WHAT DO I NEED TO MAKE MY OWN TULIP NECKLACE?
- one strand of 8mm Brass Heishi
- one strand of 6mm Diamond Finish Cashmere Crystal
- one pack of 10mm Gold Pewter Tulip
- one strand of 2mm Smooth Mother Of Pearl
- one pack of 2" 24g Electroplated Gold Headpins
- 22G Non-Tarnish Gold Wire
- 3-4" of 5mm Brushed Gold Curb Chain
- two 2mm Gold Fill Crimp Tubes
- one 12mm Brushed Gold Lobster Claw Clasp
- Round Nose Plier
- Crimping Plier
- Designer Wire Cutter
- 0.018 Beadalon Bright Stringing Wire
STEP-BY-STEP INSTRUCTIONS FOR MAKING A TULIP CHARM NECKLACE
STEP 1: CUT YOUR BEADALON
For this necklace, we'll be using several partial bead strands. We made this necklace approximately 20" not including the chain extender. We cut about a 25" segment of Beadalon wire, giving us plenty of room for crimping and switching up the design. Simply use your wire cutters to snip the Beadalon where you would like, and remember that having extra is always better!
STEP 2: CREATE YOUR CHARMS
For each charm you'll need several headpins (we used 7 per charm), several 2mm MOP beads (7), a tulip bead, and some Non-Tarnish Gold Wire. You'll need a pair of Round Nose Pliers, and a Wire Cutter.
To create each charm, string the MOP beads directly onto the headpins, and then create a loop with the rest of the headpin.
Next, you'll begin candy-wrapping the tulip with the gold wire, but before finishing the first loop, string on all of your MOP charms. Twist one of the wires around the other, creating a loop, and snip off the excess wire, leaving the tail of the wire for stringing the tulip on.
String the tulip, and create a wire-wrapped loop at the top of the bead. Remove excess wire and string!
STEP 3: STRING YOUR BEADS / DESIGN
Before stringing, we recommend using a piece of scotch tape to prevent the beads from sliding off of the wire without creating a permanent closure.
For this design, we strung the following pattern, starting from one end to the other:
- 9 8mm Matte Hibiscus Jade Rounds
- 2 8mm Brushed Brass Heishi Beads
- 1 6mm Diamond Finish Cashmere Crystal
- 3 8mm Matte Hibiscus Jade Rounds
- 1 6mm Diamond Finish Cashmere Crystal
- 2 8mm Brushed Brass Heishi Beads
- 3 8mm Matte Hibiscus Jade Rounds
- 2 8mm Brushed Brass Heishi Beads
- 1 6mm Diamond Finish Cashmere Crystal
- 1 6mm Diamond Finish Cashmere Crystal
- 2 8mm Brushed Brass Heishi Beads
- 1 8mm Matte Hibiscus Jade Round
- 1 2mm Mother of Pearl Round
- 1 Tulip Charm
- 1 2mm Mother of Pearl Round
- 1 8mm Matte Hibiscus Jade Round
we'll call the italicized above pattern A
- 2 8mm Brushed Brass Heishi Beads
- 1 6mm Diamond Finish Cashmere Crystal
- 1 2mm Mother of Pearl Round
- 1 Tulip Charm
- 1 2mm Mother of Pearl Round
- 1 6mm Diamond Finish Cashmere Crystal
we'll call the italicized above pattern B
- 2 8mm Brushed Brass Heishi Beads
- Pattern A
- 2 8mm Brushed Brass Heishi Beads
- Pattern B *this marks the center of the necklace, the following mirrors the design thus far*
- 2 8mm Brushed Brass Heishi Beads
- Pattern A
- 2 8mm Brushed Brass Heishi Beads
- Pattern B
- 2 8mm Brushed Brass Heishi Beads
- Pattern A
- 2 8mm Brushed Brass Heishi Beads
- 1 6mm Diamond Finish Cashmere Crystal
- 3 8mm Matte Hibiscus Jade Rounds
- 1 6mm Diamond Finish Cashmere Crystal
- 2 8mm Brushed Brass Heishi Beads
- 3 8mm Matte Hibiscus Jade Rounds
- 2 8mm Brushed Brass Heishi Beads
- 1 6mm Diamond Finish Cashmere Crystal
- 3 8mm Matte Hibiscus Jade Rounds
- 1 6mm Diamond Finish Cashmere Crystal
- 2 8mm Brushed Brass Heishi Beads
- 9 8mm Matte Hibiscus Jade Rounds
STEP 4: CRIMP
In order to make the transition between 8mm bead and flat crimp more seamless, we added a 4mm Gold Hematite Round at the of each side.
Choose one side to crimp off first. Secure the opposite end of the necklace with scotch tape if it is not already secured. String on a 2mm Crimp, followed by a Clasp (we used our 12mm Brushed Gold Lobster Claw Clasp). Loop the beadalon wire through the bail on the clasp and back through the crimp.
Hold the clasp ring in your non-dominant hand, and pull the tail of the beadalon (through the crimp and several beads) to tighten and adjust. The clasp should have a little wiggle room, but overall feel very secure. Next, use your crimping plier to flatten the crimp bead on the beadalon. Once secured, use your wire cutters to snip off the excess beadalon cord (where it sticks out of your strung beads).
At this point, prepare your chain extender by cutting the chain to size. We used about 3” of chain, but the length can be adjusted depending on your preference. We're using a soldered (closed) chain, so we don't need to add a jump ring at the point of attachment.
After you cut your chain, you'll repeat the process, but creating a secure loop becomes a little more tense since the first side of your necklace is already secure. For this side, you'll only need a crimp and your chain.
For a quick reminder on how to crimp, check out the video below. For an in-depth tutorial, complete with step-by-step pictures, check out our Crimping on Beadalon LEARN page here.
Check out all of our DIY beaded jewelry projects from beadalon necklaces to stretchy bracelets, wire-wrapped earrings to silk knotted semiprecious stone, tips and tricks, and more, on beadsinc.com, our Instagram @beadsinccharlotte and our YouTube channel.
