Crochet Bead Necklace Tutorial

Challenges and contests are what fuel a designer’s imagination helping them to create better. I, for one, never pass up an opportunity to participate in design challenges held on various jewellery blogs. Most of these challenges do not pick winners or offer prizes but rather offer all participants an opportunity to get out of their comfort zone and create new designs. In a typical challenge, the host provides an inspiration image, with or without a colour palette and any rules to be followed while creating designs. Creating only earrings, using art beads or using all the colours of the palette are some of the common restrictions that are posed. In this post, I am going to walk you through one such hypothetical challenge and how I create a Crochet bead necklace and earrings based on it.

Inspiration: The inspiration is a Floral Still life painting of Purple Violets by EA Burbank (Elbridge Ayer Burbank) showing an image of rich violets across warm mustard and green background. The colour palette comprises of dark and light violets, dark sea green, seafoam, mustard and light greyish pink. The objective is to create beaded jewellery using the given inspiration.

Realisation: In this challenge, I am considering only colour and pattern as my inspiration leaving out the more indirect aspects. To make my necklace and matching earrings I am choosing beads in crochet light and dark purple with mustard – gold thread work on them. I also adding aventurine in seafoam and white ceramic beads with floral motifs as compliments. The variety of beads in this design offers a balance of colour, texture and size making the design look harmonious and well balanced. Find the DIY tutorial below.

Crochet bead necklace & Earrings

This tutorial is based on the most used and simplest technique of jewellery making - that is stringing. It involves Stringing beads, spacers and components together and finishing the ends with crimps. Jump rings can further be added to the closed ends to connect the clasp or hook and complete the necklace.

Materials

1.Crochet Round Beads Purple 22 mm - 2
2.Crochet Round Beads Light Purple 22 mm - 3
3.Football Glass Beads Violet 8 mm - 1 strand
4.Ceramic Fancy Round Beads 15 mm - 12

1. Round Beads Green Aventurine 5 mm– 8
2. Silver-tone Jump rings– 4
3. Silver-tone ear hook– 1 pair
4. Silver-tone lobster clasp-1
5. Silver-tone eye pins– 2

10 Silvertone crimps – 4

1. Beading wire

Tools – Nose pliers, wire cutters, scissors

Method

Crochet bead necklace DIY

1. Collect all the materials required for the necklace and arrange the beads in the order you want to string them. This saves time in making the necklace.

1. Cut 22” of the beading wire, for a 20” necklace and add three crochet beads in the middle
2. Add a ceramic bead on either side of the dark purple beads and follow it up with light purple beads before you add  one more ceramic round on either side

1. On one side of the necklace, String 3 football beads in purple, followed by 1 aventurine, 1 ceramic round, 1 aventurine bead. Repeat once again on the same side.
2. Repeat step four for the other side
3. String 6 football beads in purple on one side of the necklace followed by two crimp beads.
4. Connect the clasp to two jump rings each on either side by opening and closing the rings making sure that there is no gap.
5. Crimping: Pass the extra 1” wire through the jump ring of the clasp back through the crimp and the beads. Using regular nose pliers press the crimps flat to make sure that the hold on the wire is tight.
6. Repeat steps 6-8 on the other side to complete the necklace

Create Matching earrings

1. To an eyepin add a ceramic bead followed by a football bead and loop. Add ear hook
2. Repeat for the other pair to complete the earrings

Author Bio: Divya N is Fashion (apparel) and jewellery designer who has been teaching design since 2009. She has been interviewed by leading dailies, regional and national magazines, websites, and has been featured on TV shows like ‘Oh my gold’ on TLC and Interweave jewellery magazines. She creates for and runs the jewellery brand Sayuri and blogs at Jewelofsayuri.