Create a bold pin from bead and wire.
Spiraled silver wire and colorful accent beads showcase a spectacular focal bead. This unique brooch is a challenging and rewarding project. This project provides:
- A list of the materials and tools you’ll need
- Complete step-by-step instructions
- Helpful how-to illustrations
Table of Contents
Getting Started
Making this beautiful brooch involves shaping sterling silver wire around a focal bead of your choosing.
Skill Level
- Experienced Beginner to Intermediate
Materials
- 2 small beads (the featured pin shown in this project uses one striped glass bead and one square hematite bead)
- 1 resin focal bead, 1-1⁄2″ (3.8 cm) long
- 1 plastic disk bead, 3⁄4″ (1.9 cm) diameter
- 1 dotted resin bead, 3⁄4″ (1.9 cm) diameter
- 18-gauge half-hard sterling silver wire, 20″ (50.8 cm) long, for the coiled element
- 14-gauge half-hard sterling silver wire, 8″ (20.3 cm) long, for wrapping around the focal bead
- 16-gauge half-hard sterling silver wire, 15″ (38.1 cm) long, for the body of the brooch
Before you begin, be sure the beads you’ve chosen have holes large enough to accommodate the 16-gauge wire called for in the instructions. The materials list suggests using half-hard sterling silver wire. If you’re an experienced jewelry maker, you may wish to work with dead-soft sterling silver wire instead.
Tools
- Wire cutters
- Needle-nose pliers
- Permanent marker
- Small round-nose pliers
- Flat-nose pliers
- Long round-nose pliers
- Jewelry file
Finished Length
- 3-3⁄4″ (9.5 cm)
