  connect-the-dot worksheets . Materials: The Really Big Jig Beading Awl 12 Gauge Aluminum Artistic Wire You can download the full instructions here ! In the video, I mentioned some additional tips and tricks that I've discovered while working with the Really Big Jig. You can use the pegs from the 3D Bracelet Jig with the Really Big Jig. Use a Beading Awl to poke the holes through the paper before you add a peg. Put the Really Big Jig on a Lazy Susan to make it easier to spin around. Stand

For last week's Facebook Live, we hit the road again to visit with Studio 36 Bead Shop  in Pottstown, PA. Lisa is the shop owner and she has developed a beautiful and unique line of painted Lucite Flowers. If you haven't checked them out yet, I highly recommend it! She spent three years developing the painting technique and I for one am so glad she stuck with it. We used the flowers as components in a design made with the  Adjustable Bangle and Ring Findings Form  and the Katie Knotter Tool .  We also talked about different ways to make dangles, and shared tips and techniques for jewelry making. Lisa also gave me a tour of the shop at the end of the video, and I can't wait to go back. Watch the video to see how we made the bracelet, you can also find the full, written instructions  to make the bracelet form on the Findings Form web page. Materials: Adjustable Bangle and Ring Findings Form Katie Knotter Tool 14 Gauge German Style Wire We'll be on Facebook Li