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...

ILLUSION NECKLACE I love when classic styles come back around again - the Illusion Necklace is one of those designs that always seems to be in fashion! A few weeks ago, we did a Facebook Live project featuring Swarovski Crystals in birthstone colors, Supplemax , Size 1 Crimp Tubes, and Beadalon Loop Crimps with Lobster Claw Clasps .  Written step by step instructions are now available !  We have a quick and dirty video here  so you can follow along and make the project your own! And if you'd like to watch the whole fun Facebook Live  with lots of extra tips and tricks, you can do that also.  Don't forget to join the discussion over at the Jewelry Making with Beadalon Facebook Group , and hang out every Thursday at 2:00pm EST on the Beadalon Facebook Page for a Live.  Until next time.....happy beading! Meredith 

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...

Our last Facebook Live for the celebration of Craft Month featured one of my favorite go-to designs when I need to get my creative juices flowing again. It brings me back to my childhood crafting days, but with a grown up twist. In fact, the Beadalon Acrylic Tying Station came about because I was making macrame bracelets in the office using a clip board, and the product development team (that I eventually became a part of) knew that we could develop a tool to make making knotted bracelets easier! Top reasons that I love the Tying Station: It allows for hands-free macrame knotting. It holds your design tight without crushing your stringing material. You can use it for other techniques - like this braided wire bracelet  and this ladder stitch wrap bracelet .  The ruler printed on the side gives you a measuring device at the ready and helps you space out your beads in your design. The included foam insert allows for making a longer piece like a necklace or wrap bracelet...

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 ...

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...

First, there was the Bangle Bracelet Weaver Tool by Kleshna. Then came the Ring Weaver Tool by Kleshna . Now, the Necklace Weaver Tool has joined the family! We are just getting to know this tool, and we couldn't be happier! There are so many materials that you can use to weave with including, but not limited to: Beadalon Bead Stringing Wire, Ribbon, Leather, Polyester Cording, Satin Cord, Hemp Cord, Suede....... the list goes on and on! The Necklace Weaver Tool comes with a Base, 38 Pins, a Foam Insert to hold the pins in place, a Spacer Cord to allow for the extra space needed for the rewarping, and even a Latch Hook to help pull the rewarping material through. Of course, we also included detailed instructions to get you started! This two part Facebook Live series shows from beginning to end how to set up the tool through to finishing off a necklace. Once you learn the basics, let your creativity take over! Please post your creations on the Beadalon Facebook Page  and i...

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...

Who knew when we posed the question over in the Jewelry Making with Beadalon Facebook Group that we would get so many different responses and opinions about Aromatherapy Stretch Bracelets? Right out of the gate, I need to offer a special thanks to Dakota Stones for providing the beads and Susan Belluci for providing the Essential Oils for our project today! They send us some really cool lava beads, Tiger Iron, matte coins and Bayong wood beads all of which take oil. And Susan sent in her box of good smells that I had a lot of fun experimenting with! A great material to use to make Aromatherapy Stretch Bracelets, and what I demonstrated with, is Beadalon's Elasticity . It is available in 3 sizes: 0.5mm, 0.8mm. and 1.0mm and 4 colors: clear, black, satin silver and satin gold. It is made in the USA, durable, consistent in its diameter, and priced competitively. One of the challenges that you'll be faced with when making stretch bracelets with Lava Beads is that they t...

This week on Facebook Live, Product Manager and Education Director Wyatt White taught us all about the different types of Beadalon Bead Boards . My favorite part of this video is all of the wonderful comments that our viewers chimed in with. We asked people to write in with why they needed a bead board, and here are some great reasons: I want a bead board because I have a small space to work on. So it would keep things more organized for me to not lose beads on the floor.  - Erin I always need to leave my design overnight or for a few days and go back to it and tweak it before I'm happy to go ahead and string it so it can stay on the bead board for a little while. -Maxine I love the measurements on mine so I don't have to play with measuring tape. Keeps everything together for a project. - Roberta I use mine to map out the design and they're great when I have to leave and come back to work on it later. - Zona I use a bead board to help me lay out my designs the way...

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

This week on Facebook Live, we went back to the basics for a simple strung bracelet that goes with everything! This is one of my favorite go-to projects and not only do I gift this design often, I use one of these bracelets as a way to measure other bracelets that I'm making to get the perfect size. It's a great gift for a friend (or yourself), and always a good seller. We did a great Facebook Live a few months ago which is a great refresher for what NOT to do when making your jewelry . I definitely recommend checking it out. This week, we focused again on proper crimping techniques . Since good crimping is the foundation for all jewelry, I think we can all benefit from a refresher! I love the energy that our group generates and how we all learn from each other. It's always good to go back and practice the basics! Let's keep the conversation going over at the Jewelry Making with Beadalon Facebook Group ! 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 ...

I was a little late to the Tassel Party, but when I got here, I certainly put my party hat on! And since the arrival of the Tin Cup Knotter Tool , I've been knotting every pearl I can get my hands on - especially these ones from JTV. In this week's Facebook Live, I break down step by step how to use the Tin Cup Knotter, how to tie the perfect knot, and how to make a Tin Cup Knotted Tassel. You can attach these tassels to a necklace, make earrings, or even a purse adornment! They are a great way to use up a few extra beads from another project, or tackle that never ending bowl of bead soup. Materials: Silk Cord that fits your beads or pearls - I used a Size 6 in Black Beadalon Tin Cup Knotter Tool Scissors GS Hypo Cement Tierra Cast Necklace Cones (or Cone of your choice) 4 inches of Artistic Wire 18-24 gauge to make the wrapped loop Instructions: Happy Beading! Meredith