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Black Dahlia Necklace

Lima Beads
Black Dahlia Necklace
Black Dahlia Necklace

Additional Images:

Black Dahlia Necklace
Black Dahlia Necklace

Project details:

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I normally gravitate towards designing with lighter colors, so this week I wanted to switch it up a bit and use a darker color palette. I love the combination of the dark red from the garnet & the deep purple from the lepidolite- and the pink beads and crystal drops help to soften it up a bit. And of course, I love the layered look!

Supplies you’ll need:

  • Assorted gemstones, Czech glass, & seed beads (see below for the ones I used)
  • Gold Chain
  • Gold 24 Gauge Wire
  • Beading Wire
  • Gold Headpins
  • Gold Jump Rings
  • Gold Crimp Tubes
  • Gold Lobster Clasp

Step-by-Step Instructions:

Step

Step 1

Make 7 bead charms with the yellow topaz nuggets (using headpins) & 5 bead charms with the Czech glass gold rose petals (using eye pins).

See Tip: Wire Wrap a Charm

Step

Step 2

Attach the topaz nugget charms to a 4" piece of chain. In between each charm, I attached a jump ring with a pink seed bead on it to the chain.

Step

Step 3

Cut a 14" piece of beading wire. Slide on 10 lepidolite beads. Slide a gold Czech glass spacer and a blue pearl rondelle onto each side of the lepidolite. Slide the ends of the chain onto the beading wire.

Step

Step 4

Slide the rest of the beads onto the wire in the order shown in the picture. Make a loop at each end of the wire and secure with a crimp tube. Use a jump ring to attach each end to a 5.5" piece of chain.

Step

Step 5

The second layer is a series of bead links attached directly to one another. Make the links as shown in the picture.

Step

Step 6

Use a jump ring to attach about 1/4" up the chain.

Step

Step 7

The next layer will end up being 9" long, but use a piece of beading wire that's about 11". Slide on 17 4mm garnet faceted rondelles & a gold rose petal charm. Slide on 8 more garnet beads & another charm. Repeat until you've slid on 5 charms, ending with 17 more garnet beads. Make loops at each end and secure with a crimp tube.

Step

Step 8

The next layer will end up being 8.5" long. Slide on seven 3mm garnet faceted rondelles, a 3mm gold crystal, and 12 more garnet rondelles. Repeat until you have 7 gold crystals, ending with 7 garnet rondelles. Make loops at each end and secure with a crimp tube.

Step

Step 9

Slide each end of the garnet strands onto a jump ring & attach about an inch up the chain.

Step

Step 10

Finish by attaching a lobster clasp, jump ring, and tassel to the ends of the chain.

Buy Products from this Project

8" strand
1-2$2.30
3-5$2.12
6+$1.91
Package of 40
1-2$2.40
3-5$2.24
6+$2.15

Also available: Package of 200

Piece
1-9$0.40
10-19$0.23
20+$0.19
Package of 10
1-2$5.70
3-5$5.31
6+$5.10

Also available: Package of 50

per foot
$1.90
10 yd. spool
1-2$4.20
3-5$3.86
6+$3.57
1 gram
1-3$0.75
4-9$0.69
10+$0.64
15-16" strand
1$9.60
2-4$8.96
5+$8.24
½ strand (loose)
$5.30
15-16" strand
1$12.45
2-4$11.63
5+$10.70
½ strand (loose)
$6.73
5" strand
1$7.90
2-4$7.27
5+$6.56
30 ft. spool
1-2$3.30
3-5$3.04
6+$2.81

Also available: 100 ft. spool

Package of 1 g
1-2$3.90
3-5$3.59
6+$3.39
15-16" strand
1$24.40
2-3$23.00
4+$21.39
½ strand (loose)
$12.70
15-16" strand
1$8.95
2-4$8.36
5+$7.70
½ strand (loose)
$4.98