How to Make a Beaded Necklace

Materials & Prep

Gather your beading materials. Make sure to have all of your materials at hand: beads, beading thread, wire cutter, crimp beads, super glue, and closures to properly finish your necklace. The best kinds of wire are flexible beading wire and beading thread. All of these materials are easily available at your local craft store (Michael's or Joanne's, for example).

Select a length. The choker is the shortest necklace and amounts to roughly 13 inches total length. The collar is a little longer, and goes down to about 14 to 16 inches. A Lariat is the longest, coming in at about and over 45 inches. As mentioned above, you can also choose your own length and style.

Measure your neck, and then decide on a length. Take your tape measure, and loop it around your neck while looking at yourself in the mirror. Try small and big loops to see what you prefer. This will give you an idea of what your necklace might look like on your neck.

Determine your necklace style. When considering which style of necklace you'd like to create, think about factors such as length. If you like shorter necklaces you might consider making a collar or choker. If you like longer necklaces, you might want a lariat length (longer, usually down to your chest) necklace. You can also make up your own style and length. These are simple suggestions to give you a rough idea. Note that the finished length of your beaded necklace includes the beads you've used and the length of the jewelry clasp of your choice.

Design & Layout

Arrange your beads on a flat surface, like a table or a desk. Play with the beads until you find the design you like best. Try different color variations, perhaps even think of having multiple layers of string. You might want a choker that wraps around your neck a few times, or maybe just one long loop.

Place your bead board on your flat surface. A bead board is a tool that greatly facilitates the process of stringing beads, and improves your design skills rapidly. You can use it to measure the length of your necklace, while keeping the beads in place. If you plan on making necklaces regularly, or even occasionally, you should have a board at hand. Place your beads in your chosen design at the number zero, and measure the length of your necklace using the numbers and dashes along the sides. Use the channels for laying out beads. The tray insets are for holding beads and findings.

Cut your determined length of beading thread, plus 6 inches. For example, if you'd like to make a collar, cut a total of 22 inches of thread (16 inches plus 6).

Gather 2 crimp beads, 1 clasp, and the beads for the desired necklace. The next part will give you tips on how to thread beads properly.

Construction

Slide one bead onto the string. Then, slide the crimping bead in, and then add another bead about 1 inch (2.5 cm) or so down. Keep in mind that you're not yet transferring your design onto the thread. These are necessary, preliminary steps that will secure your necklace.

Place one end of the clasp (the jump ring) on after the crimping bead. Then, make a loop with the stringing material.

Thread the end of the stringing material through the clasp section. Then add the bead-crimp-bead combo, and use the crimping tool/chain nose pliers to crimp the bead into place. If using bead thread, you may wish to put a dot of super glue of hypo cement on either end to ensure that the beads and crimp stay on.) These steps will protect the stringing material from rubbing on the ends of the crimp bead, which may cause the necklace to break.

Slide your design onto the string. Once you're satisfied with your design, carefully remove one bead at a time, and string it onto the thread. Be sure to leave about 3-4 inches (7.5-10 cm) of stringing material at the end. Thread beads onto the stringing material until there are none left on your bead board.

Use a clasp section/ jump ring and the bead-crimp-bead combo. Try to push the remaining stringing material into the bead holes below the crimping bead. Be careful not to pull the stringing material too tight. Leave a small amount of slack in the necklace (2-4 mm or 1/4 inch). This leaves room for the beads to move and rotate, so they don't rub on each other or the stringing material too much. If the stringing material is too tight the necklace will be rigid and this can make the design look angular instead of slightly rounded like a necklace should be.

Crimp the second end and cut the stringing material with slush cutters. It is not recommended that you cut the wire too close to the crimp bead. 1 inch (2.5 cm) of wire, carefully hidden in the bead holes, is good insurance against breakage.

Finished.