New Jewelry A Day

Thursday, December 23, 2010

Make a Beaded Bracelet with Copper Pipe & Wire

Before: Copper Pipe

We've demonstrated use of copper pipe before. We made copper pipe into a bangle bracelet and we made copper pipe into a neck-ring. With a 25-foot coil, we still have a lot of copper pipe left. This project turns the copper pip into beads for use in a link bracelet.

Materials
Copper Pipe
16-gauge copper wire

Tools
Jewelry Saw & blades
220-grit wet/dry sandpaper
WigJig
Wire wrapping tools
Wire Rounder , needle files or cup burr and flex shaft
Tumbler and stainless steel shot
Renaissance Micro-Crystalline Wax Polish

Step 1
Measure the copper pipe and mark where you plan to cut. We made the copper beads about 1/2 inch long.

Step 2
Straighten the pipe. It is easier to cut a straight line and make the same size beads if the copper pipe is straight.

Step 3

Use a jewelry saw to cut the pipe into beads. The number of beads you need will depend on the size bracelet you are making.

Step 4
Use 220-grit wet/dry sandpaper to sand the edges of the pipe very smooth.

Step 5
Slide the copper bead onto 16-gauge round copper wire. Bend the wire to create a "U" shaped link. We used a WigJig to be sure the links were all the same. You can make your own jewelry jig using scrap wood and nails or you can form the links by had using simple wire wrapping tools. Sand the edges of the copper wire using a wire rounder, needle files or a cup burr and a flex shaft or rotary tool.

Step 6

Assemble the links.

Step 7
Make the clasp and attach the clasp to the bracelet.

Step 8
Tumble the bracelet in stainless steel shot to harden the wire and burnish the copper beads. Take care when you remove the bracelet from the tumbler as some of the stainless steel shot may hide inside the beads.

Bracelet on Cookie Sheet After Baking

Step 9
Add color. We placed the completed copper bracelet onto a paper towel on a cookie sheet and put the bracelet in the oven at 475 degrees Farenheit for five minutes and the copper wire turned a lovely red and the copper beads developed a really nice iridescent sheen.

Step 10
Coat the bracelet with Renaissance Wax to protect the patina.

After: Bracelet by GeltDesigns.com

Wednesday, December 22, 2010

Make a Giant LEGO® Necklace

Before: LEGO® in the toy box

Ever since I saw the incredible jewelry by Emiko Oye in her "My First Royal Jewels Jewellery Collection", I wanted to make a giant LEGO® necklace. Sure I have made small jewelry projects using LEGO® before. One of my professors in art school even required the class to use LEGO® in at least one "design challenge".

We demonstrated some easy earrings made from odd LEGO® parts rescued from the toy box last month....but my kids really, really love LEGO® and they have a lot of LEGO® so the challenge was on. Yesterday, my daughter and I dumped out our big box of LEGO® and began making the LEGO® into a large all LEGO® necklace.

Inspiration

Like Emiko Oye, we took our inspiration from jewelry found in museums. In our case, we were particularly inspired by this emerald necklace made by Cartier, Inc. in 1928-29 and donated by Marjorie Merriweather Post to the Smithsonian in 1964. The necklace is on permanent display in the Janet Annenberg Hooker Hall of Geology, Gems, and Minerals at the Museum of Natural History. (A pendant removed from the necklace before it was donated to the Smithsonian was made into a brooch that is in the Hillwood collection, also in Washington, DC).

Materials
LEGO®
Glue

After: LEGO® Necklace by GeltDesigns.c

Step 1
Sort through the LEGO® and find the pieces you find interesting.

Step 2
Begin arranging the pieces into a pattern you like. Play when you do this. Try different looks.

We created a frame for the necklace from black LEGO® and then started adding parts.

Step 3
Add a drop of glue in strategic places of the necklace frame so the necklace can be worn. Add additional glue if you want the necklace to be permanent. Be cautious with the glue so the necklace can be moved and rearranged for maximum fun. Be sure to leave the back portion free from glue so you have a clasp for the necklace.

Related Tutorials
Make LEGO® Earrings

Further Reading
"The LEGO Book"; Daniel Lipkowitz; 2009.
"The Unofficial LEGO Builder's Guide"; Allan Bedford; 2005.
"Fabulous Jewelry from Found Objects: Creative Projects, Simple Techniques (Lark Jewelry Books)"; Marthe Le Van; 2007.
"Junk to Jewelry: A Step-by-Step Guide to Using Found Objects in Jewelry You Can Actually Wear"; Brenda Schweder; 2007.
"Beaded Jewelry with Found Objects: Incorporate Anything from Buttons to Shells"; Carole Rodgers; 2004.

New & Noteworthy
"Jewelry from Found Objects"; Heather Skowood; 2011.

Day 32. Week 5. Month 2. Jewelry from Found Objects. $ spent: 0
Found materials: LEGO®
New Jewelry a Day.

Tuesday, December 21, 2010

Make a Bib Necklace from Washers

Before: Box of Copper Washers

A box of washers and some wire from the hardware store are great sources of relatively inexpensive jewelry making materials. We have a lot of washers around our studio as we often use them when we teach stamping and other jewelry making classes. We also use a lot of copper and brass wire as "practice" wire in our wire wrapping classes.

As far as I am concerned, playing with the washers and arranging them into different designs is half the fun. Schools are out and my daughter and I spent a whole day in the studio just playing. We arranged different sized washers, made different style links and used different gauge wire to make the links before we arrived on a design that we liked. We held up different materials to decide if we wanted our necklace to be all copper, two-tone or even three-tone by adding brass or sterling silver (or both). So many choices! So many roads left to explore at a later date!

We both decided we wanted an all copper necklace and we wanted it to be shiny.

After: Copper Bib Necklace by GeltDesigns

Materials
18-gauge copper wire
25 5/16-inch copper washers
9 7/16-inch copper washers

Tools
Doming block and dapping punches
Hammer
Round nose pliers or 3-Step wire looping pliers
Chain nose or bent nose pliers
Wire rounder or needle file
Wire side cutters or flush cutters
Tumbler

Step 1
Select the washers and arrange the washers into the design you like.

Step 2

Select the wire you want to use and decide the type of link you want. We tried "S" links and "B" links. We also tried using 18-gauge and 16-gauge wire before deciding on our design.

Step 3

Form the washers using the doming block and daps. Forming the washers gives them more deapth and dimension. Hammering the metal also work hardens the washers.

Step 4

Make the clasp. We made a hook style clasp and used the last washer as the eye.

Step 5
Make the links and begin linking the formed washers. We originally began using "B" links because we liked the clean look, but we found the "B" links more difficult to use so we removed them and used "S" links instead.

We found it easier to link rows of washers first and then link the rows together. We also found it easiest to begin at the bottom of the necklace and work up rather than the reverse.

Step 6
After linking rows, begin linking each row together on the outside of the pyramid. Then link the interior washers.

Stop and check to wee hoe the necklace hangs from time to time as you work to be sure all the washers have been attached on the correct side and in the correct pattern.

Continue linking the washers until the necklace is complete and then add the clasp.

Step 7
Check the necklace for spots that are still sharp (we may have missed sanding certain spots on the washers or wire ends when fabricating each piece). Sand or file as needed to remove remaining rough edges.

Step 8
Tumble the necklace in a tumbler using stainless steel shot, water and a drop or two of dishwasher detergent.

Related Tutorials
How to Dome Metal
Make Your Own Hook & Eye Clasp

Copper Bib Necklace by GeltDesigns

How to Make a Simple "S" Clasp (with or without Beads)
Make Your Own "S" Clasp
Make Your Own "S" Chain

How to Use Metal Stamps

Further Reading
"Contemporary Copper Jewelry: Step-by-Step Techniques and Projects"; Sharilyn Miller; 2009.
"Copper Art Jewelry: A Different Luster"; Matthew L. Burkholz, Linda Lichtenberg Kaplan.
"Mixed Metals: Creating Contemporary Jewelry with Silver, Gold, Copper, Brass, and More"; Danielle Fox, Melinda Barta; 2009.
"Weave, Wrap, Coil: Creating Artisan Wire Jewelry"; Jodi Bombardier; 2010.

Day 31. Week 5. Month 2. Jewelry from Found Objects. $ spent: 0
Found materials: hardware, copper washers, copper wire
New Jewelry a Day.