Heartifacts Bracelet in Beadwork

If you prefer Susie will make you you own Heartifacts Bracelet.  Price is $375.00 and takes approximately 3 weeks to design.  Please click on the link below to order yours today:

MY OWN HEARTIFACTS BRACELET

Heartifacts Bracelet                   

Length Approx: 8 ¾

SUPPLIES: 

• 15 inch .019 Softflex™
• 46 inches 20 ga. Half-hard sterling silver wire
• 2-2X2 sterling silver crimp beads
• 1-Fire Goddess lampworked heart button  (many color schemes to choose from)
• 2-Fire Goddess silvered-ivory lampworked bead
• 20 (approximately) small 6mm sterling-silver daisy type spacer beads
• An assortment of colored stones or glass beads in various shapes and sizes  
• 2-large focal beads
• 20-6mm heavy gauged sterling-silver jump rings (preferably hardened and tempered with a seamless and mitered cut).
•  3mm  beads to dress wire on closure noose
• 1-26 gauge brass sheet
• 12-inches 16 gauge brass wire
• Assortment of metal findings and spacers

TOOLS:

• 1-pair wire cutters
• 1-pair round nose pliers
• 2-pair chain nose pliers
• 1-cutting shears (Joyce Chin kitchen scissors)
• 1-chasing hammer
• 1-rawhide mallet
• 1-bench block
• 1-coiling Gizmo
• 1-Crop-A-dile™ hole puncher
• 1 jewelers-hand file
• Various grits of sandpaper
• 1 bench pin
•  

There are five (5) separate procedures involved in the culmination of creating your own Heartifacts Bracelet.

The five various procedures are:

A.     Making the Brass Shape Charms (Supporting Photos provided)

B.     Making the Sterling-silver Springs (Supporting Photos provided)

C.    Making headpins and Spirals (Supporting Photos provided)

D.    Assembly of the Bracelet (Supporting Photos provided)

E.     Adding the Embellishing Charms (Supporting Photos provided)

A. MAKING THE BRASS SHAPE CHARMS

1.  You can pre-cut the sheet into 4 equal squares and then draw and cut out  the four separate designs.  You may find  working  with smaller square pieces  easier to cut the final designs. Create different and random shapes that appeal to you (hearts, rectangles, squares, etc).  Photo 1 & 2

2. Now  file  a smooth finish to the edges of the charms. Using your bench pin to steady your charms, use the flat hand file to smooth both sides of the charm edge with a steady forward motion.  Round out any pointy edges.  After filing, use the sandpaper and continue the smoothing process removing any rough areas, burrs or sharp points.   Photo 3
3. For a textured look place your charm on your bench block and with the side edge of your chasing hammer gently strike nicks and character into the metal face of the charm.  Photo 4

4        Now as a last step take the rawhide mallet and hammer your charm a few times against the bench block to flatten and “set” the charm.

5        To make a hole in the charm follow the instructions on your Crop-A-Dile tool.  As an option you can place your hole in a corner or in an offset position to allow your charms to dangle in a canted appearance.  Perform this procedure on each charm.  The Crop-A-dile is a wonderful tool for this purpose but is only intended for light gauge sheet metal. 

6        To complete the preparation of the charms use a polishing cloth to enhance and restore the metal.   Now take four of the 6mm s.s. jump rings and open the rings and add one to each of the completed brass charms.  Set aside the brass charms with the jump ring opened to be used in STEP  E.

B.    MAKING THE STERLING-SILVER EMBELLISHING SPRINGS

1. The springs will slip over the Softflex and give the appearance of a wire-wrapped design to the bracelet.  To make the springs use the smaller mandrel found in the Coiling Gizmo. ™ Follow the Gizmo directions for wrapping wire.  You will need approximately 30 inches of  20 gauge  sterling-silver wire and coiled 17 times to yield 4-1/2 inch springs.   Photo 5 & 6
2. MAKING THE BRASS SPIRALS  AND HEADPINS FOR DANGLES:

1. Cut 4-3 inch pieces of 16 gauge brass in preparation to making the  spiral charms.
2. With your round nose pliers form the top loop at one end of the wire in one direction and the bottom loop in the opposite direction. 
3. Place the beginning coil of the bottom loop in-between the bills of your chain nose pliers and carefully bend the wire forming a tight coil until you reach the top loop.  You have just completed your first spiral embellishment. Once the spiral embellishments are complete add one of the 6mm s.s. jump rings to the top loop of each spiral charm and set aside with the open jump ring until later in the assembly.  Photo 7

Making the headpins:

1.      Cut 8-2 inch pieces of 20 gauge sterling silver wire for your headpin.  With your round nose pliers make a tiny loop then refer to step 2 above to complete the spiral.  These head pins will be used to make a total of eight (8) different dangle embellishments using the assorted beads, findings, and stones you have selected.  Mix up the beads and stones to make different embellishments that please you.  Photo 8

2.      Add the assorted beads to each headpin and compete the wrapping of the tail of the wire into the twisted loop.  Refer to your basic instructions offered in the back of this magazine under the general skills training and skills related to wire techniques and wire wrapping.   (It is always recommended to practice with the same gauge copper wire before you begin making embellishments out of your more expensive sterling-silver wire. Photo 8

3.      Now add one each of the 6mm s.s. jump rings to each of the completed wrapped headpins at the top loop.  Set the eight (8) completed dangle embellishments on headpins with the jump ring open aside which will be added to the bracelet at the last step.

4. ASSEMBLY OF THE BRACELET:

1.      First begin by attaching the Fire Goddess heart button to a 15 inch long piece of Softflex with a tight noose.  To make the noose, feed your starter tail of your softflex through 2 daisy beads-then through a 2X2 crimp bead-2 more daisies beads and pass the Softflex through the glass shank of the lampwork button.   Photo 9

2.      On the other side of the glass shank add one 3mm sterling-silver bead  and then pass the wire outside the 3mm bead and then back through the glass shank-through the daisies beads-the crimp-and the 2 remaining daisy beads.  Close the crimp bead and snip your remaining excess tail of Softflex. Photo 9

3.      Now lay out your attached glass heart button on the softflex and the created embellishments-stones, beads , spirals and charms before you using the photo guide as a reference. Photo 10

4.      Add the embellishments and components as shown in the photo guide.  When complete and you are satisfied with the assembly  you will use the remaining tail of uncovered softflex to make the flexible closure noose that will fit around the glass heart button acting much like the loop of a toggle and the heart button serving as the toggle bar.

       Photo 10

5.      To make the flexible noose begin by adding 2 daisy spacer beads-the crimp bead-2 more daisy beads.  Now starting adding 3mm s.s. beads.  Approximately  22 more or less-3mm beads are added to create the flexible noose (since each lampworked glass heart button is different your count of 3mm beads will vary.  That is why it is very important you do not crimp the last crimp bead until you have measured your loop to make sure it will fit over your selected glass heart button).   Once you have added the 3mm beads feed the Softflex tail back through the 2 daisy beads-the crimp bead-the other 2 daisy beads.  DO NOT CRIMP THE CRIMP BEAD!  Now hold on to the remaining tail of Softflex with your chain nose pliers and carefully attempt to slip the noose over the glass button.  If it fits then go back and crimp the crimp bead and cut off the remaining excess tail of Softflex.  If the noose is too tight or too loose gently pull back out the tail of softflex away from the daisy spacer beads and the crimp bead and either add a few more 3mm beads or remove a few to size the loop up or down.  Once you have sized the loop to properly fit over the glass heart button feed back through daisy spacer beads and the crimp, crimp the crimp bead and trim the final piece of excess softflex.  Photo 11

5. ADDING THE CHARMS TO THE BRACELET:

1)     You should have remaining four unused jump rings.  Open the jump ring and add a 6mm daisy spacer bead or other similar bead to convert this jump ring into a decorative dangle embellishment. 

2)     Now gather up all the dangle embellishments you have made over the course of the project.  You show have the following

a.                        4-brass charms with added jump rings

b.                        4-brass spirals with added jump rings

c.8- embellished headpins with added jump rings

d.           4-6mm jump rings with a daisy spacer or similar bead. 

3)     Now create four groups of embellishments.  1ea-brass charm-1 brass spiral, 2-embellished headpin and one jump ring with added spacer.

4)     Now add one group of dangle embellishments to each section of the spring portion of the bracelet.  You slip on the jump ring of the charm or embellishment over the springs and use the proper technique to close the jump ring to a smooth union.   Photo 10

Heartifacts Bracelet is now complete.