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Aunt Molly's Bead Street
BEADWORK PROJECTS

Potato Pearl Choker

I often receive e-mail asking about finishing techniques for bead jewelry. I had a lot of fun last summer making (and wearing) these simple strands. It occurred to me this project would make a quick and easy beginner's tutorial on using knot hiders and lobster claw clasps, so here it is! The necklaces pictured here are 16" to 18" total length.

Materials 2 . 3mm fire polished crystals 13-16 freshwater pearls (Potato pearls are fat little roundish pearls, available in many colors.) Small amount of Japanese 14° seed beads or Czech charlottes 2 knot hiders (bead tips) -- the little buckets or the closeable clamshell kind (The illustrations here show buckets, the photo shows the clamshells.) 1 small lobster claw clasp 1 oval jump ring

Supplies Needle(s) -- size 13 for smaller seed beads, size 12 for larger beads Thread -- Nymo or Silamide. I recommend Silamide unless the beads are very small. Thread Heaven™ Scissors Jewelers pliers -- I use both small chain nose and round nose (needle nose) in this project

Let's Get Started!

1. Cut a length of thread about 3 times as long as your necklace will be.
2. Tie on 1 stopper seed bead. Use a single knot, in case you need to adjust the length later, and leave about a 6" tail.
3. Pass through 1 knot hider, then pick up 1 fire polished bead.
4. Pick up about 1" to 1½" of seed beads, then 1 potato pearl. Then pick up another segment of seed beads, 1 pearl, seed beads, pearl, etc., until you have picked up 13 pearls.
5. Pick up another segment of seed beads, then one fire polished bead, and pass through the second knot hider.
6. If the necklace is too long or too short (minus the length of the clasp), or if the end segments of seed beads are uneven, now is the time to fix it. Untie the beginning stopper bead and add or remove beads until the necklace is balanced and the length you want it to be.
7. Retie the stopper bead and slide all the beads toward that end until the necklace is snug.
8. Pick up 1 seed bead, then turn around and pass back through the 2nd knot hider, pulling the thread very snug.
9. Weave back through the entire necklace, coming back through the 1st knot hider.
10. Tie a square knot (or two) with the two thread ends and weave each end back into the necklace. Trim the thread very close to the beads. You can also dab a bit of clear nail polish or glue on the knot.
11. If you're using clamshell knot hiders, pull one side closed with a pair of pliers (the side that is open to a 45° angle, not the side that is connected to the loop), while stabilizing the other side by placing your finger behind it. Then, with the clamshell almost shut, clamp it on both sides with your pliers, and squeeze it shut the rest of the way.

Attaching the Clasp

1. Your lobster claw clasp should come with a little jump ring attached to the end. Slip that small jump ring over the metal loop of one of the knot hiders. Grasp the end of the loop with your pliers and pull it into a circle to close it and prevent the clasp from falling off. The clasp should move freely inside the loop.
2. Place your oval jump ring on the loop of the other knot hider. I prefer oval rings because the "seam" is to the side. Round jump rings seem to come apart more often. Close the other knot hider around the jump ring -- it, too, should move freely.

Voila! Now you have a classy strand of beads with a nice drape, reinforced with a second pass of thread, with a sturdy clasp and a good looking finish. Try some of these variations, too:

Smaller, white pearls with Japanese 14°s. Check out the "Shakespeare in LA" choker in my Gratitude Gallery.

Size 11° seed beads with larger, oblong accent beads. Size 11° seed beads with tiny silver accent beads instead of pearls. On the second pass, I picked up the fringe beads.

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These instructions, the patterns, and all images are ©2000, Mary J. Tafoya.
Single copies may be downloaded for personal, non-commercial use only. Any other usage
must be accompanied by written permission from the copyright holder (me).