Free Jewelry Tutorial Archives - Page 15 of 16 - Rings and ThingsRings and Things

Make Margarita Christmas Tree Earrings to Make Merry

November 19, 2013

When you hear the word “margarita,” you probably don’t think of Christmas trees … unless you’re a fan of Swarovski crystal margarita beads! Christmas tree earrings made from these sparkling beauties are one of the most popular Christmas jewelry projects around. Plus, these crystal charm designs are super easy to make! So, grab a tasty beverage and a friend or two and have a good time making margarita trees all evening. Continue Reading…

Embellish Jewelry Blanks with Crystal Chatons

November 11, 2013

It doesn’t matter if you’re a rhinestone cowgirl or an urban fashionista – dressing up belt buckles and other jewelry blanks with sparkling crystal chatons is just plain fun!

Use the steps below to either recreate the Zen Yin belt buckle by Jan or to embed you own designs in a wide range of jewelry components including bezel cups, buckle blanks, cuff links, and more.

1. Gather your supplies.

Supplies:

Belt buckle blank or bezel cup
EnviroTex Jewelry Clay
Crystal chatons with pointed backs
Jewel setting tool
Beads, buttons, coins, resin flowers and/or other embeddable objects
Vinyl, nitrile or latex gloves
Vegetable oil and/or baby powder (optional)

To make the exact belt buckle pictured in this blog, see the “Zen Yin” belt buckle full parts list in our Design Gallery.

A jewel setting tool makes it easy to set chatons in your jewelry clay.

Tip: A jewel setter makes it much easier to set small objects into the clay! While bare fingers can hinder your field of vision and upset other elements of the design, jewel setters provide a wax tip to lightly pick up and place small objects in just the right spot.

2. Plan your layout.

Plan your layout before you unwrap the clay. This allows you to tinker with design options without the clay drying prematurely. This is especially important on large objects like a belt buckle.

3. Measure equal amounts of clay.

Wear thin gloves to protect your hands. Measure equal amounts of “A” and “B” types of clay, and form each material into a separate ball. If the clay sticks, apply a thin coat of vegetable oil.

4. Combine.

Combine the two balls together until they are well blended and uniform in color.

5. Press clay into jewelry blank.

Press the clay into your jewelry blank. You can smooth it out by adding a little vegetable oil on top. If it gets too sticky, dust it lightly with baby powder.

6. Place large objects & focals first.

Place larger objects and focal points into your clay first. Tip: To save time, you can leave strung beads on the string, rather than placing them individually in the clay. Trim excess string once the beads are in place.

7. Fill in remaining clay with crystal chatons.

Next, fill in the remaining exposed clay with sparkling crystal chatons. As mentioned above, a jewel setter can make this task quicker and easier. When you are placing your chatons into the clay, be sure not to press or tap them in to deeply. The clay will rise up a little bit around them particularly when it is very wet.

8. Allow clay to dry and you’re done!

Set aside your design in a safe spot and allow the clay to thoroughly dry, based on the manufacturer’s instructions. EnviroTex Jewelry Clay fully cures in 24 hours to a hard, durable, and shock resistant substance with a smooth, porcelain like surface. It does not shrink as it cures!

Below, check out more fun designs Jan made with EnviroTex Clay and crystal chatons.

These chunky donut beads are held fast in the crystal clay,
demonstrating how strong EnviroTex clay is!

Homer Simpson wouldn’t be able to resist this whimsical bit of bling! It’s made with donut beads, aurora borealis crystals, and a square bezel-cup pendant blank.

EnviroTex Jewelry Clay is durable enough for heavily-used objects
like key rings. Add heart to designs with heart bezel cups.

Heart-shaped bezel cups add an extra bit of love to jewelry designs.

Go nautical with embedded scallop shell beads and freshwater pearls.

Rectangle bezel-cups provide a great shape for custom pendants with a touch of bling. The design pictured above is adorned with shell beads and freshwater pearls surrounded by blue zircon and aquamarine crystal chatons.

Adorn your hands with bezel cup ring blanks!

Bezel cup ring blanks come in several colors and shapes. Some styles are exclusive to Rings & Things, and all styles are adjustable to fit any ring size. They’re perfect for making blingy costume jewelry.

You don’t have to use crystals.
This polar bear ring has seed beads embedded in the jewelry clay.

Embed seed beads and other objects in the crystal clay to see what other effects you can achieve! This winter-themed ring has a polar bear bead and a “Snow Ball” seed bead mix embedded in the clay. Let your imagination be your guide as you have fun making mosaic jewelry and a whole lot more! 🙂

How to Make a Metal Box

October 28, 2013

Make A Metal Box

A small metal box was turned into a framed reliquary, containing an antiqued frozen Charlotte doll. Create your own metal box that can be transformed into memory jewelry, a tiny shrine or used for some other whimsical (or practical) purpose.

To make a metal box, first decide on the type of metal, and the size of the box you want to create. I recommend using 20 gauge sheet metal for strength and durability. Copper or brass sheet metal are nice choices as they are inexpensive and they antique nicely.

Anneal the metal before cutting so that it can be manipulated more easily. Heat it with a torch until it is glowing red, let it cool naturally and clean thoroughly.

Cut the metal to size. This box was 1-1/2″ long and 3/4″ wide. It is 3/8″ deep. Draw lines of box using a Sharpie pen.

Cut one line of each corner to the point where it intersects with another line. Using wide flat nose pliers, bend the ends in, and the sides up, to create the box shape. Carefully fold each end of the box into place, making the corners square and secure. File if needed to remove any uneven edges.

Antique and colorize all parts you intend to assemble.

Fill back of frame with two-part epoxy. Center box over ornate brass frame and press into epoxy to place.

Using a two-part epoxy, UV resin, jeweler’s grade resin or other strong, clear glue, embed your treasures into your framed metal reliquary. Small toys, souvenirs, images layered in resin and tiny mementos are all used in creating custom memory jewelry.

Use epoxy to attach a magnet, let it cure and you are done! (Note: You could also attach a pin back or changeable bail in the same manner for a DIY jewelry brooch or pendant).

Questions? Please post them below!

How to make Lashed Kidney Wire Earrings – Featuring SWAROVSKI ELEMENTS

October 17, 2013

Lashed Earrings with SWAROVSKI ELEMENTS set rivoli stones image

“Shining Stars Lashed Earrings” are created with SWAROVSKI ELEMENTS; bicone beads and rivoli stones add sparkle.

Learn this simple wire-wrapping technique and how to use pinch-style rivoli settings with this free wire-lashing jewelry-making tutorial from Rings & Things. Continue Reading…

Make Fashionable Ear Cuff Jewelry

October 9, 2013

If you haven’t yet jumped on the ear cuff bandwagon, now’s your chance! Some ear cuff designs include an earring post to hold the design in place, but many of today’s styles work for both pierced and non-pierced ears, making them as versatile as they are trendy.

Customer service rep Tracy and Gallery guru Amy made the following Five Ear Cuffs to showcase some of the styles popping up.

Spikes Galore Ear Cuff

Handmade ear cuff featuring spike beads and sparkly glass.

Lightweight plastic spike bead assortments give this ear cuff pizzazz and drama!

How to Make Resin Jewelry featuring Piddix Images and SuperClear Resin

October 7, 2013

A heart-shaped bezel and Piddix image of music notes is featured in this cast resin necklace: Music Lover Necklace by Valorie Nygaard-Pouzar of www.rings-things.com

“Music Lover Necklace” by Valorie Nygaard-Pouzar features SuperClear Resin, a Piddix image, and an Amate heart-shaped bezel.

Resin jewelry is a great way to encapsulate an image; you can seal a Piddix image or even a photocopy of a cherished family photo under SuperClear resin. To get started just follow these step-by-step instructions.

Why we love SuperClear Resin:

non-toxic formula
crystal clear jewelry-grade formula with UV protectant to prevent yellowing
bubbles easily dissipate
low to no odor
20 minute working time
6-8 hour cure time at room temperature
no shipping restrictions — This resin can be shipped worldwide!

Free tutorial from www.rings-things.com - tools and supplies needed to make a Super Clear Resin and Bezel pendant featuring Piddix images.

Step 1: Gather the tools and supplies necessary to make your SuperClear Resin pendant.

You will need these tools and supplies:

24mm heart-shaped bezel
3.2mm ball chain
3.2mm ball chain clasp
Piddix collage sheet
Mixing cups
Stir sticks
SuperClear Resin
Disposable plastic cup
Lighter (use flame to draw out the bubbles)
Fine-point scissors
Optional paper sealer like Crafter’s Pick The Ultimate! adhesive (Piddix collage sheets are printed with a specialty ink and do not need to be pre-sealed or treated to resist bleeding)

Jewelry making tutorial: how to make a clear resin image pendant from www.rings-things.com. Cutting out the Piddix image.

Step 2: Cut out the image to match the size of the bezel’s interior opening.

Jewelry making tutorial: how to make a clear resin image pendant from www.rings-things.com. Adding the image to the bezel.

Step 3: Place the image into the bezel; it should fit snugly. If desired, you can glue the image in place with a water-based adhesive such as “The Ultimate!” glue; the same glue can be used to seal the image by painting a thin layer over the image. Allow to dry thoroughly.

Jewelry making tutorial: how to make a clear resin image pendant from www.rings-things.com. Measuring the resin.

Step 4: Use the calibrated cups to measure the resin and hardener according to the manufacturer’s instructions: mix 2 parts of resin (part A) to 1 part of hardener (part B).

Jewelry making tutorial: how to make a clear resin image pendant from www.rings-things.com -- measuring and mixing the resin.

Step 5: Gradually combine the hardener and resin in a disposable plastic cup.

Jewelry making tutorial: how to make a clear resin image pendant from www.rings-things.com -- stirring the resin.

Step 6: Mix by “folding” the resin and hardener together for two minutes; scrape the sides of the cup as you mix.

Jewelry making tutorial: how to make a clear resin image pendant from www.rings-things.com -- mixing SuperClear resin.

Step 7: Let the mixed resin “rest” for five minutes.

Jewelry making tutorial: how to make a clear resin image pendant from www.rings-things.com. Pour the resin into the bezel.

Step 8: Pour the resin slowly into your prepared bezel. Add resin until the bezel is full and is gently domed. Working on a small elevated work surface makes it easy to pivot and move the piece.

Jewelry making tutorial: how to make a clear resin image pendant from www.rings-things.com. Use a flame to rapidly raise bubbles to the surface.

Step 9: To aid in the dissipation of air bubbles, carefully hold a lit lighter above the surface of the resin; bubbles will quickly rise to the surface and burst. Once the resin is clear, set the pendant aside on a level surface and cover with an inverted container to prevent dust from settling on the resin. Allow to dry for approximately eight hours at room temperature.

If you would like to make the “Music Lover” Necklace, a list of the exact parts used can be found in the Rings & Things Design Gallery. For other resin jewelry tutorials, check out the Jewelry Design Gallery.

Make things!

Mollie

Beadalon® Wire Banding Pliers

August 20, 2013

The initial bends when trying to band wire together can be frustrating. I have tried every tool, hoping to find something that would accurately bend wire into two perfectly-placed right angle bends without marring it. Now there is a specialty tool made just for perfect double right angle bends — Beadalon Wire Banding Pliers!

I am a perfectionist in the jewelry I create, and the last thing I want to do is fight with the very beginning of the project and end up with scratched banding, or having the banding bend be just a little off. Not only is it frustrating, but the accuracy of the banding can make or break the entire piece.

This tool is very easy to use — now you can quickly create two right angle bends close together, so you can neatly band the remainder of your wires together. We have created the graphic tutorial below to help you to learn how to use these cool wire banding pliers.

Please visit our Design Gallery for 100’s of free jewelry projects / tutorials, but we apologize that as of 2015 during a site upgrade, the 2 wire wrapping projects projects below have retired.

Wire wrapped bracelet project using Beadalon Wire Banding Pliers

Drusilla’s Bracelet of Submission by Amy Scalise

Square Rose Ring by Valorie Nygaard-Pouzar

Although Rings & Things no longer sells any banding pliers, we’ve kept this infographic for those of you who already own some and need a quick refresher:

Make your wire bending projects easier with Beadalon Wire Banding Pliers

Beadalon Wire Banding Pliers Graphic Tutorial

How to Make a Lashed Chain & Leather Bracelet

July 2, 2013

Lashed wrapped leather bracelets aren’t just popular because they look great — they’re also a hit because once you know a couple tricks to get started, they are an easy and fun DIY jewelry project to make! A great twist on this hugely popular style is to lash chain instead of beads to leather cord. Read on to make your own leather and chain wrap bracelets! Continue Reading…

Create a Healing Shrine

June 6, 2013

Making handmade jewelry for someone is a unique and inspiring way to show you care. This “Healing Shrine” was created for a friend suffering from cancer. It was inspired by our new brass “window” blank shapes and a recent trip to Santa Fe, NM.

Healing Shrine

Each year, thousands of people pilgrimage to El Santuario de Chimayo seeking blessings. Many visitors take a small amount of “holy dirt” from the site, in hopes of a miraculous cure for themselves or someone who could not make the trip. I chose to encase my “holy dirt” in a glass portal, that I nested inside a brass reliquary. Following are instructions for how-to create this DIY jewelry design using stacked brass layers and cold connections.

First, envision your shrine and decide how you want it to look and feel. Decide on contents for your glass bottle. Unscrew the top loop from the cork in the glass vial. Measure, mark and punch holes for rivets (using the small side of the hole punch).

Stamp word “heal” on the metal band designed to hold the glass vial. Measure the band to ensure that it is going to fit.

Measure and bend metal band to fit glass vial

Using bail making pliers, bend the center of the band into a curved shape, leaving each end flat. Cut to shorten as needed. File the ends.

Arrange pieces and punch metal

Rivet the stamped metal band into place after double-checking that it will snugly hold the glass once it is assembled.

Punch holes and rivet band to hold bottle

Rivet the band into place (to hold the vial)

Insert tube rivets in holes between the front and back of shrine, stacking copper heishi trade beads between the layers (to fill the space and strengthen the connection between the top and bottom layers).