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Our Focal Bead Philosophy We see a focal bead for exactly what it is, a little piece of beautiful art. Like all art it should be framed and highlighted so that it stands out from the rest of its embellishments. While we applaud the creativity of those beaders who can create a piece of jewelry using multiple stitches and innovative techniques, we want you to be able to fashion a design that quickly gets your focal bead out into the world for all to admire! Almost all of our Free Projects are created with simple stringing or wirework. Overall there seem to be fewer beginner projects in magazines and online so we keep the designs simple for those just starting out. Creating a focal bead piece is usually a beginner's first introduction to jewelry making and we hope that these designs show you how easy it can be. NOTE: We use the word "focal" as noun so you will see it used throughout to keep from repeating "focal bead" over and over. |
Hang 20
(with optional charm drops)
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Materials
1 2-hole 47mm x 35mm sea-themed focal |
Tools
Wire cutters Techniques
Stringing Finished length Approximately 25" |
Behind the Design
Shells and Mother-of-pearl were a natural for this seahorse focal bead. With all the dyed shells available it was easy to match the shark teeth to the focal. The Cebu beauty lily shells were exactly the right color too. We wanted a natural organic look that was playful for summer wear. The optional charm drops add a little more oomph to this easily strung focal if you plan on wearing it with a simple or solid color outfit. Although we don’t show it here, you’ll have plenty of the Cebu shell left to make earrings.
Directions
TIP: If necessary, ream all of the pearls before you start stringing so you won't have to start and stop while you’re stringing. You might also want to sort the Cebu shells by size for a graduated effect leaving the smallest shells for the optional charm drops.
- Cut 2 lengths of beading wire as long as desired.
- Open up the jump rings and slip one through each corner of the bead. Close jump rings.
- String 1 crimp bead on one end of one wire, slip through a jump ring and back through the crimp bead. Crimp. Do the same with the other wire.
- On one wire, string about 1 inch of Cebu shells and 1 shark tooth. Repeat this sequence 9 times.
- Continue stringing Cebu shells until you reach your desired length.
- Repeat Steps 4 & 5 on the other wire.
- On one end, string one crimp bead and one part of the toggle clasp. String back through the crimp bead and crimp. So the same on the other wire with the other half of the clasp.
Resources: Focal bead: The Art of the Bead (Artist – Melissa Essenburg); remaining supplies: Fire Mountain Gems www.firemountaingems.com.
Hang 20 Optional Charm Drops
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Materials
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Tools
Wire cutters Techniques Stringing |
Behind the Design
The great thing about this design is that you can remove the charms if you don’t want to wear them all the time. While you could put all three charms on a small clasp to attach to the jump ring, that just creates a little too much “hardware” showing. By making the loops on the ends of each drop large enough, you can still remove them easily by opening the jump ring and sliding them on and off.
Directions
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Cut 6 wires in 6 different lengths from approximately 1 ¼” to 3 ¼”. If you’re like me, you might want to cut them longer to make them easier to work with and then trim them later.
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On the end of one wire string 1 crimp bead and 1 shark tooth. Bring just the end of the wire back through the crimp bead and crimp. Trim off any excess wire at the crimp bead.
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On the rest of that wire, string 1 charm and enough Cebu shell to create the drop. Naturally, each drop will be a different length and require a different amount of shell beads.
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To create a large loop at the end, wrap the end of the wire around the fat part of the toothpick and string the end through a crimp bead. Crimp and trim off excess wire.
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Repeat Steps 2 through 4 with the remaining wires, charms and shells.
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Open one of the jump rings at the top of the focal and slip on 3 of the drops. Close the jump ring. Do the same with the other jump ring.
Strike It Rich
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Materials
1 34mm polymer clay focal bead |
Tools
Wire cutters Techniques
Stringing Finished length Approximately 23” |
Behind the Design
Dramatic! That’s what we were going for with this focal. The colors are so rich that it needed little else to show it off. The few carnelian beads bring out the copper while the small gold triangular chips (one of my favorite beads) bring out the background gold in the center. With the focal design so contemporary, the manmade turquoise chips add some flair to a simply strung strand.
Tip: The manmade turquoise chips come with varying degrees of black. You might want to sort out those that look most alike so that one doesn’t stand out with too much black.
Directions
Tip: The manmade turquoise chips come with varying degrees of black inclusions. You might want to sort out those that look most alike so that one doesn’t stand out with too much black.
1. Center the focal bead on your wire.
2. On one side, string 1 gold chip, 3 black triangles, 1 gold chip and 1 turquoise chip. Repeat 4 more times.
3. String 9 black triangles, 1 carnelian brick, 1 gold chip, 1 turquoise chip, 1 gold chip and 1 carnelian brick. Repeat 1 more time.
4. String 43 (or more depending on desired length) black triangles and 1 Tornado® crimp bead. Pass wire through 1 jump ring and then back through crimp bead. Crimp.
5. Attach the lobster claw clasp to the jump ring.
6. Repeat Steps 2 through 4 on the other side of the focal bead. Open jump ring and attach chain extension if desired and close ring.
Resources: Focal bead: The Art of the Bead (Artist – Heather Wynn); Carnelian bricks and manmade turquoise chips: bead show vendors; remaining supplies: Fire Mountain Gems www.firemountaingems.com.
Previous Projects -
If you would like the free directions for these projects, email us at info@foremostfocal.com and we'll be glad to send you the instructions!
Fall Fluff Lime Swirl Like No Other
