Bead Club Tonight

Bead Club will meet tonight, Monday October 22nd, from 7 to 9 p.m. at Anita's Beads. Hope you can join us! Call Anita at 603-522-6529 with questions.

Directions for Tube Bracelet

Your kit contains:
1 24-inch piece of .015 beading wire
2 crimp beads
2 metal wire guards (look like horse shoes) 
1 magnet clasp
4 3x2mm rondelle metal beads
4 3mm round metal beads
4 2x38mm metal tubes
6 metal flat heishi spacer beads
10 colored bracelet beads
1 focal bead

You will need the following tools:
Chain nose pliers
Cutters

Step 1) Attach clasp to wire guard with crimp:
Thread the beading wire through one tube of the wire guard from the bottom, and then down the second tube from the top. (Note: if you are unfamiliar with wire guards, they are horse-shoe shaped with a hollow tube portion at both ends connected by an open u-shaped channel between them.)

Move the wire guard to the center of the beading wire. Now slip one ring of your magnet clasp over one end of the beading wire and bring it up into wire guard so it rests around the u-shaped channel. Once the magnet clasp is attached, bring both ends of the beading wire through the crimp. Pinch the two tube portions of the wire guard together so they are touching, and slide the crimp up to meet them.

With your chain nose pliers, flatten the crimp so it makes secure contact to hold the wires. For the best appearance, there should be no space between the wire guard and the flattened crimp. Make sure you do not compress the tiny tubes of the wire guard as you flatten the crimp.


Step 2) String on beads:
Holding the two wires together, string one colored bracelet bead, then one metal rondelle, and then one 3mm round metal bead and slide them up to the crimp. Now split the wires and string one metal tube onto each one and slide them up to the 3mm round metal bead.

Hold the two wires together again and string on one 3mm round metal bead, one metal rondelle, one bracelet bead, and one heishi. Continue to alternate bracelet beads and heishi for a total of two, three, or four sets. Then add the focal bead, followed by enough bracelet beads and heishi to match the first side, ending with a bracelet bead.

You can adjust the size of your bracelet by the number of beads added in the center on either side of the focal bead.

String on a rondelle metal bead directly after the last bracelet bead, and then string on a metal 3mm round. Now split the wires again and string one metal tube onto each.

The bring the wires together again and string on one 3mm round bead, one rondelle, one colored bracelet bead, and finally, the second crimp.

Step 3) Add second wire guard and attach to clasp:
Make sure all beads are strung evenly and without spaces, showing bare wire as little as is possible. Separate the two wires coming out of the second crimp and feed one up through one side of the second wire guard, across the top of the wire guard, and down through the second side.

Now slip the second ring of your magnet clasp over the piece of beading wire that you just fed through the second side of the wire guard and bring it up into wire guard so it rests around the u-shaped channel. Once the magnet clasp is attached, bring the end of the beading wire back down through the crimp and the colored bracelet bead. Pinch the two tube portions of the wire guard together so they are touching.

Keeping the crimp in position against the last colored bracelet bead, pull the tail of the wire running through the wire guard until the gap is eliminated between the crimp and the wire guard.

You still have a second piece of beading wire going up through the crimp. Bring this second piece of beading wire back down through the crimp, forming a loop. Then, reduce the size of the loop by pulling on the short piece of the second wire until there is just a small "nub" at the top of the crimp.

With your chain nose pliers, flatten the crimp so it makes secure contact to hold the wires. For the best appearance, there should be no space between the wire guard and the flattened crimp. Make sure you do not compress the tiny tubes of the wire guard as you flatten the crimp.

Step 4) Trim wires:
Carefully trim off the two short pieces as close as you can, one to the bottom of the flattened crimp and the other to the colored bracelet bead. Your tube bracelet is now complete.

Visit Anita's Beads and ask to see a demonstration at the counter if you need help.

No Bead Club Tonight!

Bead Club for Monday October 15th has been cancelled due to a conflict in schedule. Bead Club will resume next Monday night from 7-9 pm. Contact Anita at 603-522-6529 with questions,

Bead Club Tonight!

Bead Club will meet tonight from 7-9 p.m. at Anita's Beads. Hope you can join us!

Carol's Tube Bracelet

A friend showed me how to make these cool bracelets using 2x38mm bent metal tubes. Her copper bracelet was made with turquoise Czech picasso rondelles. You can adjust the size of the bracelet by the number of beads at the center. Here's a large version in silver plate with eight 6mm Czech pearls (plus two near the magnet clasp).

This sample in gunmetal (also known as black oxide) finish has only six pearls at the center and fits smaller wrists.

Kits and finished bracelets in silver plate and gunmetal are now available at Anita's Beads. Copper and gold plated versions will be available soon. Magnet clasps, tubes, wire guards, spacer beads, and a variety of Czech glass beads are offered separately as well.

Anita will be demonstrating how to construct Carol's Tube Bracelet at next Monday's meeting of The Bead Club scheduled for October 8th from 7-9 p.m. Come join us!

Bead Club Starting October 1st

Bead Club will start it's second season on Monday October 1st. We will meet every Monday evening from 7-9 at Anita's Beads. No reservations or sign-ups are required but we will be asking for a $5. donation per session. (Spend $25. on beads when you attend and receive your $5. back as a credit towards your purchase.)

Call Anita at 603-522-6529 with questions. Directions to Anita's Beads can be found on the Facebook page.

Gotta Get Gun Metal

I've started making new Daily Bracelet designs in gun metal. After I made my first one I had to start another one immediately. Such a cool look for fall and winter, don't you think?

You will find the following materials in gun metal at Anita's Beads: 24 ga. headpins (2-inch), 21 ga. headpins (4-inch), chain, ball & socket clasps, 2x38mm curved tubes, earwires, 2.5mm round beads, 2x3mm rondelle beads, 3mm round beads, 3mm heishi spacers, and 5mm heishi spacers.

Czech Glass Pearls

I am really loving the new Czech Glass Pearls just in at Anita's Beads. They are extremely affordable and come in a nice range of colors. I've been putting them to good use in some new Daily Bracelets!

In the 4mm size we have a very high quality version available in short strings of 31 pieces:

And here is another range of 4mm colors in a less expensive version which comes in strings of 120 pieces:

Here's what we have in the 6mm size:

Anita's lovely Czech glass pearls make an economical addition to your holiday gift and craft fair designs. Shop early for the best selection.

New Daily Bracelets

I've gotten back to wire work recently and am adding to the Daily Bracelet series using some of our new Czech pearls. I really love these orange ones for fall. Here is Daily Bracelet No. 47 with a matching necklace:

Here's another combination with some faceted Czech glass rondelles that remind me of blue Peruvian opal.
This is Daily Bracelet No. 46.

Summer Vacation

Many thanks to all who have attended bead club, and especially to those of you who have generously shared projects with the group. Bead Club will be suspended for the duration of the summer and will start up again in the fall. Have a wonderful summer everyone and don't forget, Anita's Beads is open 10-5 every day through September. In the fall, regular hours will resume.

Bead Club Meeting

Bead Club will meet at Anita's Beads tonight Thursday July 12th from 7-9. All are welcome. Call Anita at 603-522-6529 with questions.

Czech Seed Beads

Anita's Beads stocks Czech seed beads in 6-strand hanks in the following sizes from large to small: 6/0, 8/0, 11/0, and size 13 Charlotte. The photo above shows our collection of opaque colors which are very popular for beading Native American designs.

Anita's New Ceiling

Back in may I posted a few photos of the shop under construction but never got around to showing you the finished results!

Buttons for Kumihimo

We have recently added some lovely new Czech glass buttons--so popular that we will be stocking additional colors soon. And the lovely "Tree of Life" button is now back in stock at Anita's Beads.