Do It Yourself Jewelry Projects and More

5/2/2017 0 Comments

All Wire Spiral Earrings

   Love spirals? Well so do I! I just can't get enough of these fun designs. They are everywhere in nature and they can be mesmerizing to look at. So I designed these super easy and fun earrings that you can make in a very short period of time.

  The best part is the design is simple to master and you can add all sorts of elements to change it up a bit. For instance add extra small beads t the top of every spiral for some color, or if you just can't stop yourself from making spirals add even more drops for more drama. Whatever you do have fun with it!

Tools

Round nose pliers
Flat nose pliers
Wire cutters
File (emery board)
Pen with cap (bic style round)
Rubber Hammer and bench block
Sharpie

Materials

18-20 gauge wire 49-50”
4" of the 20 gauge is for ear wires

Directions

Make sure to check out my store too!

Fish hook ear wires

Cut one wire 4” long
Small loop with round nose pliers on both ends
Slide on loop under pen top with loop opening away from pen
Wrap wire about ¾ of the way around pen

Now repaet step four in last section on the other side of the wire
Find center between the larger loop ends and cut making two ear wires
Cut shorter stems if you wish
Gently file ends with emery board
Using Chain nose pliers make a small bend on ends facing away from earring loops (if you wish) to a 20 degree angle with flat nose pliers
Hammer gently to strengthen

Cut - 2 wires 10” long, 4 wires 4” long, 2 wires 4 ½” long (for a total of 20 pieces)
File the ends of all the wires
Make a small loop on one end of every wire

4” and 10” wires

Begin to make spiral using the flat nose pliers to help hold the loop and keep the spirals parallel, then slowly in small increments make the wire spiral around.
When you get enough of a spiral you can drop the flat nose pliers and use your fingers.
Spiral until only ¼” is left on the wires

On the smallest spirals only, make a small loop going from the front of the spiral to the back
Bend this spiral up to make the loop centered to the spiral center
Set aside the completed and uncompleted spirals

4 ½” wires

Mark the end with no loop with a sharpie at ¾” from the end
Repeat steps one and two in the previous section until the spiral reaches the sharpie mark.
At the mark bend the wires up to center them
Make a small loop going from the front of the spiral to the back ( hold the wire stem just under your tool to keep the stem from warping while making the loop)

Assembly

Gently hammer all the spirals to make them sturdy, be careful to not hammer the small loops.
Feed onto the large spiral one small one medium and one small spiral drop
Make a small loop on the large spiral going in the opposite direction of the spiral to capture these drops and make a place to hang on the earwires.
Open the earwire and place the large spiral on, then close the earwire and you are done!

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4/25/2017 0 Comments

Three Bead drop Earrings

If you want to learn how to make your own earrings, here is a super easy style to make. They have swing and sass and can be made with any beads you like. You don't need a lot of tools and they will take such little time to master. Let's get started!

Tools

Round nose pliers
Chain/Flat nose pliers
Cutters
⅝” Dowel (you can use the top of your favorite nail polish)
Emery board

Materials

20 gauge wire 11”
Two of each - 4mm beads, 6mm beads, 8mm beads

Check out my store too!

Directions
Hoop earwire

Cut two 20 gauge wires 2 ¼” long and file ends
Make an open loop one one end only of each wire
Shape around the ⅝” dowel with loop facing out
Hammer well to strengthen and flatten out the hoop
Reshape on the dowel so that opening is not to big and the earrings will stay on your ears

Beaded drops

Cut two wires each - ¾”, ⅞”, 1”
File ends of each wire
Make a loop with a back bend on one end of each wire
Place 4mm beads onto smallest wires, 6mm beads onto middle size wires, 8mm beads onto longest wires
Make a loop going in the opposite direction of the first loop (ie, front to back and side to side) on each wire to capture the beads
Open sideways one end loop on each bead drop
Now connect to each drop and close loop ,going largest to smallest then to the earwire

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1/24/2017 1 Comment

Simple Hoop Earwires

I love the classic look of hoop earrings! Making hoops is a basic technique that every wire jewelry makers just has to know. It is easy and opens up a world of possibilities in for incorporating them into your designs. These super fun hoop earwires are simple and you can make them in no time at all! Best part is they can be made in any size you like for many different looks. Lets get started!

Tools

Round nose pliers
Chain nose pliers
Cutters
⅝” Dowel
Emery board

Materials

20 gauge wire 5”

Directions

Cut two 20 gauge wires 2 ¼” long and file ends
Make an open loop one one end only of each wire

Shape around the ⅝” dowel with loop facing out
Hammer well to strengthen and flatten out the hoop
Reshape on the dowel to make sure it is closed enough to stay on the ear.

Now add a bead drop to finish off your super easy, but beautiful earrings!

You can make these earring in any size you want by changing the wire length and dowel size.

To see some of my beautiful work, go check out the Shop!

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10/11/2016 0 Comments

Plain Hoop Earrings -Two Styles

Tools

Side Cutters
Round nose Pliers
Chain nose Pliers
Nail file
1" dowel (small circle hoops)
1 ⅜” dowel (medium circle hoops)
⅝” dowel (small teardrop hoops)
Ruler
A bic pen with a top

Materials

20 gauge round wire
18-16 gauge round wire

Round hoops

Cut two pieces of the thicker gauge wire 4 1/2" for small hoops or 5 ½” long for medium hoops, and file ends
Make a small loop on one end of each wire using the round nose pliers
Gently shape each one around the 1 ⅜” dowel as you feed the the straight end through the small loop (alternatively, do not feed through the hole but instead wrap the wire tail around under the small loop then cut any excess tail)
Hold the wire tightly around the dowel and then make a sharp bend right where the wire comes through the loop to make it tight
Trim tail to just to ½” and refile the end
Make a larger loop on this end with the round nose pliers to hold it in place
bend the wire of the loop up with the chain nose pliers to create a place to hang the earwire onto the frame
You may gently hammer the outside of the wire to make it looser and come off the dowel easily
Repeat procedure with other wire to create a set of frames.
If you need to make the frame more round and uniform please shape it around the Dowel.
Now take frames and gently hammer them to strengthen them up a bit

Simple Fish hook earwires

Cut one 20 gauge round wire 4” long
Make small loop with round nose pliers on both ends
Slide on loop under pen top with loop opening away from pen
Wrap wire about ¾ of the way around pen
Now do the same to the other side
Find center between the larger loop ends and cut making two earwires
Cut shorter stems if you wish (no shorter than 7/8” from top of hook to tail end)
Gently file ends with emery board
Using Chain nose pliers make a small bend on ends facing away from earring loops( if you wish) to a 20 degree angle with flat nose pliers
Lightly hammer for added strength if you wish

Teardrop hoops

Cut two pieces of the thicker gauge wire 3” long and file ends
Make a small loop on each end of the wire going in the same direction (you may backbend them if you wish)
Place ⅝” dowel in the center of the wire and curve it around the dowel till the loops meet
Make a slight bend in the loops where they meet to make them lay parallel to one another
Place the pen into the bottom center of the loop and reshape the bottom so the top loops actually lay together

Fish hook earwires with forward facing loops

Cut 4 3/4" of 20 gauge round wire and file both ends
Make a large loop with round nose pliers on both ends
Slide on loop under pen top lying flat on the pen
Wrap wire about ¾ of the way around pen
Now do the same to the other side
Create a bend just under the loop away from the larger loop on both ends then re-adjust over the pen to set in the earwire arch)
Find center between the larger loop ends and cut making two ear wires
Cut shorter stems if you wish (no shorter than ¼” from loop end bottom to tail end)
Gently file ends with emery board
Using Chain nose pliers make a small bend on ends facing away from earring loops (if you wish) to a 20 degree angle with flat nose pliers
You may gently hammer the top curve of the earwire for added strength

You can make these hoops in any size you want to and the round can become teardrop as well as the teardrop become round, just change up the dowels and alter the wire length for whatever you want to create.

Also remember to check out my store on line!

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10/4/2016 0 Comments

Capturing an undrilled bead, Spiral style

Tools

Round nose pliers
Flat nose or chain nose pliers
Cutters
File
Sharpy
Hammer and block (for hardening)

Materials

10 - 12mm round beads
9” 18g wire per bead

Directions

Cut one piece wire 9” long (per bead)
File all ends
Mark center of each wire with sharpy
Make small loop on the ends of the wires going in opposite directions
Spiral around continuously till you reach the center mark on one side

Make same spiral on the opposite end going in the opposite direction to create a very fancy S
Gently hammer the S piece to slightly harden it
Pull up the center loop on one side to make connector *(if you are doing a chain of these beads, pull up the loop on the opposite side as well)

Fold each S in half making a v shape
Gently grab the center of one spiral and pull outward to create a cup
Repeat on other side of spiral
Place bead inside and use fingers to close and shape around the bead
It is now ready to hang

For earrings make an earwire of your choice out of 20g round wire.I have many choices in my Projects section to choose.
This technique can be used for any shape bead, even long styles, just recalculate the length of wire needed and how big a spiral you need. For a long and yet thinner beads you can spiral the wire around a dowel after making the first loop (it will look like a spring).

Also remember to go check out all my handmade jewelry in my on line store.

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9/27/2016 0 Comments

Three Easy Earwire Styles

Tools

Round nose pliers
Flat nose or chain nose pliers
⅝” Dowel
Bic or capped pen
Cutters
File
Hammer and block (for hardening)

Materials

20 Gauge round wire (I prefer dead soft but you can use half hard)

Fish Hook Earwires-

Cut a piece of 4" wire
Make small loop with round nose pliers on both ends
Slide on loop under pen top with loop opening away from pen
Wrap wire about ¾ of the way around pen
Now do the same to the other side
Find center between the larger loop ends and cut making two earwires
Cut shorter stems if you wish (no shorter than 7/8” from top of hook to tail end)
Gently file ends with emery board
Using Chain nose pliers make a small bend on ends facing away from earring loops( if you wish) to a 20 degree angle with flat nose pliers
Gently hammer the earwires to strengthen them

Long Drop Earwires

Cut two pieces of wire 2 ¼” long and file both ends
With round nose pliers grab the wire at 7/8"- 1" from one end and bend it into a v shape (repeat with other wire)
Using flat nose pliers squeeze the wire at the bend to slightly sharpen it.
Open the wire and wrap it around the ⅝” dowel to create a curve shape
Make a small loop on the longer tail to hang your drop from
Gently hammer the earwires to strengthen them

Square/Diamond Earwires

Cut two wires 2” long and file both ends
Grab both wires with your flat nose pliers at ¼” away from one end so that tools outer edge is on the ¼” line
Make a sharp 90 degree bend
Measure ½”from bend and grab with flat nose pliers with the tool outer edge on the ½” line
Make a 90 degree bend in the same direction as before
Repeat step 4 and 5 to make last bend
Using round nose plier make a small loop on the very last bit of wire in towards the center of your square/diamond
Hammer earwires gently to strengthen them.

All the earwires can be made larger just up the size of each wire and scale the design as needed.

*For bead drops to hang from your new earwires go to Three Easy Bead Drop Styles in the projects section.

Check out my own designs in my on line store.

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9/27/2016 0 Comments

Three Easy Bead Drop Styles

Tools

Round nose pliers
Flat nose or chain nose pliers
Cutters
File

Materials

20 gauge round wire
Beads (no longer than ½” per drop)

Basic Bead Style

Cut two pieces of wire 1 1/4" long
Make a small loop with a back bend on one end of each wire
Place on bead
Make a small loop with a back bend on the end (if the bead has too much room between it and the loop, trim just a hair off and remake the loop)

Closed Loop Drop With Bottom Loop

Cut two pieces of wire 2 ½” long
Make a small loop with a back bend on one end of each wire
Place beads onto the wires
Hold wire above beads with round nose pliers about ¼” away from the beads
Wrap wire tail around the pliers to make a loop
Wrap tail around the wire under the loop to finish the drop
Cut and file any excess tail and flatten it in
Other bead drops can be hung from the bottom loop for a long chandelier style drop

Closed Loop Drop with No bottom Loop

Cut two wires 2 ½” long
Make a small loop on one end of each wire and be sure to back bend it to center the loop on the tail
Place bead onto wire
Move bead a bit and grab the wire just under the loop with your flat nose pliers
Push tail wire up the back of the bead, keep the space with your flat nose pliers
Move flat nose pliers out of the way (you should have a little head space between the bead and the loop
Wrap the remaining tail around the wire just above the bead and upward toward the loop
Cut any left over if there is any and flatten it to the wire.
File the end if needed

These easy methods can be used for larger beads, just scale the wire length up to fit. For some earwires just go to Three Easy Earwires Styles in the projects section.

Remember to check out my online store as well.

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3/2/2016 0 Comments

Shamrock/Clover Earrings

I love Spring, as I am sure many of you do. One of the first signs of Spring in our family is the annual corn beef dinner on St Patrick's Day. I have very little Irish in my side of the family, but my husband's wonderful mother is mostly Irish and she makes a terrific feast for us all every year. So to celebrate the Irish in all of us, however small, I bring you these fun earrings that you can wear all Spring long.

Tools

Round nose pliers
Flat nose pliers
Wire cutters
File
Bic style pen with cap

Materials

4” of 20 gauge wire
12” of 18 gauge wire

Directions
Shamrocks

Cut 18 gauge wire into two 6 inch pieces
File end of each piece of wire
With round nose pliers create a small loop on one end of each 6 inch piece of wire.
Place loop face up under pen cap

Wrap wire just under half way around pen
Using flat nose pliers bend wire back away from loop

Place back under pen cap
Wrap wire around pen till wire almost meets
Using flat nose pliers bend wire back again

Now Bend wire with flat nose pliers into a 90 degree angle
Do it again using the tip of the tool
Bend again to finish making shamrock stem

Place under pen cap and wrap wire till it almost meets itself
Using flat nose pliers bend wire back

Place under pen cap and wrap wire around till it meets the beginning loop
Leave on pen and wrap tail around under the beginning loop

Trim excess tail and close loop
If you wish to adjust the loops now is the time
Repeat all the steps 1-18 to create other shamrock( feel free to use thw first one to help you make them close to the same, but remember they will most likely end up slightly different and that is perfectly ok)
You may gently hammer the shamrocks to flatten them, just do not hammer the top loops where they connect.

Now follow the fish hook ear wires link and assemble them onto the shamrocks to complete your earring so you can enjoy them. If you want to add some green go to this project and create the bead link to place in between the shamrock and the ear wires. Have fun and may these fun earrings bring you happiness.

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2/3/2016 0 Comments

Heart Earrings

It's that time of year again when we send out notes of love to one another and remember how important those we care about are to us. So what says I love you more than something you made just for them? Pretty much nothing as far as I am concerned. These earrings are easy to make and your friends and family will love them! You can whip out a pair for every lady in your life, and yes it is quite all right to make some for yourself while your at it.

Tools

Round nose pliers
Cutters
File
Pen with Cap
Small Rubber hammer and block(optional)

Materials

8” 18 gauge wire
7” 20 gauge wire
2 beads 6-10mm

Directions

Cut 18 gauge wire in half making two pieces 4” long
Cut 20 gauge wire into three pieces- one 4” and two 1 ½” long
File the ends of all the wires

Beaded Connectors

Make a small loop on one end of each 20 gauge 1 ½” wire
Back bend the loop to center it on the stem
Place bead onto wire
Trim ¼” if using a 6mm bead and refile the end
Make loop on remaining wire going front to back as opposed to other loop which goes side to side (This allows hearts to hang facing forward when worn).

Hearts

Mark the center of the two remaining 4” 18 gauge wires (2” is center)
Make a small loop on both ends of each wire, rotating in towards the center
Place the loop of one wire under your pen cap with the loop facing toward the pen
Holding the cap stem tight to keep the wire in place rotate the pen in toward the center mark on the wire
Remove pen and repeat on the other side

Repeat steps 3- 5 on other wire
Holding the wire on the center mark with your round nose pliers bend each side up and in toward the mark to create the heart, repeat on other wire.
Feel free at this time to adjust the loops on each heart to your liking, then hammer gently to make them slightly harder and more smooth looking.

Ear Wires
Use my directions for the ear wires in this link.(4" of 20 gauge will be used)

Assemble

Open the loops on the bead connectors (sideways)
Place one end on the earwire and close
Place heart on the other end and close
Repeat on other side making sure the heart faces the opposite direction and you are done.

Don't forget to check out my handmade jewelry for sale as well.

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11/18/2015 0 Comments

Large Leaf Hoop Earrings

These fun earrings can be made for fall in copper or gold and with browns ,reds and dark greens or for Summer/Spring in silver with lighter greens and blues. Let your imagination go wild and make a set for every season! This is a beginner project with some difficulty.

Dawn Rosell Design.com

Tools

Ruler
Round Pen with cap
Emery board(nail file)
Round nose pliers
Flat nose or smooth chain nose pliers
Wire cutters

Materials

16” of 18 gauge round wire
3.5” of 20 gauge round wire
2 6mm beads

Directions
To create the ear wires for this project, go to my tutorial Simple Fish hook Ear wires

Leaf Component

Cut 16” 18 gauge wire in half to make two wires 8” long
File both ends smooth
On one end of each wire make a small loop then back bend it to make it centered to remaining wire

Place one bead onto each wire
Now make a 90 degree angle in the wire about ⅛”- ¼” away from the bead
This should leave you with approximately 7” of wire left from the bend

Place your round nose pliers on the wire at 2 ½” from the last bend of the wire
Wrap the wire tail around the pliers to make a sharp bend in the wire
Gently unbend the 90 degree angle just a bit to readjust the wire

Don't forget to check out some of my store designs as well!

Open slightly the sharp bend at the bottom
Gently Sliding your finger from the top bend down to the bottom bend and adding a small amount of pressure as you slide create a curve in both your wires
Place round nose pliers at the bottom bend with the tools out nose holding the outer wire
Bend back the wire away from the center just a bit

Sliding your finger gently with a small amount of pressure create a rounding on the opposite side from the bend to the top so the wire crosses itself
Tweak the shape a bit if you wish to but remember they do not have to be exactly the same, just close to the same.
Holding the two wires tightly where they cross wrap the end wire under the bead and through the leaf just using your finger to do this

Now bend the end wire up again and under the last wrap stopping when the wire is in the center of the leaf(If you need to use the flat nose pliers to make a tighter wrap feel free just don’t use to hard a hand or you will warp the leaf)
Use flat nose pliers to tighten
Now using the slide method with your finger again make the vein curved and more centered
Now just open the ear wires and place the leaves on and close the loops, to finish your fun earrings

*If you have done any hammering before you may gently and carefully hammer the fish hook wires and leaves before assembling them together, just watch out for the connections and the beads.

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7/14/2015 0 Comments

Wire Globe Cage Bead Earrings

Tools

Round nose pliers
Flat nose pliers
Cutters
File
Pen (bic with cap)
Ring mandrel , 1/2" or 5/8” dowel

Materials

20g half round wire 8”
20g round wire 36” (3ft)
Two beads or 1/2" pee wee marbles 10-12mm

Check out all the other things I make!

Directions
Making the cages….

Cut 20g round wire into nine pieces each one 4” long
Set aside one wire and make two groups of four wires with the remaining wires
Bundle four wires together and using half round wire(round side out)and flat nose pliers, tightly wrap the bundle in the center four times
Make sure the ends fall on the same side of the bundle. This will be the inside of the cage.
Repeat the bundle wrapping with the other four wires

Note about sizes to use: 10mm beads use 1/2" dowel or size one on ring mandrel. 12mm or 1/2" marbels use 5/8" dowel or ring size 3-4

Take one bundle and wrap the wires around your dowel or ring mandrel at the size noted above for your bead size. Try to center the wrap section.
With flat nose pliers at the center top (opposite of the wrap) bend all the wires to a 90 degree angle away from the mandrel. This should look like an upside down lollipop.
Using flat nose pliers and half round wire wrap all eight wires four to five times starting at the base of the sharp bends going upwards toward wire ends. Try to keep the wires flat at the wrap.

Pull seven of the wires away from one another in a star like pattern.
Leave one as close to centered as possible (this will be our earring hanger)
Trim all the wires to ½” long
Now curl the seven wires down towards the cage
Take off the mandrel

Using your nail gently pry one wire from each side out just a bit then use round nose pliers and pull them out more so they are only about ⅛” away from each other.
Repeat this process with the next wire on each side making them about ⅛” away from last two. You should have a half circle.
Turn over to other side and do the same process only this time move two sets of wires at a time ⅛” away from the back( this way we still have a small opening to place our bead into the cage.
Place the bead into the cage and then pull the last two wires to close the cage.
Depending on bead size you will have wiggle room between the bead and cage.
Feel free to tweak the cage if needed, but do so gently so not to warp the cage.
Now trim the remaining wire to ⅜-½” long and make a small loop with a back bend to hang the earring onto an ear wire.