Using a crimp tube is an easy way to finish off your beading wire securely. It does take a little practice, but done properly, it also look professional. I prefer to use a wire protector along with the crimp. Be sure you thread the crimp on before you thread the wire through the wire protector…
How To Use a Crimp Cover
What Size Crimp Should I Use in my Venetian Jewelry?
To Anneal or Not to Anneal – a very good question?
This is a question we get often, especially from new beaders who have just been their first bead show. Are all Venetian Beads are annealed. She had heard that annealing makes the beads stronger. What is annealing? The word comes from the metallurgy and materials science where it has long been recognized it increases the metals ductility…
What Sizes are the Holes in Murano Glass Beads?
This is a question every new beader asks when they first encounter Venetian Beads. And then they ask, “What size wire should I use?” Venetian Beads, Murano Beads The most common size of holes of Murano Glass Beads is approximately 1mm. Approximate because they are most often made on 1mm diameter copper rods, which heats…
Make an Adjustable Charm Bangle with Beadalon Bracelet Jig
Gold, Gold Fill, Gold Plate and Vermeil – What You Need to Know
Measuring Crystals and Pearls – PP, SS, MM Made Simple
Swarovski and others crystals, rhinestones and flatbacks use PP, SS and MM, what do they mean and why! PP means Pearl Plate and was originally used to measure, well Pearls. That’s because the pearls were graded through stacks of plates with varying size holes. Actually we still use these in our first sort on sizes…
Unraveling the Mystery of Gauges of Wire
We often hear from customers that they just don’t understand wire gauges. It is confusing,and we can blame it on “Brown & Sharpe” who established the AWG standardized wire gauge system for the American market in 1857 and was mainly used to describe the diameters of electrically conducting wire. They had no idea that jewelers…
Calcedonia Murano Glass Beads
Calcedonia Murano Glass was developed in Murano during the mid fifteenth century. In the glossary of glass, written in Murano, Angelo Barovier is attributed with developing this polychrome glass in 1460. The secret of this glass was closely guarded and entirely lost when the Venetian Republic fell. It was once again rediscovered by Lorenza Radi…