wrapped and curled into beautiful shapes
and forms ... around beads and semi-
precious stones ... however, just sometimes,
it's nice to be able to make simple
STUD EARRINGS
for everyday wear, or to complement
a fancy, designer necklace!
Without a dangly bit in sight!
Above, you will see various pierced earring designs
(some of which incorporate beads).
You can create them
out of one piece of
wire, or glue an
earring back to
the base.
I have chosen two different studs to demo, one
plain wire one and one with a bead ... and if you want
to know more ... please ask for further tutorials!
This random 'WWS' - Wire Wiggle Stud (above), could be made
with a flat diamante sparkle glued to the central spiral, (or, you can
integrate a bead at the centre for extra colour).
This is a quick, fun project to try with some Sterling silver or
Gold wire of 0.8mm/0.9mm (20-gauge) wire.
1. Cut 2 x 4" (10cm) lengths of silver wire
and using either some fine sandpaper, a jeweller's
needle file, or a cup bur (in a pin vice) ... make sure
the end of each length has a smooth finish (as this is
going to go through the ear).
2. Next, using your flat nosed pliers, bend the ends (which are
now smooth) into a right angle to the rest of the stem. You need
to bend about 1cm in, or however long you wish your ear
post to be.
3. Go to the
opposite end
of each of
the wires and
begin creating
a very
tight spiral.
4. Once you've made the spirals on each, begin using your chain
nosed pliers to create random, angular bends in the wire. Try and
work on each piece together and in stages, to make them look
fairly similar - don't worry though ... a little irregularity, will add
unique, bespoke, handcrafted originality!!!
5. Once the wire starts running out, bend it back behind the
central spirals, so that the posts are positioned behind.
6. Straighten the back posts so that they are at right angles
to the front and then, you can place the corner ends
of the frame on a steel block and hammer the edges to
work harden and flatten. Now all that's required, are
'butterfly' backs, or stoppers!
And if you want
a little colour ...
stick on some
'bling'!
*********************************
Next, for another STUD tutorial! Yup! You get 2 for the price of NONE!
This one incorporates a bead and is perfect to create for a matching
decorative necklace.
So, get together your jewellery pliers and cutters ...
To make a 'CBS' (Caged Bead Stud) choose 2 beads,
(I used 2 x 8mm beads), some 0.8mm - 20 gauge silver
(plate, or precious), pierced post ear back findings and
butterfly backs ... not forgetting some strong glue:
E6000 or Superglue.
1. Working directly from a spool, create a tight wire spiral
that is just slightly bigger than the circumference of your
chosen bead.
2. Cut the wire from the spool, leaving about 2" -
5cm projecting.
3. Push the tips of your pliers into the centre of the spiral to
stretch and elevate the coils, leaving a flat spiral base on which
you can later glue your earring post.
4. Pick up the projecting end of wire and spiral this into an
open scroll until it sits (like a lid) above your cage.
the bead within. The image above shows the caged bead from
the front and back.
6. Using strong glue, such as E6000 or Superglue, secure
a ready made post finding to the back of your cage.
P.Sssssss ... you can always change the bead colour to
match any outfit by opening the cage and popping
a new bead inside!!
