Saturday, January 9, 2016

Christmas Bracelet #2 - Indu's Bezel Bracelet


This is the second of the seven bracelets that I got from Teejay for Christmas. The motifs are a tweaked version of the bezel from Indu's YouTube video tutorial which you can watch HERE. You can buy the stone beads on eBay from Aura Crystals HERE.


  • 15/0 seed beads Miyuki "Olivine" (458)
  • 11/0 seed beads Miyuki "Dark Bronze" (457D)
  • 11/0 seed beads Toho "Hybrid Opaque Grey Picasso" (Y312)
  • 8/0 seed beads Toho "Hybrid Opaque Grey Picasso" (Y312)
  • 8mm round stone beads "Unakite"



I'm wondering if anyone can help me out with a little project for my sister. She has a bead necklace that she got on a trip to Africa. The beads are strung on nylon cord and it came apart one day while she was wearing it. Most of the beads are still on the string and she managed to find most of the larger beads that came off. She probably lost quite a few of the seed beads in her car seat but I do have a small bag of very similar seed beads that will fill the gaps nicely. It's a very colorful, interesting-looking necklace made with paper beads as you can see in the photos below.

Cindy has asked me to repair it for her but I have no experience stringing beads and I have no idea what kind of nylon string to buy to replace the current string. It's much heavier than FireLine but not so heavy that the necklace is stiff. The necklace is long enough that she doubles it up around her neck and there was no clasp on it. I was thinking that I might put a clasp on it when I fix it but I need to know how to tie the ends of the string to the clasp so that it doesn't come apart again. Can anyone give me some tips? What kind of string/cord should I buy? What would it be called and what weight should I look for? What kind of knots should I use to secure the ends? I will also see if I can find some videos online that explain how to do this.

Here is the necklace:



Here's a close-up so you can see the paper beads:


In the photo below, I've arranged the necklace and loose beads in the order that I will need to re-string them. I printed this one out so that I will remember where the beads go once I've pulled them all off the string.


UPDATE: I found some beading wire that Teejay had sent me a long time ago. The black one is much finer than the gold wire. Would either of these be suitable? I also included the crimp beads that I found in my stash. Are they the right kind and size?


  
 

26 comments:

  1. I'd use beadalon beading wire. Put the end through a calotte, tie a knot, add a dab of glue and close the calotte with pliers. You caan then add on a jump ring

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    1. Hi Wendy. Is the wire flexible enough for the necklace to drape softly around her neck? What weight is the wire? What is a calotte and what kind of glue do you use? I will obviously have to buy all of these things and hopefully my sister will reimburse me.

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    2. I just did a Google image search for "calotte" and all I got were photos of some sort of hat!

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  2. Beading wire is soft and drapes nicely. It is what is used in most stringing projects because it is durable. The more "strands" in the wire, the softer the drape. It is usually finished with crimp beads, but can be knotted. Many of the beading supply sites will have basic how tos on using it. Good luck!

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    1. I need to know what weight of beading wire to get. I know that it comes in different thicknesses but you can't tell what it's like in the store because the package is sealed.

      While Googling crimp beads, I discovered what "calottes" are and I've actually got some. I don't know what size they are though or if they're the right size for this project. Here's a link to a photo of some calottes similar to what I've got.

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  3. I would probably use the .015 49 strand beadalon. very flexible and strong. I think I use the beadalon #2 crimp tubes on that.

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    1. Thanks, Dee. What do the #2 crimp tubes do? Are they like the ones in my photo above? Those came with some toggle clasps that I bought at Walmart a few years ago. I didn't know what they were for but I kept them just in case.

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    2. Those tubes in your photo may be crimp tubes. They are made of metal, and you can press them flat against beading wire (which is also metal, although it usually feels more like cording). It is a way of permanently closing off the beading wire. I take the beading wire, shove it up inside a crimp tube, then stick it through a jump ring, pull the wire back thru the crimp tube, and after pulling it reasonably tight, press the crimp tube on the beading wire with either a crimping plier, or just a flat or needle nose plier to smash it totally against the wire. There are probably youtube videos on "crimping basics". You might want to practice once or twice before doing it right on your necklace, if it your first time. Metal crimps typically don't do well on stringing materials made of fibre, such as thread, cotton cord, etc.

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    3. I think I understand what you're saying, Dee. Thanks.

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  4. Hi Linda, I get the issue with wanting it to drape and be able to double if your sister wore it that way. You could use silk cord or C Lon to string and make a knot and put one of the bead covers over the knot. If you want a clasp you could knot it to the clasp and cover with bead covers. It would be similar to stringing for a tin cup necklace or bracelet that people do with cord. I find beading wire to sometimes not drape as you want it in some projects.

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    1. Hi Sandy. Something you said brought something to mind about re-stringing this necklace. I'm sure that I can easily get wire or thick cord through the large paper beads but how would I get anything very thick through those tiny seed beads, especially without a needle? That wouldn't be a problem with wire I suppose because it's stiff enough to not require a needle. That wouldn't be the case with silk cord or C-lon. I just took a closer look at the seed beads and they appear to be mostly 8/0 and some 11/0. They're most likely Chinese seed beads so the sizes could actually be any number of sizes from 11/0 to 8/0.

      Also, one of the things that I was asking about was what type of knots to make when attaching the ends to a clasp or whatever. I don't know a thing about those kinds of knots. I suppose there are videos online that show how to do special bead stringing knots though.

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  5. Here’s my two cents! I make my own paper beads and make necklaces/bracelets out of them. I use C-Lon or Nymo or even Fireline (it’s strong enough because the paper beads aren’t heavy) and thread with a needle. That will fit through both the paper beads and the seedbeads. When you get to the end, thread through the hole in the calotte (or clam shell bead tip as they’re sometimes called), make a small knot several times , and this knot is enclosed inside one half of the shell. I also add a very, very small drop of E2000 glue or crazy glue. I then fold over the other side of the clam shell and let it dry. Do this for both ends of the necklace. Use a jump ring to attach first one side of your clasp, then the other. Does that help? Here's an Artbeads link describing how to do it:
    http://www.artbeads.com/how-to-use-a-closed-loop-bead-tip-blog.html


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    1. I had thought of using Fireline and thought about going around the whole thing twice for added security. I like the idea of being able to use a needle. I just occurred to me that I'll probably need to add some sort of "stop" bead on the end to keep the beads on the string as I string them. See, there are so many things that I need to think about as I learn how to do this.

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    2. Going around twice is a good idea if you can get the thread through the small seedbeads two times. Have you ever used "bead stoppers"? Try googling them. They're invaluable for bead stringing, I find. They always keep your work in place. Before I discovered them, I used a piece of scotch tape, or a paper clip, or a clothespin to keep my beads from falling off the ends. None of those worked, of course! Good luck!

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    3. I took a look at the Artbeads tutorial that you linked to and they suggest adding a bead tip/clam shell to one end first before you start stringing the beads. That would serve the same purpose as a bead stopper or stop bead. I don't really want to buy too many special tools and supplies for this project because I doubt if I will do any more bead stringing again. Of course I'll probably eat my words, LOL.

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    4. Great idea - I should have thought of that!

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  6. I do a lot of beadweaving with regular glass beads and I use the 10 lb. Fireline and have never had a problem with them breaking. My necklaces are around 30 inches long. Fireline is really durable

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    1. I do have Fireline but only in 4 pound and 6 pound weights. I doubt if my sister would want me to spend what it would cost to buy a spool of 10 pound just to fix her necklace. That's why I thought of perhaps doubling up the 6 pound Fireline.

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  7. Oh for a stop bead just go through a matte seedbead several times that will keep your beads from falling off.

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  8. Sorry I'm late to the party. I recently made a lot of lanyards, about 40 inches around, fully beaded. I used 14 pound Fireline and went through the beads twice. I also used slipknots several places throughout the work to keep it from slipping. I think for a necklace, using double lengths of 6 pound Fireline would be fine. I have a few beads that fold over and cover up knots. DOn't know where I got them, but they do come in handy. I agree with everything Crafty One says in this thread. I would avoid the metal wire because over time with a necklace like that that is often doubled over when worn, it can kink and you really can't get the kink out.

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    1. OK, I won't use any kind of wire then. I trust your judgement because you're the Necklace Queen, Jeanie.

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  9. I got all caught up in talking about the paper necklace and forgot to comment on TJ's bracelet. It's magnificent! The colors, the design - everything. So elegant. You outdid yourself, TJ. Linda, you are a VERY lucky lady!

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  10. I checked my cord with TOHO size 11/0 beads. C Lon cord fits thru it without a problem (.5mm from Lima Beads - item #28231). Also size 4 and 6 Griffin silk cord which has a needle built in. You can always dip the end of cord or thread in glue and make a needle. Knot it as Crafty One mentions above and use glue.

    Fireline could work but if it gets caught but would it be more likely to break or snap?

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    1. Thanks for testing it, Sandy. Is C Lon thicker than Nymo D? I'm not sure how easily 6 pound Fireline would break but it is rather thin. Buying a spool of heavier Fireline is out of the question due to the $10 limit my sister has put on the cost of the repair.

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  11. I checked and don't have any Nymo D. I looked on Lima Beads and it says the Nymo D is .3mm and the C Lon is .5mm so it should go through the small beads. I don't know about the strength - I would guess it would be okay. I have Superlon and it fits too.

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  12. Keep us posted on what you decide to use. Will be interesting to see what works best.

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