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No Clasp? No Problem!

Sep 27, 2011 by Jennifer VanBenschoten

Make Great Handmade Beaded Jewelry with Character!

When you're working on a piece of great beaded jewelry, you want to give it character. After all, that's why people make, buy and wear handmade beaded jewelry, isn't it? They want something special! So why settle for an ordinary clasp?

You can always make a jewelry clasp if you don't happen to have a manufactured clasp handy. Making your own clasps for your handmade beaded jewelry gives your pieces an extra little "something" that you can't get from a mass-produced piece of jewelry.

If you've never made your own clasp, don't worry - there are lots of easy ways to make your own jewelry clasps. Here are just a few ideas to get you started!


 Use peyote stitch. If you have a little bit of beadweaving experience, you can whip up a quick toggle clasp in no time. Make a small strip of peyote stitch and zip it up into a tube. Attach it to one side of your necklace or bracelet, and just make a seed bead loop on the other side. Instant clasp!




Use a button or a bead. I've got loads of antique buttons just sitting in my stash, and I'm always on the lookout for jars of buttons at my local thrift shop. To use a button as a clasp, string it on one side of your necklace or bracelet (just like a bead) and make a seed bead loop on the other side. You can use a two-hole button, a shank button (with a wire or plastic loop on the back) or even a toggle button!




If you have some basic wire work skills, grab a short piece of heavy gauge wire (18 or 16 gauge works best) and make a wire hook and eye clasp or an s-clasp. Embellish to your heart's content with beads and maybe even a wire coil or two!




Skip the clasp. If you've got a piece or two of ribbon handy, you can use it to add ties to the back of your necklace. You can use the ribbon to string your necklace, or cut two short lengths of ribbon and tie them to your necklace. You can either attach them with a seed bead loop or you can tie them directly to a piece of chain. A small drop of glue will help keep the knots secure.


Getting great inspiration and ideas for new ways to finish your handmade beaded jewelry is just a click away - subscribe to Stringing magazine to learn new jewelry-making techniques and keep up with the hottest trends in handmade beads and jewelry! You'll find pages of gorgeous beaded jewelry designs from your favorite jewelry artists along with clear, step-by-step directions.

Have you discovered a great and unusual way to finish your beaded jewelry without a clasp? Share it here on the blog! Or better yet, post a picture of your unique handmade clasp in the Reader Photo Gallery!

Bead Happy,

Jennifer

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Comments

 
Lorrainetiffany wrote
on Sep 30, 2011 11:24 AM

Can anyone help me out with an EASY to read and understand how to make horizontal and vertical stitches. i want to make the Maudeb earribngs and also a cardinal one.

angieleb13 wrote
on Oct 4, 2011 11:24 AM

I learned how to make my own clasps with wire, so that is no longer a problem for me.

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