Beadalon Blog

  Rose gold is one of those finishes that just puts a smile on my face. I love how it bridges the gap between silver and gold - and goes with pretty much anything! I'm delighted that Beadalon has so many options in Rose Gold - including some new findings and wire gauges! Check out the  Facebook Live Video  I did going over (almost) all of Beadalon and Artistic Wire's Rose Gold product offerings. Here are some of my favorites: 7 Strand SilverRose in .015 and . 018 Rose Gold Artistic Wire  - 16-24 Gauge Flat Rose Gold Artistic Wire  - 21 Gauge 3mm and 5mm Rose Gold German Style Wire  - 20 Gauge in Round, Square, and 1/2 Round Rose Gold Memory Wire  - both Regular and Heavy Duty ColorCraft Wire  - 16-28 Gauge Findings Variety Pack  - 73 Jump Rings, 8 Spring Rings, 8 Lobster Clasps, 23 Tags Instant Pendants  - Ball End and Cone Ends Head Pins  and Ball Head Pins To make the project in the top photo, all you need to do is make a variet...

This easy Bird's Nest pendant works up so quickly and can be customized to your heart's content. In last week's Facebook Live, I showed using 3 different types of wires to use to achieve 3 different looks using the same technique: 1)  22 Gauge Artisic Wire 2) 22 Gauge  Twisted Artistic Wire 3) Wire twisted with the Beadalon Wire Twister or the Professional Coiling Gizmo Instructions for a basic Bird's Nest: Straighten about 24 inches of wire with either Nylon Jaw Pliers or the Artistic Wire Straightener .  Thread beads of your choosing (I like 3 best) onto the end of the wire leaving about a 3 inch tail. Turn the beads into a triangle and twist the wire to secure. Hold the beads in one hand and turn them around so the wire circles around the beads in a nest shape. When your nest is as thick as you'd like, wrap the end of the Wire around it in 3 or 4 places to secure it. Use the end of the Wire to make a wrapped loop on the top. Download step by...

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 Fac...

Today's Facebook Live featured the 4 Holiday Charms Artistic Wire Findings Forms . Findings Forms are great because they are little Jigs that allow you to make the same shape over and over again. You can use 20-24 Gauge Wire, and I used 22 Gauge in the video. Holiday Tree Findings Form Bell Findings Form Snowman Findings Form Star Findings Form There are so many ways that you can use the shapes you make with the Findings Forms! You can make earrings, pendants, ornaments and more! Watch the Facebook Live and each of the videos on the product pages to see how to use the Jigs. Head over to the Jewelry Making with Beadalon Facebook Group for more beading inspiration and join us next time for more holiday ornaments with the Really Big Jig! Happy beading! Meredith

If you need to make curves, bends, loops or rings in different sizes, the Stepped Bail Making Pliers are for you! In this episode of Facebook Live, Wyatt White showed how to make a gorgeous bail, several different shapes of connectors, hooks, and rings out of both Round and Flat Artistic Wire. Stepped Bail Making Pliers   make 6 different loop sizes: 9 mm (0.35 in), 8 mm (0.31 in), 6 mm (0.23 in), 5 mm (0.2 in), 3 mm (0.12), and 2 mm (0.08 in).   By just moving your wire to a different size on the jaw, you can vary your design and create all kinds of components. Join them together with Jump Rings made on one of the larger sizes for custom chains! As always, Wyatt's video is filled with tips and great advice for working with Wire. For example, when he uses thicker Artistic Wire, he recommends the 12 and 14 Gauge Cup Burr attachment for the Battery Operated Bead Reamer as a great tool to round off those sharp ends. Wyatt broke down two amazing projects...

Sarah James from Jesse James Beads joined us on Facebook Live this week to launch their newest Goddess Beads collection. I had planned something else for our Facebook Live, but once I saw the beads Sarah brought, I just new it was going to have to be an earrings extravaganza! Sarah had made a gorgeous pair of earrings at the Beadalon and TierraCast Designer Battle Royale at Bead & Button in June, but she had lost one (sad face). So, we used some TierraCast Components, some Jesse James beads and Artistic Wire to whip up some new ones in no time! I grabbed some of the Artistic Wire Findings Forms to make matching earwires. We had so much fun designing, now I can't stop making earrings! Sarah was kind enough to leave some bead goodies behind, so I used her design as my inspiration for today's project! 22 Gauge Silver Filled Wire  (used in the video) or 22 Gauge Tarnish Resistant Brass Artistic Wire Memory Wire Finishing Pliers or Round Nose Pliers Findings Form Qu...

I had the honor of welcoming Sandra Lupo, designer extraordinaire and inventor of the Conetastic Tool , to the Beadalon Facebook Live this week. We made this gorgeous up-cycled necklace together. I love how she took a scarf, added some hand-crafted components, and turned it into a really fun and fashionable necklace! Materials and Tools: Conetastic and Mandrels Tassel Maker Coiling Gizmo 16 Gauge Hexagonal Artistic Wire 20 Gauge Artistic Wire Jump Ring B-Lon Tex 210 Beading Thread Scarf Happy Beading! Meredith

It was a bangle bracelet extravaganza on this week's Facebook Live! We featured the Artistic Wire Artsy Wire , the AW Crimper, the 3D Bracelet Jig and Sizing Drums , Katie's Bracelet Knotter Tool , the Bracelet Bending Pliers , and the Artistic Wire Wire Straightener . The Artsy Wire is currently available in 14 gauge in 4 colors - Artsy Burgundy, Artsy Mauve, Artsy Olive and Artsy Turquoise. It has a wonderful mottled finish that is perfect for a vintage, shabby chic look. The best part is that there are 5 AW Crimp Connectors included in the package for the perfect Cold Connection! AND we developed a new Artistic Wire Crimp Tool perfectly calibrated to work with ALL of the AW Crimp Tubes. Woohoo! The first bracelet is one of my favorites (who am I kidding, they are all my favorites!) and couldn't be easier to make! Use the AW Straightener to straighten the wire, wrap it around the 3D Bracelet Jig 3 or more times, crimp the ends with an AW Crimp Tube, curve the ...

As featured on Facebook Live with Wyatt!

Sometimes we get so excited about a new product, we start talking about it before it's available. While that can be frustrating, it does make it even more exiting when it does come into stock! The Artistic Wire  Flat Pattern Wire is one such product. We debuted it back at the Tucson shows in January, and we finally have some of the SKUs in stock! This Flat Pattern Wire is currently available in 6 patterns in Tarnish Resistant Silver and 2 patterns in Tarnish Resistant Brass in 6 inch lengths. It's about a 21 gauge wire, and the process that it goes through to stamp the design into it means it has a nice, stiff feel to it that holds its shape really well once bent. Some of the tools that I find indispensable for working with this wire are the Triangle Needle File  (for smoothing out the ends),  Bracelet Bending Pliers  (for bending the flat piece into a bangle shape), the Round and Oval Sizing Drums  (for shaping) and the AW Wire Shears  (t...

Did you know you can use the Acrylic Tying Station with Artistic Wire, too? We've done several cool projects made with Artistic Wire on the Tying Station, and this week's Facebook Live featured Wyatt's Knotted Wire Beads. Leave it to Wyatt to come up with another super creative way to turn small pieces of wire into usable jewelry components. Once you get the basics of the Macrame Knots down, the possibilities are limitless. Use 26 Gauge Artistic Wire for a small, fine design, or 20 Gauge Artistic Wire for a more substantial piece. You could vary the size of the center Wire also, to make a bigger or smaller hole. As always, Wyatt does a great job explaining everything and inspiring us to try out even more materials and techniques. What a great project for a last minute gift! Materials: 16-26 Gauge Artistic Wire Acrylic Tying Station Headpins Instructions: Set up the tying station with a 16 Gauge Wire as the base. Use 20-26 Gauge Artistic Wire to tie a varie...

The holidays are right around the corner, and we've got you covered for gifts for the special ladies on your list (and go ahead, make some for yourself, too!). With just a few feet of Artistic Wire and the Kleshna Ring Weaver Tool, you can whip up a pair of Holiday Wreath Earrings in a jiffy! In a bigger rush? Make a Pendant and attach it to a pre-made Chain and you're off. Materials: 18" of 26 Gauge Green Artistic Wire 18" of 26 Gauge Red Artistic Wire 1 foot of  22 Gauge Silver Filled Wire Tools: Kleshna Ring Weaver Tool   Findings Forms S Hook Findings Forms Swoop Earwire Jig Instructions: Assemble the Kleshna Weaver Tool to the ring size of your choosing. Twist the ends of one 18" piece of Red Artistic Wire and one 18" piece of Green Artistic Wire (or colors of your choosing) together. Start at the hash mark, and weave around the tool (Check out this great video by Kleshna and this one by Wyatt for more detail on how to use the Kleshn...

The Tree of Life symbolizes rebirth and renewal, and to me, fall represents the beginning of this process as nature prepares itself to begin its life cycle again in the spring. Making a Tree of Life Pendant is a way to honor the Circle of Life while sharpening your wire working skills. That's why I chose it for the project for this week's Facebook Live. I picked some of our newer Artistic Wires to feature, and hopefully, you'll be inspired to try some new materials! Materials : 16 Gauge Hexagonal Wire 24 or 26 Gauge Artistic Wire Twisted 4mm Beads or Gemstone Chips Tools : 3D Bracelet Jig Sizing Drum (small) Nylon Jaw Pliers Wire Cutters Round Nose Pliers Flat Nose Pliers Instructions: Use the Nylon Jaw Pliers to straighten the Hexagonal Wire. Use the small 3D Bracelet Jig Sizer Drum to shape your Wire into a circle. Cross the wires over themselves and make a Wrapped Loop at the Top. Add a large hole bead for a decorative ...