Bracelet of the Day: Roulette Bracelet - Turquoise & White

ROULETTE BRACELET

• 11/0 seed beads Toho "Antique Bronze" (223)
• 8/0 seed beads Toho "Antique Bronze" (223)
• 7mm CzechMates 2-hole cabochons "Luster Opaque White"
• SuperDuo beads "Turquoise" (2x5mm not 2.5x5mm)

I found this free tutorial on the Handmade Jewelry Club website HERE (link has been disabled for your protection). They call it "Turquoise Roulette". Although today's bracelet IS turquoise, I left off the "Turquoise" part of the name because it can be made in any color. The original pattern is made with 9mm pearls, 11/0 and 6/0 seed beads. They probably meant to say "8mm" pearls because I don't think they make 9mm pearls and they would be too big anyway. Another typo is where it says that you'll need 15/0 seed beads. There are no 15/0 beads mentioned in the tutorial. I've swapped out the 8mm pearls for 7mm CzechMates 2-hole cabochons and they work perfectly. I used Toho seed beads and replaced the 6/0 bead that are called for with 8/0 beads. Miyuki seed beads don't work well for this because they're too small and they cause the motifs to pucker. I have to admit that I didn't follow the steps of the tutorial exactly but I don't see any reason why these substitute beads wouldn't work using their method. There's no need for the stopper bead that they mention in the first step because you will go through all of the beads to make a circle anyway.

After successfully making three of these bracelets, I ran into a big issue while trying to make a fourth one. After LOTS of experimenting, I've determined that it makes a difference which size SuperDuos you use. Oddly enough, I don't think I've ever run into a pattern where the size of the SuperDuos made such a noticeable difference in the outcome. The problem with this bracelet is that the fatter 2.5x5mm SuperDuos cause the hole in the center of the motif to come out too small to insert a cabochon. You MUST use SuperDuos that are 2x5mm. That silly half millimeter makes a huge difference. You can pretty much tell right away when you make the first ring of SuperDuos. The fatter ones don't want to sit neatly next to each other because their fat "bellies" are bumping into each other. I've used them to make my "SuperDuo Flower Chain" bracelets without any issues but there are only ten SuperDuos in those motifs instead of fourteen and there are no beads in the holes in the centers. Unfortunately, not all bead shops and sites list the size of their SuperDuos so you may have to just try what you have and see it they will work or not. One clue that you can look for is to see if the color code number on the label has the prefix "DUO" before the number. If it does, those beads are most likely the fatter 2.5x5mm SuperDuos. If you shop at Red Panda, Betsy has the two sizes listed in separate sections. I'm pretty sure that all of the SuperDuos from Aura Crystals are the thinner 2x5mm size or at least that's what it says on their site and it's also what is marked on all of the bags that I have in my stash that were bought from them.

I needed seven of these motifs to fit my 6-inch wrist and I used about 3 yards of Nymo D thread. It's a little loose on my wrist but it wouldn't have been long enough with only six motifs. The clasp loops that I made were my own idea. The tutorial doesn't offer any tips for attaching a clasp and they don't show any photos of the ends of the bracelet.