How to do a Herringbone Wire Wrap

September 30, 2011
Earrings made using a Herringbone Wire-wrapping Technique

Earrings made using a Herringbone Wire-wrapping Technique

Wire-wrapping has become my newest jewelry making addiction! I am always browsing the internet and looking for new inspiration and techniques that I have yet to master. My latest accomplishment was learning how to create the oh so complicated looking herring bone wrap. I have admired this style of wire wrapping for years but was always too intimidated to attempt it. A couple of weeks ago, I decided it was time to learn it. And guess what? It was really pretty easy! Now I will pass my knowledge on to you, fellow bloggers and bead addicts, so you too can feel that sweet satisfaction that comes from creating something new and beautiful! (not to mention the compliments you are sure to receive by your coworkers!)
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How to make "Cluster Earrings"

September 12, 2011

Around here I am kind of known as the “cluster earring girl”. I guess you could say it’s my signature. I just love to make earrings that resemble little bundle of grapes! Anytime I see a new bead, be it a keishi freshwater pearl or a hematite cube, I imagine, how would those look in cluster dangling from my ear?

Cluster Earrings with Cubic Zirconia Briolettes and Rainbow Sparkly Glass

I am going to show you how to make a basic cluster, using some sparkly glass beads. Once you get the basic “formula” down, the possibilities are really endless, and the results are always beautiful! You can embellish this style by adding charms, graduating the size of the beads, or mixing different materials. Clusters can be at the top of the earring, nested above a delicately wire-wrapped briolette, or they can be hanging from a focal bead or metal connector.

There are only a couple of steps to follow when it comes to making this type of earring.

Step 1. Choose a bead that has a size anywhere from about 3mm to 8mm. You can use a round, cube, chip, or rondelle shape; both smooth or faceted beads will work. Depending on how long you want the earrings you will need anywhere from 5 to 21 beads per earring.

Hemetite Cubes, Freshwater Pearls, Sparkly Glass Rounds and Rondelles

Step 2. Choose head pins. My favorite are ball-end, but any head pins will work. If you are doing a simple loop, 1″ headpins are long enough. If you would like to try a wrapped loop you will want 1.5″ or longer.

Ball end head pins are my favorite!

Step 3. Assemble your cluster pieces. Do this by putting one bead onto every headpin and securing with a loop. You can do a simple loop or for a fancier look try a wrapped loop. Use side-cutters to clip any excess wire and chain nose pliers to tuck the extra wire. Assemble all the beads on head pins, before you assemble the earrings.

Place beads on head pins first.

You will need side cutters to clip the excess wire

On the left are wrapped loops, on the right are simple loops. Either will work for this style of earring.

Step 4. Once you have all of your pieces made, you can begin assembling the clusters. To do this you will need jump rings. Smaller jump rings will create a tighter cluster, larger jump rings will make a looser, more airy cluster. I follow a very basic pattern for the assembly. On the first jump ring, place only one looped head pin. Add a jump ring and two more head pins, one on each side. Continue, forming a chain until you reach your desired length.

Attach one beaded head pin to a jump ring

Attach a second jump to the first jump ring and place two more beaded head pins

Keep building your cluster!

I used eleven beads on each earring.

Step 5. Attach ear wires! I sometimes I add one more looped head pin to the ear wire itself, though this step is not necessary. It’s that simple! (p.s. the earring wires I used are niobium! They are great for sensitive ears and will match your antique copper and antique brass earring designs!)

Attach earring wires and you are done! These completed earrings are the exact same, except one has small jump rings and one has larger jump rings.

Examples of Cluster Style Earrings

Well, I hope you enjoyed my tutorial 🙂 For more designs with “Cluster Style” check out the design gallery at our online store, Rings-things.com. If you have any questions about the beads I used for any of these earrings please leave a comment and I’ll get back to you as soon as possible! Happy Beading!

Tiffany @ The Rings and Things Showroom

Other great how-to blogs:

How to Wire-Wrap a Briolette

How to Make Wrapped Leather Bracelets

How to Dap and Dome Metal

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Inspired by this blog post?  Visit the Rings & Things Design Gallery for more inspiring “cluster earrings” designs!   The free jewelry-making instructions include a complete supply list!

“Tiny Dancer Earrings” Tutorial by Rings & Things designer Valorie Nygaard-Pouzar.

“Christmas Cluster Earrings” Tutorial by Rings & Things designer Rita Hutchinson.

“Mardi Gras Earrings” Tutorial by Rings & Things designer Tiffany White.

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Editor’s note: This had a few old & broken links, but since this is such a great Winter holiday jewelry design technique, the links are all freshly updated as of November 2019.
p.s. Here are some more Winter Holiday jewelry design ideas, and a slew of semi-formal / prom / bridal jewelry tutorials, too.

Affordable designer font stamps!

August 29, 2011

Fun fonts add more personality to stamped jewelry – even to stamped dog jewelry!

When stamped metal jewelry first became popular, most artists were limited to the basic block letters that were available in the market. But, wow, how things have changed! There are now many fonts available – fancy script fonts, playful lowercase fonts, swirly decorative fonts. How is a jewelry-maker to choose?

Well, one consideration is price. Our new font sets cost less than HALF the price of similar font sets on the market! Made by EuroTool, our quality stamp sets are available in five new fonts.

The letter ‘K’ on a brass heart with a crystal drop on antiqued ball chain. Simple and sweet!


Monogram – 6mm high ornate script capital letters. Perfect for initialing and monogramming charms and tags.

The next four fonts are available in both uppercase and lowercase, so you can stamp with proper capitalization even!

I used uppercase Verona on this pendant.

Verona – a curly serif font with bubbly personality.

I like how the letters aren’t quite the same size in the Siena font – makes it look much more natural.

Siena – an easy to read sans-serif font that looks like very neat handwriting.

All uppercase Highland letters on this dog tag.

Highlands – clean handwriting with a italic slant. Sans serif.

Aras – a whimsical, playful font. It reminds me of the ever-popular Comic Sans font, but with serifs.

Metal stamps make impressions in sheet metal. When you hammer, the stamp displaces metal. The thicker the metal, the less you will notice the movement of metal: all you’ll see is the indent left by your stamp. On thin pieces, you’ll likely see a shadow of the stamping on the backside, and the edges might get kind of wonky. Sterling silver, brass, copper and even aluminum can be personalized with metal stamps. 24 gauge or thicker is best, but 26 gauge works too, as long as you don’t get too close to the edges.

Want to get started with metal stamping, but don’t know where to start? Check out both our metal stamping tool kit and our metal stamping blanks assortment. The kit includes basic uppercase block letters. For maximum enjoyment, add a set of the above font stamps and/or a few design stamps! For step-by-step instructions on how to make a stamped charm from sheet metal, check out our free Metal Stamping 101 page or our free technique sheet here.

I messed up almost immediately on my test piece, but it makes me think the letter ‘D’ could make a great decorative border!

One last tip: be sure to keep your stamps organized. These artistic fonts are especially easy to mess up (is that an ‘a’ or an upside down ‘g’ ??). Since the stamps will arrive alphabetized, take a moment to write the letter for each one on the side that faces you while you stamp. A fine-tipped Sharpie works great! ~ Cindy

Editor’s note: That was 2011, and I’m updating this in 2018 to fix old links … we have even MORE fonts and 100’s of design stamps now! See our full line of metal stamps (letters, number, punctuation and design stamps), stamping blanks, and metal stamping tools & accessories. ~ Polly

A quick guide to beading needles

August 23, 2011

Hello, bloglandia! Today I finally decided to finish the ends of a flat braid I made with a square Kumihimo disk. I recently blogged how to finish the ends of round Kumihimo braids (versions of which can be made with either the square or the round disk). What stalled me on finishing my flat braid was lack of a needle.

It just takes a few quick stitches to secure the braid before you cut off the knot and add a cord end. Make sure to use thread that matches your project so you don’t notice the stitches.

Since the flat braid is well, flat, you need stitch through the braid to keep it from unraveling. Sadly, needles and I don’t get along too well. It is never the poor needle’s fault. It is my fault for not choosing the right needle. When you treat all needles the same, instead of appreciating their unique qualities and character quirks, you can quickly run into frustration.

So today when Amy loaned me a needle, warning me it was a size 15, I said, “oh, that’s fine!” even though I had no idea what she meant. After several frustrating minutes trying to thread the darn thing, I learned. Size 15 is tiny. Check out this great bead needle and thread size chart from New Native Nation. You gotta love Spudmama!

While I’d long suspected that beading needles must be different than regular sewing needles, now I know why. As Spudmama explains, beading needles don’t “bulge” around the eye – this is what allows them to pass through seed beads multiple times for bead stitching and bead weaving projects. The smaller the number, the bigger the needle. (ex. size 10 needles are larger than size 15). Plus, “sharps” are stiffer than standard beading needles. Therefore, the smaller the project, the tinier and flex-ier the needle should be.

So, if you need a needle for something other than seed beading (like finishing a flat braid or making a wrapped leather bracelet) I recommend using size 12 sharp beading needles since they are (relatively) large and sturdy.

I used “choker clamps” designed for flat ribbon, such as velvet and organza, to finish the ends of my braid. There are teeth inside the clamp, so once you flatten the clamp firmly with pliers, it won’t slide off.

If you are brave enough to make tiny seed bead jewelry, refer to Spudmama’s chart and stock up on aspirin and magnifying glasses! Oh, and needle threaders! ~ Cindy

How to transfer texture to metal with a hammer!

August 19, 2011

As promised, here are some photos and instructions on how to use brass texture plates to transfer beautiful patterns – pebbles, waves, flowers and more – onto other metal. With just a hammer, you can easily (but not quietly!) transfer the patterns from the brass sheets onto copper, aluminum, silver or even … brass. Transferring from brass to brass sounds silly – why not just cut up the texture sheet and use that? – but to texture pre-cut shapes, like these
brass fairy door and window cutouts, it makes total sense.

I love hammering metal because it is cheap, fast and fun. The results are similar to what you can achieve with a rolling mill (not cheap!) and etching (not fast!). Those techniques are fun though – we will post a tutorial on etching soon. But today, we hammer:

Tape your piece face-down onto the texture plate. Cover the entire piece with tape to avoid transferring a tape-seam along with your pattern.

Place the piece on a steel block and hammer away! Make sure to hit every little bit of your piece.

Pull back the tape part way to check the transfer. If there are any missing or faint spots, keep hammering.

The piece will likely get a bit misshapen as you whale away on it. Not to worry.

Once you are satisfied with the texture, remove the tape and use a rubber or rawhide mallet to flatten your piece again. You might also need to file the edges a bit.

Tada! Before and after hammer time.

When using a long strip of metal, like these pre-cut copper and brass bracelet strips, I just tape down one edge, texture up to the tape line and then turn the piece around to texture the other side. The strip will curl upwards as you work, but it is easy to flatten out.

The hammered texture on the back of the piece is a nice bonus, like on my copper bracelet.

To really bring out the high and low points in the texture, apply a patina such as liver of sulfur or Win-Ox and buff the high points with steel wool (note: these patinas do not work on aluminum).

Annealing (heating) your metal piece beforehand will make it easier to transfer the pattern, but as you can see, it isn’t necessary. Have fun hammering!

Torch-enameled components from C-Koop Beads!

August 16, 2011

Stackable enameled copper flowers from C-Koop Beads.

Fun, colorful enameled jewelry components are popping everywhere! I attribute the trend to talented artists whose business smarts have led them to develop enticing product lines of individual beads, gears and charms for designers to turn into finished jewelry. Just one or two enameled elements easily take a piece from ‘pretty’ to ‘pretty amazing.’

One such enamel artist is C-Koop Beads, aka Sara Lukkonen. Sara began making and selling enameled beads back in the 70’s. When she picked up the torch again in the 90’s (in her chicken coop of a studio!) her business expanded by leaps and bounds. Here are just a few of the components she creates:

So many colors of adorable little rings.

Three sizes of flat and domed disks.

Clasps, connectors, pendants and big-hole beads too!

If you are interested in doing your own enamel work, check out this how-to video from Enamel and Tiffany. It shows the entire torch-enameling process, plus does a great job of making it clear what types of tools and work space you will need. While the video focuses on beads, the process is similar for making other components. Check out our new selection of 18-gauge copper shapes – they are perfect for both torch enameling and etching!

While I know I would love enameling, I don’t have time or space for yet another addiction right now, so I opted to layer a couple of C-Koop flowers on a bracelet instead – yay for instant gratification! ~ Cindy

Black leather bolo cord made this triple-wrap bracelet super quick and easy to make! A 6mm SWAROVSKI ELEMENTS rondelle fit perfectly inside the purple enamel bead cap for a tiny bit of sparkle.

Top five reasons to come to the Rings and Things Anniversary Sale!

August 13, 2011

5. Red Tag Madness!!!
We have bins and bins of of marked down beading goodness! There are marked down gemstones, findings, pendants, glass beads and more! Get ready to dig! Oh and P.S. you get an additional 10% off all red tag times!

Tons O’ Red Tag Strands

Red Tag Resin Beads

4. Magical Gemstones Galore

We have beefed up our inventory of gemstones in preparation for our upcoming traveling Bead Show, but before we take all these goodies on the road, we wanted to give our local clientele a sneak peak!

Gemstone Maddness!

Gemstones in Jewel Tones

3. Free Demos

Curious about Riveting and Dapping? Perhaps you feel the need to see some jewelry making power tools in action? Want to solder but don’t know where to begin? Don’t fret, here at Rings and Things we have our experienced staff doing all these things and more!

Riveting and Dapping!

Soldering Demo

2. Tools, Tools, Tools!

In celebration of our 39th year in business we are giving you tools at a 15% discount! Come grab a new pair of pliers or wire-cutters so you ca throw that old pair out! There is nothing like a the feel of new tools in your hands!

“Don’t be a tool……buy some tools instead!”

And the number one reason to head down to the Rings and Things Anniversary Sale……….

1. The oh so Loveable Men of Rings and Things!

Josh, Ted and Lynn!

Oh and don’t forget Dan the Man!

Nate can help you carry out all your new tools and beads!

Anniversary Event!

August 11, 2011

As you may know it is our 39th Anniversary! Hip Hip Hooray! We have been frantically rushing to get all our goodies ready for our beadaholic customers. Here are some of the great things we have going on in celebration of our 39 years!

Resin Flowers and Birds:

So many colors and shapes to choose from!

With twenty colors and twenty styles available, the possibilities are endless! Make easy post earrings, cute little bobby pins or linked bracelets! Just glue using Beadfix or a little E-6000. A garden of possibilities awaits you 🙂

Easy to make earrings, rings, bracelets and bobby pins!

Bracelets, Bracelets and more Bracelets:

We have so many bracelets it’s insane! In fact, we had to dedicate several tables to these cascading, sparkly glass bracelets. Keep them as is, or take them apart and use the beads to make your own creations! Either way, the price can’t be beat, $4.00 a piece or $3.00 a piece if you buy 10 or more!

Bracelets galore!

Sparkly glass bracelets make great gifts!

Czech Glass Island:

The Czech Republic may not have tropical beaches, but they do have some of the best glass beads around! So we figured why not fill up a swimming pool full of Czech glass beads and sell them for $3.00 a strand! It’s glass island!

Take a dip in our pool full of Czech glass!

Simply Swank:

Soldering made easy with Simply Swank Soldering Tools!

If you have always wanted to solder, but have been too scared to try, we have a solution! Simply Swank Soldering tools make soldering easy as pie. Come stop by the showroom and see Rita create soldering magic.

Simply Swank Soldering Irons and Accessories

Well, that’s just a sampling of all the goodness happening here at the Rings & Things Anniversary Event! Hope to see you down here!

Prepping for the big Anniversary Event (August 12-13)

August 10, 2011

Josh is busy organizing all of the discounted strands – our entire truck bay is full of them!

39 years…that’s how long Rings & Things has been in business! Tomorrow our Spokane showroom will be closed in order to finish preparations for this weekend’s big anniversary celebration. Here’s a sneak peek at a few of the lovelies that will be available starting Friday – doors open at 10 am!

Fancy faceted tourmaline in shades of watermelon.

A great selection of turquoise!

Super sunny citrine.

Mini gemstone donuts – the perfect size for earrings and bracelets!

A basket full of bundled cloth bangles.

Event hours are from 10-4 both Friday and Saturday, and there are a variety of demos going on throughout our warehouse. The anniversary event is the perfect time to get your questions about metal stamping, metal clay, soldering and other jewelry-making techniques answered!

If you need to stock up on findings, chain and other essential regular stock items, save time by placing a showroom will-call order now, so it will be ready for you to pick up at the sale.

Hope to see you there!