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Friday, February 21, 2014
Sunday, February 9, 2014
Hey - what's the on the back of your neck?
Continuing the series on Whys It So Expensive?!......
So, we've talked about the wire....we've talked about special beads.... now, the fun part - CLASPS! One of my favorite things about making jewelry is, as I refer to it, "righting the wrongs of jewelry designers past", CLASPS! We all know them....the little springing thing that you have to practically rip your fingernail off to get pulled back, and then do a dance with the necklace to get into the teeny tiny little hole that they've provided to latch to. BLEAH! Guess what?! They don't have to be so horrid! It's true!
My favorite types of clasps are magnetic, toggle and hook & eye.
MAGNETIC
How much time do we WASTE trying to get those little springs into the little hole, while the bracelet flips and flails around our wrists? There's no need! Magnets all the way, baby! Many older ladies comment "Oh this is so great for my arthritic hands"....honey it ain't great just for those hands - how about ANY hand? What I love about the magnets is that all you have to do is get them close together and they do all the work for you! How wonderful, right? Here's a sample of some pieces with magnets....
https://www.etsy.com/listing/115818697/square-champagne-gold-bracelet
Here's a sample of a *necklace* with a magnetic clasp. This piece was begging for a beautiful clasp! The crystals on the clasp matched and it was a perfect fit! What's great about this clasp is that it can be worn in the front OR back - making what I call a "2-fer" - 2 pieces for the price of one... wear clasp in front or back! =)
https://www.etsy.com/listing/121690359/mother-bridal-pearl-and-purple-crystal
TOGGLE
The next type of clasp to talk about is the Toggle. One of my favorites! It is, in simplest form, a circle with a bar that comes up and through the center. VERY easy for anyone to do. In it's more extravagant form, it can be worn in the front or even on the side. Here are some examples:
I'd wear this in the back - but you can see the toggle clearly
https://www.etsy.com/listing/178824158/pink-purple-clear-ab-necklace-quartz
Beautiful Leaf clasp - worn in the front or back
https://www.etsy.com/listing/160691973/lime-green-turquoise-and-antique-copper
HOOK & EYE
And one last, for today's lesson - the hook and eye. You can see on this piece the little hooks on either side of the orange bracelet, in the front (yes! the orange detaches and can be worn as a bracelet! Another 2-fer!). In this case, since I wanted the bracelet to be easily removed, I went with this type of clasp. It's very classic, and gets the job done...but I will say, it can be a little tricky getting that hook into the teeeny tiny little hole - but MUCH easier than the springs =) These types of clasps are also good for necklaces which are don't have a lot of weight, because the toggle does need some downward force to keep it in place (if that makes sense).
(Listing coming soon!)
Until next time!
So, we've talked about the wire....we've talked about special beads.... now, the fun part - CLASPS! One of my favorite things about making jewelry is, as I refer to it, "righting the wrongs of jewelry designers past", CLASPS! We all know them....the little springing thing that you have to practically rip your fingernail off to get pulled back, and then do a dance with the necklace to get into the teeny tiny little hole that they've provided to latch to. BLEAH! Guess what?! They don't have to be so horrid! It's true!
My favorite types of clasps are magnetic, toggle and hook & eye.
MAGNETIC
How much time do we WASTE trying to get those little springs into the little hole, while the bracelet flips and flails around our wrists? There's no need! Magnets all the way, baby! Many older ladies comment "Oh this is so great for my arthritic hands"....honey it ain't great just for those hands - how about ANY hand? What I love about the magnets is that all you have to do is get them close together and they do all the work for you! How wonderful, right? Here's a sample of some pieces with magnets....
https://www.etsy.com/listing/115818697/square-champagne-gold-bracelet
Here's a sample of a *necklace* with a magnetic clasp. This piece was begging for a beautiful clasp! The crystals on the clasp matched and it was a perfect fit! What's great about this clasp is that it can be worn in the front OR back - making what I call a "2-fer" - 2 pieces for the price of one... wear clasp in front or back! =)
https://www.etsy.com/listing/121690359/mother-bridal-pearl-and-purple-crystal
TOGGLE
The next type of clasp to talk about is the Toggle. One of my favorites! It is, in simplest form, a circle with a bar that comes up and through the center. VERY easy for anyone to do. In it's more extravagant form, it can be worn in the front or even on the side. Here are some examples:
I'd wear this in the back - but you can see the toggle clearly
https://www.etsy.com/listing/178824158/pink-purple-clear-ab-necklace-quartz
Beautiful Leaf clasp - worn in the front or back
https://www.etsy.com/listing/160691973/lime-green-turquoise-and-antique-copper
HOOK & EYE
And one last, for today's lesson - the hook and eye. You can see on this piece the little hooks on either side of the orange bracelet, in the front (yes! the orange detaches and can be worn as a bracelet! Another 2-fer!). In this case, since I wanted the bracelet to be easily removed, I went with this type of clasp. It's very classic, and gets the job done...but I will say, it can be a little tricky getting that hook into the teeeny tiny little hole - but MUCH easier than the springs =) These types of clasps are also good for necklaces which are don't have a lot of weight, because the toggle does need some downward force to keep it in place (if that makes sense).
(Listing coming soon!)
Until next time!
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