How to Combine Beads to Make a Necklace

Most women l-o-v-e jewelry. But you jewelry lovers, have ever stopped to ask yourselves just what went into creating that beautiful necklace you saw in the shop the other day? Every now and then someone asks me: Well, how do you decide what beads to use and how to put them together? Well truthfully, I don’t have any fixed formula, but there are a few things that I always take into consideration before I actually start making a piece of jewelry. These include: color, type of bead/gemstone, shape, texture, type of findings to use, and the *friendliness* of the beads.

I don’t lay out the beads on a beading board or towel, but I do try to draw a mental picture of the finished jewelry and I try to visualize it around a neck (any neck). I mentioned *friendliness* as one of my considerations. For example, what I mean by this is that beads such as haematite (it’s actually an iron ore) are arrogant, while pearls are snobs. What do I mean by this? Haematite (in my opinion) do not like to share the limelight with other beads. They have a tendency to drown out other beads because of their color and the way they shine. When I make a necklace using haematite, rather than combine it with other beads, I would rather use haematite in different sizes and/or shapes to make the necklace because they just refuse to cooperate with other beads. Pearls on the other hand, have their own issues. Real pearls are classics. They are stunning and they know it. Pearls are one of the few types of beads with this innate ability to transform even the most mundane outfit into an epitome of elegance. For this reason, pearls will not allow their image to be insulted by the presence of *lesser beads”*. It’s not all negative though, as pearls will agree to share their status with other beads and gemstones such as swarovski crystals which they feel are of the same status. I’ve found that genuine pearls and genuine swarovski crystals make a good team. Swarovski crystals though pricey, are the nice guys. They’re friendly beads (crystals) and don’t have the hang-ups that pearls and haematite do. As a result, they’ll work with *anybody*.

This is a facetious drop in the ocean as far as explaining the elements that make up the design of a necklace or other piece of jewelry. There are some basic rules and techniques which one does need to conform to in order to end up with a piece of jewelry that people are willing to spend money on.