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How to make a crystal & pearl elastic bracelet worthy of being adored! 07.29.2010

Posted 1 year ago in DIY, Jewelry, Beading, Tutorials

I have always been a huge fan of jewelry - especially unique, vintage and handmade pieces. Strangely, it hadn't previously occurred to me that I could create my own until several months ago when I was the lucky recipient of a huge stash of jewelry making supplies. At the time I had ZERO clue how to make something out of it all, but I was determined to learn.

I dove right in and attempted making some earrings but quickly realized I sucked at it needed serious help. Over at YouTube I was pretty surprised to find tons of how-to videos about jewelry making and proper techniques. You'll find some easy to follow videos from Aunties Beads and Jewelry Supply, though there’s many more. It wasn’t long before I picked up the basic techniques and tried again. My advice to anyone who’s thinking about making their own jewelry is to just give it a shot - you'll pick it up quickly and it’s pretty fun too.

Now, on to the reason that I’m writing this post - how to make this adorable elastic Swarovski crystal and glass pearl bracelet with crystal spacers. Thanks to Jeff's mom for asking me to make it for her; I love how it turned out.

Materials:

  • 14 10mm Swarovski Round Crystals (or use glass crystals)
  • 20 10mm White Glass Pearls (mine are Crystazzi from Michaels)
  • 10 20mm 3-hole Swarovski Crystal silver spacer bars (or use glass crystal spacers)
  • 30 inches Bead ‘n Stretch Super Stretchy Cord 0.5 mm Clear (or something similar)

Tools:

  • ruler
  • cutters/scissors
  • E6000 glue/or similar
  • calipers (to measure beads, if you need to)
  • small file and needle

Start by measuring your wrist so you know how big to make your bracelet. My bracelet measured about 8 inches long before being tied. If you are following my measurements, go ahead and cut at least 30 inches of elastic - you want extra so it’s easy to tie the knots later - and cut it in half. Set those aside. 

Based on your measurements you can start laying out the design. I went through a few different ideas before I settled on one that had a balanced repeating pattern for the length I needed. Once you have your design figured out you should go through your beads and make sure they don’t have any sticky-outty bits like some of my pearls did. If they do, lightly file the bits away - don’t scratch it! Push a needle through any of the ones where the holes aren’t clear. 

Now you can start stringing the beads onto one of the 15 inch elastic pieces to create one side of the bracelet. At one end of the elastic just clip on a little spring clip thingy so that the beads don’t slip off accidentally - you’ll be sad if that happens, trust me. When all the beads are on the elastic you can tie the ends together to form the bracelet. I suggest tying a simple overhand knot followed by a double overhand knot or tie a surgeon’s knot - and then repeat that one more time if you have the space to hide the knot between your beads. Elastic hates being knotted and will come undone easily if you don’t knot it really well. Don’t pull it so tight that you take the elasticity away from the bracelet though - that would defeat the purpose of an elastic/stretchy bracelet and it’ll be likely to break too. 

Next, grab your other elastic piece and start stringing on your second row, making sure to weave it into the holes in the spacer bars from your first row as you go. My spacer bars had three holes, but I only used the outer two. Just like before, when you’ve reached the end, tie it really well. To secure the elastic knots even more, be sure to add a dab of glue to the knot. What I did was slip the bracelet onto a small jar so it was slightly stretched and then I pushed the beads aside so the knots were visible. That way I could easily dab on the glue and let it dry for a few minutes without it sticking to the adjacent beads.

Marvel at your creation!

Additional Resources: Bedrock Supply (<--- I love this place), Aunties Beads: Karla Cam - Elastic Bracelet ( <--- a great instructional video)

This bracelet was featured *squeal* on: So Very Creative, One Pretty Thing, Someday Crafts, Ucreate, A World of Crafts, Handmade Jewelry Club, All Free Beaded Jewelry, also on CraftGawker

Link Party ♥: Oops I Craft My Pants, Sew Much Ado

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Billie

freelance graphic + website designer
wirework + jewelry artist
art + craft lover
coffeeholic

I love to create. This blog is a collection of things.
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