For The Love of Beads BlogThe adventures of Suzanne, Nibbler, and friends in the world of beads and jewelry making crafts

Completed Flower Earings

Hi there, welcome to my first Beginner’s Do-It-Yourself tutorial! Today I am going to walk you through how to create these fun spring earrings as well as your own ear wires. Its pretty easy, I promise; let’s get started. You’ll need three kinds of pliers (chain nose, bent nose, and round nose) and a wire cutter to complete this project.

If you are using coloured rings like I am, be careful with your pliers as they can scratch the colour off if you are too rough.

The rest of the guide is after the jump! (Click “more…” below)

Materials
-18 gauge  3/16″ID annonized aluminum rings – 12 for petals, 12 for the stem
- 3/36″ID annonized aluminum rings – 24 to match petals, 24 to match center
- 18 gauge 3/36″ID silver rings – 10
- 20 gauge tinned copper/silver wire (or pre-made silver earwires)

The annonized aluminum rings are from The Ring Lord and the silver rings and wire are from a local bead store called Bead Junction.

The tiny little rings used as connectors can sometimes be hard to close, I suggest working with a good lamp and turning your bent nose pliers to point inwards instead of outwards. That way, you can grab the rings with the very tips of your pliers without the bend getting in the way. Or you can use another set of chain nose pliers but I find the bent nose much easier.

Step 1: To start, create a chain of  6 large rings of the main colour (the petals) connected by 2 small rings of the same shade and then add one more large ring of a different color (this will be the center of your flower). This last ring is connected using rings that match it as closely as possible.

Step 1

Step 2: Now, begin wrapping the first six rings around the seventh, connecting it to each ring as you go. Finally, connect the final two outside rings together.

Step 2

And there’s your flower!

Step 2 Completed

Step 3: To complete the earrings as shown, create the stem by interlocking 3 sets of 2 green rings like in the picture below. Or you can stop here and add some ear wires.

Step 3

Step 4: Connect these together with smaller rings and to the flower and you’re almost done.

Step 4

Step 5: At this point you can either attach some bought ear wires or continue the tutorial to learn how to make your own!

Take your silver wire and cut two sections the same length, approximately 1.5 – 2 inches long. Make a small loop in one end of a section using your round nose pliers.

Step 5

Step 6: Grasp this loop with your pliers near the base and pull the wire around one side, this will form the large curve of your ear wires.

Step 6

Step 7: To finish the ear wires, use your chain nose pliers to bend up a small section of the end. Be sure to file this end before wearing your new earrings or they might feel a bit sharp and scratchy!

Step 7

Step 8: Connect your ear wires and there ya go; finished the first one, now go do it again!

Step 8

I hope you enjoyed this tutorial and your new earrings! This is my first tutorial so I’d love to get some feedback about what I did right and what could be improved; so comment or send me an email please.

~Emily