Posts Tagged ‘jewelry making’

Deal of the Week: Jewelry Making Starter Kit

Tuesday, September 4th, 2012

I’m always eager to add more pieces to my jewelry collection. Flipping through fashion magazines and Pinterest style boards makes me feel like I can never have enough accessories! But I know from experience that it can be expensive to maintain a stylish jewelry collection, even when you shop at discount stores. So I’ve been thinking, instead of buying new jewelry, why don’t I just make the pieces that I need to complete my wardrobe? If that sounds like a good idea to you too, you’ll love our Deal of the Week! This week only, the Darice Jewelry Making Starter Kit is on sale for only $18.99.

Deal of the week Deal of the Week: Jewelry Making Starter Kit

The Darice Jewelry Making Starter Kit comes with everything you need to start making your own jewelry at home. The designers of this kit have thought of absolutely everything, from tools to materials to a 30-page instruction booklet that tells you how to use it all. The kit includes a flocked bead board and flocked bead mat. The bead board has indents with measurement guidelines, so you can lay out a sequence of beads of the correct length in a pattern that you like before stringing them onto a wire or chain. The flocked bead mat (which has a velvety surface), keeps the beads from rolling all over the place while you are beading.

Deal of the week 1 Deal of the Week: Jewelry Making Starter Kit

In addition to mats and boards, the Darice Jewelry Making Starter Kit includes a 3-in-1 beading tool that does the job of wire cutters, crimpers, and pliers. It also provides a needle threader for stringing seed beads, a bead tweezer for picking up tiny beads, a number of beading needles, and a jump ring tool, so you should have no trouble making almost any kind of bracelet, earring, or necklace you can dream up!

Of course, the fun part of the Jewelry Making Starter Kit is all the materials! This kit comes with over 250 beads and spacers in a variety of colors and finishes. These beads can be used on a huge assortment of jewelry-making foundations. The kit provides four memory-wire bracelets, 4 yards of stretchy cord, 3 yards of clear elastic, and 100 yards of nylon cording, so you can make as many bracelets and necklaces as you can imagine. It also includes 44 earring findings, so you can make a total of 22 pairs of earrings. A collection of jump rings, pin backs, and clasps rounds out the collection of jewelry making supplies. You will also receive 5 zippered bags to organize your creations.

Get the Darice Jewelry Making Starter Kit for only $18.99 this week. That’s 37% off the original price of $29.99 and an incredible value for all the materials included in the kit. Order this week to take advantage of this deal!

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Deal of the Week: Jewelry Basics Class in a Box Kit

Monday, July 30th, 2012

As you’re browsing the aisles of your local jewelry department searching for a new accessory, you might not realize how easy it is to make one yourself! I certainly had no idea I could make jewelry until one of my coworkers taught me how. It’s so easy to make jewelry; you just need the right supplies to get started. This week’s Deal of the Week is a wonderful way to teach yourself how to make jewelry, and it’s on sale for only $14.99.

Deal of the week4 Deal of the Week: Jewelry Basics Class in a Box Kit

The Jewelry Basics Class in a Box Kit has everything you need to start creating your own jewelry. The most important tool to have is a pair of jewelry pliers. This kit includes a 3-in-1 pair of jewelry pliers so you can do a variety of jewelry projects without having to purchase a whole arsenal of tools. It also includes an 8″ x 8″ bead mat which keeps your beads from rolling off the table while you are working. This specific Jewelry Basics Class in a Box Kit includes the supplies you need to make gold and copper earrings. You will find an assortment of beads, as well as gold and copper findings (findings are the hooks used to make earrings).

The Jewelry Basics Class in a Box Kit also includes a project booklet with instructions for making 10 different pieces of jewelry. This jewelry kit is perfect for someone who wants to learn how to make beautiful metal earrings with bead accents. With just this one kit, you’ll have 10 lovely new pairs of earrings to wear with all your outfits. These earrings are pretty enough for special occasions, but you can wear them every day too. You can’t buy earrings this inexpensive in a department store!

This week only, the Jewelry Basics Class in a Box Kit is on sale for only $14.99, a 40% discount off the original price of $24.99. Order your Jewelry Basics Class in a Box Kit today, and you’ll save $10!

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Sizzling Summer Trends: Making Beaded Barefoot Jewelry

Monday, June 25th, 2012

Anklets are old news. This summer, it’s all about making beaded barefoot jewelry! Have you seen these DIY “toe thongs”? They’re like beaded macrame bracelets, but for your feet! Hey, why should your feet be left out on the accessorizing fun? All you need are some basic supplies (luckily, CutRateCrafts can help us there) and some patterns for inspiration, and you’re ready to make this summer’s most sizzlin’ jewelry trend.

DIYBeadedBarefootJewelry Sizzling Summer Trends: Making Beaded Barefoot Jewelry

There are many different ways to make beaded barefoot sandals, but one of my favorite ways is to use macrame, like in the pattern shown above. Macrame is the quintessential summer jewelry-making technique. It’s quick and easy to do, it’s strong and sturdy, and it just screams “summer,” so it’s perfect for making beaded barefoot jewelry. CutRateCrafts has a huge selection of colored hemp cord, so you can go bold with bright colors, earthy with bohemian colors, soft and feminine with pastels, or subtle and sophisticated with neutrals. The choice is yours! Here are some of my favorites:

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Once you’ve got your hemp picked out, the only thing you need is your beads. You can use pretty much any beads you want for making beaded barefoot jewelry, as long as the hole is big enough for your hemp cord to fit through. You can go with all one color or style, or you could mix and match for an eclectic look. And if you can’t decide, just make multiple pieces! Here are some beads I think would be perfect for making beaded barefoot jewelry:

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That’s all you need! Now check out this free pattern for making beaded barefoot jewelry from AllFreeJewelryMaking, and you’re ready to get in on this foot-tastic fashion trend. Pair your beaded barefoot jewelry with flip flops or sandals for a fun summer look!

What are your favorite fun summer crafts?

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Deal of the Week: 150 Colors of Embroidery Floss

Monday, April 23rd, 2012

Most of my childhood crafting memories are closely associated with my mom’s boxes of embroidery floss. Impeccably organized and radiant with every color of the rainbow, the rows of cardboard spools held so much possibility. I learned to cross-stitch with individual plies from each strand of floss, used my favorite colors to make friendship bracelets, and decorated my sewing projects with embroidery designs. To a crafty, domesticated child like me, a box of embroidery floss was better than a box of crayons. If you too find yourself more excited by a spectrum of threads than by a case of markers or a set of paints, then this Deal of the Week is for you! For the next seven days only, you can get a giant pack of 150 different skeins of embroidery floss for only $11.95. You can’t get a better deal!

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This package of 150 Embroidery Floss Skeins includes everything you need to start your own collection of embroidery floss. Each skein is 8 meters of 100% cotton thread, and each thread is made up of six strands, so you can use as many strands as you need to create delicate or bold designs. The package also includes white cardboard spools for winding the floss. Take a cue from my incredibly organized mother and write the number of the shade on top of each spool. Since many cross-stitch and embroidery patterns are coded for specific colors, writing the code on the spools will make it much easier to find the color you need!

If you bought each of these skeins of embroidery floss individually, you could spend up to $150! That’s an outrageous amount to spend on just thread, especially when you can get this package of 150 threads for only $11.95. That’s 40% off the original price and a savings of $8.00. This deal is only running until the end of the week, so make sure you order your Super Giant Pack of Embroidery Floss today!

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Make a Pressed Flower Pendant Necklace!

Wednesday, March 21st, 2012

It’s the first official week of spring, which means a new crafting season is underway! I’m more than ready for all things spring: pastels, butterflies, rainbows, flowers–you name it! I say let’s kick off the craft season with a super simple and sweet jewelry making project that you can wear with all your favorite warm weather fashions.

I’ve always loved pressed flower jewelry, but I never knew how easy it is to make! We have a new tutorial posted on AllFreeBeadedJewelry that shows you exactly how to make your very own pressed flower pendant with just a few simple steps and supplies. I found everything I need for this project on CutRateCrafts for super cheap, so now I can make necklaces for me and all my friends!

PressedFlowerPendantVideoTutorial Make a Pressed Flower Pendant Necklace!

 

490378 main Make a Pressed Flower Pendant Necklace!Maybe you want to preserve your favorite blossom from your garden, or maybe you want to make a keepsake pendant with a flower from an old prom corsage or wedding bouquet. This project would be perfect for either of those ideas! But if you just can’t bear to pluck one of your precious blooms, you can always use faux flowers too! Plus, if you buy a pack of fake flowers, you have extra to make more pendants!

 

159047 main Make a Pressed Flower Pendant Necklace!Once you’ve picked out your flower, you need a bezel to set it in. There are many different options for bezels: square or round, silver or gold, shiny or shabby. I personally like the shabby industrial look of this square copper bezel, but choose whatever style or color goes best with the flower you’re setting. You also may want to select a shiny scrapbook paper or card stock to set behind the flower. I like the shiny metallic paper used in this tutorial.

 

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You’ll want to glue your paper and flower down first using some kind of adhesive or jewelry glue. Then once your flower is in place, all you have to do is stick an epoxy dot over it. So simple! Epoxy dots are just like stickers, so it’s completely hassle free. Just make sure you buy one that fits your bezel!

 

 

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And that’s it! That’s really all it takes to make your own pressed flower pendant. Just string your bezel on a piece of satin ribbon, or a cord or chain if you prefer, and you have a brand new spring accessory to wear this season. You can find the full written instructions and a video tutorial for this free jewelry making project over at AllFreeBeadedJewelry.com and all the supplies you need at CutRateCrafts!

 

Would you make this pressed flower pendant? Tell us what you think!

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Designer DIY on a Dime: Knockoff Jewelry Making Tutorials

Thursday, March 1st, 2012

I’m one of those people who goes shopping, looks at the jewelry, and thinks, “I could totally make that.” Does that sound like you too? When I’m browsing a trendy boutique that has cute but completely overpriced jewelry, I can’t help but think, “How hard could it be to pull that off?” I’m a thrift queen, and I just can’t justify spending $40, let alone $100, on most pieces of jewelry I see. And with all the designer knockoff jewelry projects that are floating around the blogosphere these days, there’s no reason I have to!

AnthroEndlessStrand Designer DIY on a Dime: Knockoff Jewelry Making TutorialsTake this Anthropologie inspired necklace, for example. Anthro probably charged some outrageous price for their version of this necklace, when really it doesn’t take much to make! With the help of some satin ribbon, large beads, and seed beads, you could make this necklace yourself! I think this one looks just as good as the original, if not better. And the best part is, you can make it in any color you like! I’m thinking red…150809 main Designer DIY on a Dime: Knockoff Jewelry Making Tutorials

 

 

 

AnthropologieInspiredBeadedHeadband Designer DIY on a Dime: Knockoff Jewelry Making TutorialsCute headbands are everywhere lately, but some of my favorites are just too expensive to buy. Luckily, I found this knockoff headband tutorial, another Anthropologie inspired one, that is totally DIY-able. I mean, what’s easier than hot glue? Once you have some felt sheets or scraps, some pretty pearl beads (or 203227 main Designer DIY on a Dime: Knockoff Jewelry Making Tutorialswhichever kind of beads you want to use), and some jewelry wire, and you’re already halfway there! Just glue away, and soon you’ll have a handmade headband that looks boutique-worthy.

 

 

 

WrappedRhinestoneandChainBracelet Designer DIY on a Dime: Knockoff Jewelry Making TutorialsI’ve been seeing tons of thread-wrapped style bracelets, like this wrapped rhinestone and chain bracelet here. The price tags can run pretty high for bracelets like these in stores. But these are so much easier to make than they look. All you need is some embroidery thread in any color of your choosing (I like the 022976 main Designer DIY on a Dime: Knockoff Jewelry Making Tutorialsbrightly colored ones best), a strand of rhinestones, and a chunky chain, and then you just wrap! It’s that simple!

 

 

See? No need to shell out the big bucks to get cute designer jewelry when making it yourself is so simple! And luckily, all the supplies needed for these projects are pretty cheap, especially through CutRateCrafts. Any one of these easy jewelry making projects would cost just a few bucks to make, when the designer version might be $100 or more! Seems like a no-brainer to me. Why not get started making your own DIY knockoff jewelry today?

 

Have you ever made any designer-inspired jewelry? How much was the original, and how much did you save?

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5 Great Books: Learn Beading Basics

Tuesday, January 24th, 2012

Jewelry making is one of the most diverse craft techniques, which keeps the craft challenging and fun. I’ve been making jewelry for many years and still don’t have a favorite technique as I love the inspiration of having so many choices, like stringing, stitching, and assembly. There is a technique for everyone, from those of us who like simple, to those of use who enjoy intricate details.

ChainandSeed 5 Great Books: Learn Beading Basics

You can really create unique, one of a kind, personalized jewelry pieces for yourself and to give as gifts. Besides, you can never have too many earrings, bracelets, necklaces, and rings! I’ve compiled a list of 5 of my top jewelry basics books for you. These are must-haves and cover a wide range of jewelry techniques. The projects are awesome and the instructions easy to follow, and there are lots of illustrations and photos to help guide you. Enjoy!

Five Beading Basics Books

The Basics of Bead Stringing by Debbie Kanan is a wonderfully illustrated step-by-step book for the beginner with some great pieces to make for the more advanced beader too.

The Basics of Bead Stringing 5 Great Books: Learn Beading Basics

Bead Crochet Basics by Mary Libby Neiman has some great projects that combine crochet with beading, including bracelets, necklaces, and even scissor fobs.

Bead Crochet Basics 5 Great Books: Learn Beading Basics

Enjoy the traditional crafty jewelry technique of safety pin jewelry with Friendship Safety Pins by Delores Frantz. You can make holiday, school spirit, and more with this book. Think of it as string beading with safety pins as your bead wire or thread. Fun!

Friendship Safety Pins 5 Great Books: Learn Beading Basics

Bead Tube Jewelry by Nancy Zellers teaches you to bead a bead! You’ll learn the Peyote and brick stitch to create over 30 different necklaces, bracelets, and earrings. Both of these stitches are the basic stepping stone to creating an amazing array of jewelry.

Bead Tube Jewelry 5 Great Books: Learn Beading Basics

Simply Charms from Lark Crafts is simply a charmed book about creating some awesome pieces of jewelry using (wait for it…) charms! Charms are one of the easiest ways to learn basic jewelry techniques like jump rings. You can have a piece of sophisticated jewelry in minutes.

 Simply Charms 5 Great Books: Learn Beading Basics

Don’t know what tools and supplies you’ll need? Read 15 Important Items for your Jewelry Tool Box for everything you need to get started making your own jewelry.

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Dabbling in Metal Jewelry

Tuesday, November 1st, 2011

I don’t know how many of you know this, but in addition to writing for this lovely blog I am the editor of AllFreeBeadedJewelry.com, a sister site to CutRateCrafts.com.  The reason I’m telling you this is because I recently did a small giveaway on Facebook for one of the products we sell on CutRateCrafts. It was this great little 19-page book called “Metal Jewelry 101: Stylish Pieces with Embossed Metal Textured Mesh Beads and Wire” and I have to admit, it was pretty hard to let it go.

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I’s a book full of great simple beginner metalworking projects, which is perfect for me since I’m fascinated and intimidated by metal at the same time. Luckily, it’s only about $8 on CutRateCrafts, so I can easily pick up a copy for myself and you can too!

The projects in here are so fun! Just what I’ve been wanting to do with metal jewelry.  This book teaches you techniques for layering and weaving different sheets of metal as well as texturing and coloring sheet metal. There is a gorgeous purple flower project that I just have to try. It involves cutting the petal shapes and then painting them a gorgeous teal and purple. Who knew it was so easy to paint on metal?

There is also a project that involves texturing and coloring a sheet of metal and then rolling it to form gorgeous blue beads. All of the project instructions are accompanied with beautiful full-color photographs, making it easy to follow along with every step.

Even though the book is only 19 pages, the project instructions are beautifully compacted so often times you find two projects on one page.

Anyway, I immediately decided I needed to make some projects out of this book and picked up a copy along with some necessary supplies.

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Of course, anytime you want to start working with metal jewelry you will need some wire and some sheet metal. So I decided to go with some of these fun options. I love the look of copper wire, but I thought it might be fun to experiment with some colored wire too. And you can’t make metal jewelry without metal, this tube of sheet metal looked like the perfect starter metal I would need.

Anyway, I’m off to start creating! What about you? Do you make metal jewelry?

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The Essential Jewelry Making Tools

Tuesday, October 11th, 2011

Maggie here from AllFreeBeadedJewelry.com with come quick jewelry tool suggestions. If you are seriously thinking about picking up jewelry, whether it be as a hobby or a profession, there are certain basic things that every jewelry maker cannot live without. What are they you ask? Beads? Wire? Metal? Nope. Well, okay those are handy to have around too, but the things you’ll find yourself needing with every type of jewelry making are tools. Plain and simple.

The number one tool every jewelry maker needs to have handy is a pair of pliers. Some of those jewelry bits and pieces are tiny and my fingers are not nimble enough to always do it on my own. I can’t tell you how many beads I’ve lost because I was trying to do it without a pair of pliers. They help open jump rings, hold beads steady, and just about everything in between. How could you live without them?! Bent Nose Pliers are extremely handy to have around for chainmaille, but I’ve lived without them for a while and am doing just fine. Then again, I don’t really mess around with chainmaille. Too formulaic for my tastes.
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Next up: Crimping Pliers! Yup, totally necessary for all your stringing projects. Crimp beads make stringing necklaces, bracelets and even simple rings the easiest jewelry projects in the world.
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Finally, last up on my list of must-have pliers are round nose pliers and wire cutters. If you work with wire you will agree with me that these are essential to making the perfect curves and loops. I don’t know how I would make my own findings without these. Making this Garden Gate Clasp would have been impossible. Also, you don’t want to ruin a pair of your best scissors by cutting wire. Trust me, I like learning things the hard way.

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These next two are more for those of you who regularly work with wire or metal (my favorite!). Disclaimer: I am new to working with both wire and metal, but these are the tools that I think to myself “I need one of those” every single time. Number 1: A hammer. Yup, sounds simple right? Well you don’t think about how many things you can’t do, design wise, without one until you are trying to make something. I fixed that right away. Number 2: Metal Hole Punch. I got along for a long time with a nail and a hammer, but let me tell you, these make life so much easier.

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So there you have it. My little catalog of must-have jewelry items. Now I know not everyone will need to use all of these, but if you like to dabble in a little bit of everything like I do each one of these tools will come in handy often enough to make them worth it.

 

Do you already have some of these in your tool box? What is your go-to jewelry tool?

 

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Musings in Glass

Tuesday, October 4th, 2011

Have you ever really looked at a lampwork bead? They are the most gorgeous little multi-layered creations. I always have had so much respect for glass makers and would love to take a glass making class myself, but have never really been able to find the time. However, working on www.AllFreeBeadedJewelry.com has been great because I’ve found some amazingly clear and detailed lampwork bead tutorials online that make me think I could get away with doing it myself. But that’s another time and financial commitment I don’t know if I can handle right now. What I can handle? Awesome bracelets, necklaces, and earrings made with someone’s ready-made beautiful beads! Yup. I’d rather buy them and see what I can make out of them for now. And as much as I love access to 100′s of free projects (who doesn’t love free?!), sometimes it’s nice to have a nice book full of ideas in front of you.

I wanted to share my two favorites for glass bead projects with you guys. First up is Art Bead Jewelry  – Seasons in Glass. I have to say that I like everyone of these 25 projects and that’s hard to say a lot of the time. The step-by-step instructions are very clear and easy to follow so even the more complicated looking projects I can do without a sweat. I love how they tried to incorporate glass beads in all shapes and sizes so that you can have a variety of projects to make.

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Number two, in no specific order, is Glass Bead Jewelry Projects by Nelli Rees. This one has some gorgeous projects that I would selfishly give as gifts so that everyone could marvel at my handiwork. (Yes, I am that vain). The projects vary in difficulty so you can pick this book up as a beginner and put it down doing advanced jewelry making. There are also tips on setting up your own workshop if jewelry making is more than a hobby to you. I highly recommend this one for glass lovers.

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I’m a big fan of finding local glass bead artists to buy from, but those beads can end up costing a pretty penny. If you’re looking to make some cute and quick jewelry for yourself or a friend CutRateCrafts has some great glass options to fit everyone’s budget.

 

Do you make glass beads or jewelry using glass beads? Where do you find your inspiration?

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