Simple Steampunk Necklace Tutorial

For the inaugural post in the brand spanking new Dead Pleasures Design blog, Melvin and I decided to go all out.  We have made a tutorial for you.  This way everyone out there who loves being crafty, making jewelry, the steampunk lifestyle, or just plain making something neat can follow the Dead Pleasures Design process and see what it's like to be...  well, US.  So, feel free to print out everything below, get to a craft store, and make something wonderful for yourself!


MATERIALS:
Here is a list of everything you'll need for this project, in image form so that you can literally see what you need, and in list form so you can check things off as you get them.  Keep in mind chain comes in one long length, you'll have to find a chain you like and then cut it to size yourself.  Everything else comes in packs except the pendants, so you will definitely have more materials than you need for this project.  That's fine- you can use them to make more jewelry and have a matching set!  Click on any image in this tutorial to make it bigger if you're having trouble seeing it.

If your chain isn't really as open as mine, instead of one 1" length and one 4" length, cut two 1" lengths and buy both larger and smaller jump rings/O rings to accomodate your clasp.

• Chain
• 5 x 2" lengths
• 1 x 4" and 1" (OR 2 x 1")
• "Findings"- the little bits and pieces
• 2" long eye and head pins
• 7 x eye pins (maybe more if yours are stubborn, or you aren't used to them)
• 1 x head pin (see above)
• Lobster clasp
• Jump rings/O rings
• 1 x large (enough to fit around your chain and move freely)
• 2 x small (only if your lobster clasp can't use your chain's holes as a closure)
• Beads
• 4 x 8 mm round faceted Czech fire-polished glass beads
• 2 x 8 mm oval faceted Czech fire-polished glass beads
• 1 x 10 mm glass pearl
• 1 x 6 mm glass pearl
• Pendant
• Choose any pendant you like- keep in mind that because of the 10 mm pearl that will be directly above it, you're going to want a larger pendant or it will feel proportionately off-kilter.  Try not to get one smaller than 1 1/2" wide.  Mine was purchased at Michaels Crafts, apparently it is only available in-store, though, so you're going to have to hoof it down there.
• Beading tools
• Bead reamer (in case a hole is too small for the wire, use this- GENTLY- to make it bigger)
• Round nose pliers (REQUIRED)
• Flat nose pliers (optional)
• Wire cutters (REQUIRED)
• Bead board (optional, but so useful it isn't even funny... buying one is the best $10 you'll ever spend if you get into this craft) or a ruler

My tool kit was bought at Wal-Mart, with the exception of the wire cutters.  I got those at some hardware store or another several years ago, because the ones used for cutting fences are more durable than craft-use wire cutters.  All the supplies aside from the pendant and the oval faceted beads (a gift from the man who made them) were purchased at Jo-Ann's Fabrics & Craft.

INSTRUCTIONS:

Print this picture out so you have a guide to work with of what goes where!

First you need to clip your chains into the right lengths.  You will need five lengths of 2" each, and one length each of 4" and 1".  {NOTE: if your chain's holes are too small for your lobster clasp to fit into as a closure, or you are using a different style of clasp, make TWO 1" lengths instead of one 1" and one 4".  There will be instructions later on how to make sure it closes correctly just for you.}

Once you have your chains and all your materials ready, it's time to make the pendant assembly.  You'll need the 10 mm glass pearl, the pendant, and one of your 2" eye pins.  Thread the eye pin through the bead.  Look at the eye (loop) that's already been made for you.  Pay attention, because THIS is the most confusing part!  You want the eye that you are making to be going in the opposite way that the pre-made eye is.  In other words, if you are looking at the pre-made eye and you see the actual loop looking like an open circle- O - you want the one you are making to look like a line - | ; this is so that you can properly hand the pendant from the necklace later [Figs 3.1 & 3.2].

If the pre-made eye is a line when you hold it flat in your fingers in front of you, bend the wire on the other side of the pearl to either the left or the right [Fig 1.1].  If the pre-made eye is a circle when you hold it flat in your fingers in front of you, bend the wire on the other side of the pearl straight back and away from you [Fig 1.2].  Once you have bent the wire, cut it to within about 1/2" of the bead with the wire cutters [Fig 2].

After the wire is cut, it is time to use the round nose pliers to make the second eye.  It takes practice to get a perfect eye that looks like it was machined.  Here are some tips for getting the best eye loops using the fewest number of pins.

1. Grip with the round nose pliers and ROLL the wire!  Bending it makes it look flat, and it won't move as it should later.
2. Always grip the wire with the pliers as close to the clipped end as possible without them slipping off the wire completely- this helps get the proper "shepherd's crook" shape.
3. You will probably tend to twist the wire in a particular direction (I always seem to crank mine a bit to the right) while you are rolling.  Fix this by switching hands at the last couple of tweaks and making sure to gently twist the wire back into the proper spot as you finish rolling.

After you've finished the eye, take the end of the wire and twist it open to the side [Fig 4.1].  Never EVER pull it out straight to open up an eye (or bit of chain or jump ring/O ring either, for that matter).  This weakens the metal and increases the chances of something breaking.  Once the eye is open, hook the pendant on it.  Twist it the opposite way to close it.  Sometimes you have to gently wiggle back and forth to make sure the eye closes all the way with no gaps; make sure you don't do this too hard or you might snap the eye.  Once you are finished with the pendant assembly, set it aside to use later.

Next it's time to put all the faceted beads on their eye pins.  The process is almost exactly the same as putting the 10 mm glass pearl on its eye pin.  The one difference is that you want all the loops to be in the same direction- so if you are seeing an O or a | on the pre-made eye, you need to match the direction when you make your own eye.

If the pre-made eye is a line when you hold it flat in your fingers in front of you, bend the wire on the other side of the straight back and away from you. If the pre-made eye is a circle when you hold it flat in your fingers in front of you, bend the wire on the other side of the bead to either the left or the right [Fig 5.1].  Both eyes should sit on the same line-of-sight when you are done [Fig 5.2].  Clip the wires and roll them into eyes the exact same way you did for the pearl, until you are finished with all six faceted beads [Fig 6].

Following the guide, begin to assemble your necklace.  I find it easier to to one side at a time- you might be more comfortable building each side in tandem.  Open the eye as you did to attach the pendant to the 10 mm pearl, and hook one end of the chain [Fig 7.1].  Close the eye [Fig 7.2] and continue to build the necklace, adding the beads in the order indicated on the guide.  On one side, after the last round faceted bead, attach the 1" length of chain.  On the other side, attatch the 4" length.  On the 1" chain, twist open the last link in the chain and use it to hook the lobster clasp [Fig 8.1] then twist it closed [Fig 8.2].  When you are finished, you should have a structure similar to that in [Fig 9].

{For those of you with smaller chains/different clasps, follow the directions above.  When you get to the last two round faceted beads, you will be attaching a 1" length of chain to both sides.  Twist open two small jump rings and attach one to both the lobster- or other- clasp and the end of one 1" length, then twist it closed.  Attach the other jump ring to the end of the other 1" length of chain and the smaller hole in the mated closure that came with the lobster/other clasp and twist closed.  Your main necklace is now finished, so skip to [Fig 11.1] and the directions for attaching the pendant assembly.}

Get your 6 mm glass pearl and your head pin to make the stopper for the closure chain.  Thread the head pin through the pearl, and clip/roll until you have an eye loop [Fig 10.1].  Twist open the eye loop on your stopper, then attach it to the end of the 4" length of chain and twist it closed [Fig 10.2].

Once you have the necklace completely made, take your pendant assembly and the larger jump ring.  Twist the jump ring open- enough to fit over your chain [Figs 11.1 & 11.2]- and hook your pendant assembly by the unoccupied eye loop of the 10 mm pearl [Fig 12].  Now comes the fun part... Which hand do you usually use to open necklaces?  Generally, whichever hand you are normally used to writing with (right-handed for me) is the one preferred for opening clasps on jewelry.  To make sure the clasp is on the right side for you and the pendant is facing the correct way, follow the below instructions:

• IF YOU USE THE RIGHT HAND TO OPEN THE CLASP
• Lay the necklace flat.  Make sure the actual clasp is on the left side of your necklace and the closure is on the right side.  Hook the pendant assembly- FACE UP!- over the 2" chain segment between the first two round faceted beads.  Twist the jump ring closed.
• IF YOU USE THE LEFT HAND TO OPEN THE CLASP
• Lay the necklace flat. Make sure the actual clasp is on the right side of your necklace and the closure is on the left side. Hook the pendant assembly- FACE UP!- over the 2" chain segment between the first two round faceted beads. Twist the jump ring closed.

Congratulations, your necklace is done!  It should look similar to the model below... with your own touches of course!  Follow the care instructions in the image below and your jewelry should last you for quite some time.

Like this tutorial?  Have questions on some of the steps?  Please drop me a line in the comments below and let me know!