After Eight Cuff

About

You Will Need (8 things)

Steps (13 steps, 60 minutes)

1. 1

   Making a basic loop

   Thread bead/s onto the headpin or eye pin.

2. 2

   With chain-nosed pliers, bend the wire extending above the bead/s at right angles, as close to the bead as possible.

3. 3

   Cut off excess wire, leaving a small arm of about 1cm (3/8in).

4. 4

   With round-nosed pliers, grab the very end of the pin about 6mm (¼in) from the tip of the pliers. Twist the wire back towards where the wire comes out of the bead, wrapping it tightly around a barrel of the pliers to make a loop.

5. 5

   The finished loop should be positioned centrally over the holes of the beads.

6. 6

   Cut two coils of memory wire with a 5–10cm (2–4in) overlap. With memory wire finishing pliers (or round-nosed pliers) make a P-shaped loop at one end of the wire. Next prepare twenty-one silver-plated eye pins by threading a silver seed bead, a faceted jet crystal rondelle and a second silver seed bead onto each. Proceed to make a basic loop on each eye pin as shown right.

7. 7

   Pick up the two pieces of memory wire and hold together in 
your non-dominant hand while threading a 4mm white glass pearl onto each.

8. 8

   Pass the end of one piece of memory wire through the loop of one of the faceted jet crystal rondelle bead units made in step 1. Pass the end of the other piece of memory wire through the loop at the other end of the same unit.

9. 9

   Thread two small pearls onto each piece of memory wire followed by another faceted jet crystal rondelle bead unit.

10. 10

    Repeat step 4 until all twenty-one crystal rondelle bead units have been strung onto the two pieces of memory wire with two pearls between. Finish with a single pearl.

11. 11

    Working with one piece of memory wire at a time, use memory wire shears to cut the excess wire, leaving approximately 8mm (¾in) or whatever length is needed to form a P-shaped loop to hold all the beads tightly in place.

12. 12

    To finish the ends, thread a small pearl on to a headpin. Pass the headpin through one P-shaped loop at the end of the bracelet. Add three small pearls to the same headpin then pass it through the second P-shaped loop. Make a wrapped loop as shown right.

    Tip
    • Use bead stoppers to hold beads onto the 
 piece of memory wire you are not 
 working with.
    • If you find the wire slippery when holding 
 with your fingers, use chain-nosed pliers to 
 pull and hold the beads tight.

13. 13

    How to make a wrapped loop
    1 Using round-nosed pliers, hold the bead on a headpin so that it is tight against 
the head.
    2 Bend the wire at right angles with your finger. The round-nosed pliers should be horizontal as shown.
    3 Shift the barrels of the round-nosed pliers so they are vertical.
    4 Use your fingers to pull the wire tight around the top barrel of the pliers, then down. Pull so that the wire is tight around the barrel and down as far as it can go.
    5 Shift the barrels again to make them horizontal. Use your fingers to pull the wire around the barrel of the pliers to form a complete loop.
    Note
    If you are attaching this unit to another component such as P-shaped loop, be sure to attach it now, BEFORE step 6.
    6 Change to bent-nosed pliers and hold the loop. Twist the wire two to three times, or as many as required, around the gap between the bead and the loop.
    7 Use flush cutters to trim the end of 
the wire.

    Tip
    • Use bead stoppers to hold beads onto the 
 piece of memory wire you are not 
 working with.
    • If you find the wire slippery when holding 
 with your fingers, use chain-nosed pliers to 
 pull and hold the beads tight.