How to Make a Pearl Necklace.

[Caitlin]

Supplies and prep.
Thread: silk.
Gudebrod silk thread. size D (small), E (best for most pearls), or F (for big beads), on a card or spool in a color to match your strand.
Here is an example of a site that sells silk threads on a card without a needle, so the small timer can have many colors without buying big spools. http://www.beadshop.com/StringingMaterials-SilkGudebrod.aspx

To test your thread size:

• Run a threaded needle through a sample pearl or bead, and return the thread back through the same hole it came out of. If the needle won’t go through both ways, go to a smaller size thread.
• String one pearl on the thread. Make a trial overhand knot, pull it tight. Try sliding the pearl over the knot. If it goes over the knot, you need a larger size thread.

Needle.
I prefer the twisted wire needles and I buy them in the smallest size.
Here is a good source for twisted wire needles or any other kind you may want:
http://search.store.yahoo.com/cgi-bin/nsearch?query=needles&x=9&y=10&vwcatalog=artbeads

Clasp
There are so many of these on over the net, I hesitate to recommend one for you. Whatever you pick, make sure it stays shut. A classic fish hook will always work for starts.
This page is good for sterling. http://www.artbeads.com/silver-components-clasps.html
This one for gold and gold filled: http://www.artbeads.com/gold-clasps.html

French wire, bullion, or gimp: 3 names for the same product. Buy in same color as clasp:
http://www.artbeads.com/french-wire.html

Beeswax. http://www.artbeads.com/wax-01.html

Pearl.
See bead chart for how many pearls of what size needed to make what length necklace with and without knots.:
http://www.pmegio.com/bead.php .

Some cute little sewing scissors.

A bead clamp.

Pre-stretch your silk thread by pulling on it. Run some beeswax down the thread from end to end. Pull before the beeswax, and after.

For a knotted strand 16-20” I use about a 5ft stretch, doubled with a knot (or a beadclamp) at the end. It is more thread than necessary, but not much.

A nice beginning for your necklace:

String your first three pearls on in reverse order.
Thread gimp and one end of clasp down and push down to the pearls. Clasp should be over the gimp.
Pass needle back through same hole it came out of.
Gently pull the gimp into a loop against the first pearl.
Make an overhand knot around the thread and pull tight against the first pearl. Separate the two strands and pull to tighten the knot in place.
Pass needle through second and third pearls with a knot after each one.

Cut off any extra thread and/or the knot from the end of the thread.

String on the rest of your pearls.

The fastest and easiest method of knotting is shown in this video, which you have to download to your computer. It will run on any of the players:
http://www.lots-of-pearls.com/video/parelsknopen.wmv
Sit in front of this video on repeat and copy the moves.



End your strand the same way as you started it.
Do not knot last three pearls.
Put gimp and other end of clasp on thread and run needle back through the first pearl, be sure you pull it tight, and knot, second pearl and knot third pearl and knot then through the fourth pearl and cut of excess.


A lot of people only do one pearl where I do three, but my method does not require glue.

For Endless Loops:
Be sure to have enough thread, maybe 3-4 yards (It will be 1 1/2- 2 yards long when doubled.) for each 36" of beads.
Leave the first three pearls unknotted.
String and knot all other pearls.
Pass needle though one unknotted bead, knot, second, knot, third,knot, cut off excess.

 

[pernula]

This is great! Thank you for writing this up, Caitlin! I am going to book mark this and try it one day.

I assume the same method can be used for bracelet? I like toggle clasp for bracelet. Do you think it is safe for pearls?

pernula

 

[Caitlin]

Hi Pernula
Yes this works great for bracelets.

Toggle clasps are fine for bracelets, but should be sized to no larger than an inch longer the the wrist's circumferance or it could come unhooked.

 

[Caitlin]

I prefer Dandyline or Power Pro beading thread for bracelets or when using pearls 12mm and over, or when using gemstones that cut silk.

It only comes in black and white.
It does not stretch
It is very hard to cut and will ruin your scissors or wire cutters quickly. Children's Fiskars around $4.99) work fine, but are hard to get into tight places.
I buy a couple of little nippers at a time ofr $2.99 or less- the kind in one piece with extremely sharp points for getting in next to the pearl and cutting off excess thread.

 

[knotty panda]

Good job, Caitlin! The only thing I would add, maybe you've got it in here but I didn't see it (read too fast). Cut the gimp with side-cutters to prevent fraying and spring for sterling or vermeil gimp, plated tends to break down. Cut about 1/8" for a fish hook clasp, 1/4" should be all you will need for a toggle. Yes, a toggle is perfect for necklaces and bracelets. I like toggles that have a jump ring or two as leaders, it's just easier for me to hook.

 

[DFrey]

Hi Caitlin,
Great post on stringing. My wife, who is just learning, enjoyed your post, she learned some new things and you also confirmed that she was on the right track with what she was doing. We both love these type of "how to" posts, but I am not the beader, have trouble with my shoe laces some days.

She is finishing a string of keishi pearls with two silver and 24k gold inserts and clasp in the string. Lots of ends to do in this one.

Dfrey

 

[Caitlin]

Hi DFREY
Thank you. I tought of one more thing I really love and forgot to mention, a bead board. They have grooves for arranging the pearls/beads before you string them. Some now come with a lid, which is handy until you finish the project

If you don't have one, not to worry I also have several trays, just ordinary trays. I put a place mat or towel on each one. I buy extras of the mats too, at the 2nd hand store and use them to cover the top of the try when I am not working on it. One on top, one on bottom.

Actually, I have a bunch of trays picked up from 2nd hand stores, each one stacked with a different unfinished project.

When I buy new pearls, I love to lay them all out on a huge tray w/ a towel. Just for fun, I took a picture of my biggest tray loaded with pearls and put it up on "Some of Caitlins pearls" thread in Show us your pearls.

 

[jerin]

[QUOTE

When I buy new pearls, I love to lay them all out on a huge tray w/ a towel. Just for fun, I took a picture of my biggest tray loaded with pearls and put it up on "Some of Caitlins pearls" thread in Show us your pearls.[/QUOTE]


Caitlin,
I have these ordinary trays as well but when I do a rope for example, I need something with long milled rows. Such rows one can find if shopping in a shop with furniture, You just buy a little "door" of a kitchen cup board with a pattern in it of grooves (here we have Ikea and that means that almost everything can be bought loose, i.e. I don?t have to buy the whole cup board but can look for a door of one that is on sale in a special "bargain room". The come in different sizes, but have rows with the exact same milled size. The pearls rest very secure in these rows and it is very easy to sort them after shape and size. As this little door is made of wood it has its own weight that will stop you from being able to pull it down from the table easy.

Everything lies perfectly still and all You need is a relatively large tableside and than You can start designing and knotting.....

Once my needles did not pass, my husband took a type telephone cable that has several very small coppar wires in it, he then peeled of the outer layer that protects the wires and I had perfect "needles" to get through even the smallest of drill holes! It is good to have a handy husband.

He is also the one who came up with the idea of this cup board door as a pearl tray and I have now 3 with different lengths and diameters in the rows.

Hope these suggestions may come in handy for our beading members...

 

[knotty panda]

Hon, it's no secret! You don't even have to do the last 3 pearls. I've done the last 1 and it holds fine. But for me, I have to use silk. Waxed silk holds the knot like iron. Even on Detolon, unfortunately, the thread tails popped out from beneath the pearls after about a week's time, so I'm back to silk on pearls.

Practice like this. Thread a pearl on a double strand of silk. Now, go back through it. The way I do that is, I place the pearl on my index finger and tighten the thread within the pearl which allows the thread to pass through the second time.

Working with flexible needles is different from working with sewing needles. You can prick and prod and poke with sewing needles. With flexible needles, when you feel resistance, you have to back off, readjust, and try again until the needle goes back through the pearl easily. It's very difficult to work with a bent flexible needle.

Even just having it's little head poke through the other side is good enough. And, you have to make sure the needle doesn't prick the silk or you have a big-ol' mess. This will give you the feel for pulling the thread through the second time on a pearl and you'll also know if the pearl is big enough to accommodate the second pass. Forget reaming and all that other stuff.

If you absolutely positively without a doubt have to make the hole bigger, use a round file. A twist or two should do it, but that really is an extraordinary step.

Ok, when you feel comfortable passing the thread through twice and are able to avoid pricking the silk from the first pass, you're ready to do it for real.

Spacing here is the key to a professional job. I thread on my last two pearls, place on the gimp and pull the thread through the last pearl on the strand (you'll have 1 or 2 pearls in between the end and the last pearl you knotted which are waiting to be backnotted), and pull the thread taut to get the gimp in place. Then I use my thumbnail to open a little space between the pearls for the backknot. Pull the thread through as you have practiced, backknot, and do it as many times as you have unknotted pearls. You'll need a long-nose or chain nose to grab the needle as it pokes it's little head out of the pearl to help pull it through.

Try to keep from bending the needle with the pliers. The silk is forgiving. Bend the strand to accommodate a straight needle.

The hardest part for me is pulling the thread through the last knotted pearl so I have a little tail under the pearl. The thread-burner solves that problem, though, so don't even worry about it. I burn the little tail off and it's cauterized.

Real simple!

Just my way, not the only way.

 

[knotty panda]

When I cut apart that strand of akoyas ... does anyone know about that 'sides Boo? Anyway, yeah, Boo and I cut apart our akoyas. (Trow me unda da bus, Boo! It was MY idea!)

It looks to me like this is what Pearl Paradise does ...

No glue, no wax. Double strand of thread. Thread on the first pearl leaving a tail hidden under the pearl. Put on gimp and come back through the pearl. Knot. And keep on going.

Seems to hold for them okey-fine! You'll have to check with them to see if I missed anything. But it really does look like I do far more unnecessary steps than they do.

 

[jerin]

Stringing

Stringing

Hi Knotty,

thanks for the very informative posts on threading back through the last pearls. When You are talking about using the thread-burner, do you use silkthread? Is it possible to cauterize it without braking it and having to knot the whole necklace again?

Thanks as well for the answers on the post of 100% silk thread. I have visitors the next 2 weeks and therefore not much time to check on the forum....

 

[Caitlin]

Hi Inge
I lost track of where you were asking about needles
artbeads has a lot of them. 25 to the package. That is a link directly to the needles

 

[GemGeek]

Hon, it's no secret! Real simple!

Just my way, not the only way.

I feel special getting all this information. Too bad I'll be gone most of the weekend or I'd be experimenting.

I'm expecting some neat pinky peach freshwaters from China that I hope to make into two long strands. (Knowing that I'll have to toss at least half of the pearls, I ordered eight strands - such a perfectionist!)

Cheers,
Blaire

 

[TCallen]

Thank you for the information!
I do have a few questions:

1. Do i iron the silk thread before putting on the beeswax?
2. Should I use beeswax or Thread Heaven?
3. To use the beeswax I just run the length of the silk thread over the bar of wax? on both sides?
4. I am about to restring pearls that are not white, maybe more ecru or ivory in color, and under 6 mm. Should I use white thread or try to match the color of the pearl? (I realize this is a subjective question but i would like opinions on this)...when black pearls are strung, is the the thread black?
5. Lastly, I am stringing an endless loop. I assume to start I just make an initial knot, add 3 unknotted pearls and then knot/pearl the rest. To end I take needle back through first 3 (unknotted pearls) and knot between each, correct? I haven't actually done it yet but I would imagine there will be 1 or 2 little stubby thread ends that will hang off of the initial knot and the last end off knot, how do I get rid of these?

I really appreciate help with this.

 

[Caitlin]

Hi TCallen

There is no one orthodox way to knot pearls. Don't be afraid to experiment.
1. You pull the thread to try to get the excess stretch out. I am not familiar with ironing it. Try it.
2. I don't know what thread heaven is. Try it. I like beeswax and never looked beyond it.
3. Yes. Cover the thread lightly
4. To me the main point of using silk is to get the color matched as closely as possible. I haven't used silk for my ropes since I discovered power pro, but it only comes in white and moss green which is kind of gray.
5. Make sure the thread and needle will go through the pearls twice before you start knotting. Some people use glue, but I don't. When you knot back three, there is no way, it will come undone. Make the last knot as tight as possible. Clip the thread as close as possible and if you want to, glue it. Or reverse the process, glue, then trim. This is tricky to do neatly. Since I use power pro thread to do ropes, it is relatively easy to melt the tips into the knot with a thread zapper.

 

[TCallen]

Would you recommend using (or have you used) power pro for pearls?
Does it have the same look as silk?

Thank you again for your time and expertise.

 

[TCallen]

I think I want to try it your way with power pro...where do i buy this?

 

[Caitlin]

Hi T
Below is a picture closeup of knots on a 60 5mm strand knotted with 20 lb PowerPro thread which I buy from Suzanne Hye. Here is the Power Pro page. she has the thread zap too.

PowerPro is the strongest, most fray resistant thread I have ever used. Unlike silk's main problem, it does not stretch. Drawbacks are that it comes in only 2 colors and it is rougher on the hands when knotting. It drapes as well as silk does and unlike silk, you can hang strands made with this thread up on hooks without them stretching. It comes in 6lb, 20lb and 30lb. 30lb is good for pearls 7mm and up, 20lb is better with the 5-6mm range. Just think, 20lb thread doubled is 40 pounds of yank and unlike Cinderella's necklace, these babies won't break with yanking them hard or under normal wear. Unlike silk, this thread is indifferent to water.

Suzanne probably has twisted wire needles too, but you can use any kind of beading needle if it is thin enough to go through the holes.

I also like it better than detulon which has a tendency to kink on me, though maybe that is because I am left-handed and do everything backwards.

 

[TCallen]

Caitlin,
OK, I think I located the Power Pro and accessories. I practiced the double strand knotting method in the video you recommended, and you're right, I was doing a single strand because I was a total klutz with all the 2 strand methods I tried previously. This method is very easy.

Last Question in order to figure out which diameter of Power Pro to use:
I will use a double strand to restring the endless loop of pearls. When I end by knotting back three pearls, won't I need a diameter of Power Pro that will allow 4 strands to go through the last three pearls?
Power Pro comes in diameters of .005, .006, .009 and .011 inches.
I'm not sure how big the holes in the pearls are, I think the pearls are about 4-5mm. Silk thread with a doubled diameter of .0274 inches (plus the needle) wouldn't fit through the pearl. So i'm thinking either the .006 or .005 size would work?? Does that sound logical?

 

[Caitlin]

Yes it does sound logical. I did my 5mm with the 20 lb test. That would be the .009. However if the pearls are 4mm and down, the .006 might work better. If you get the thread too small the pearls will slide over the knots, unless you double knot, but if the .009 is too thick, you won't be able to pass it through again.
Since I do a lot of stringing I got each size, then found the vast majority of pearls 5-8mm or so, use the .009.
There is a bit of variation in pearl drill hole sizes. That is why before I start anything knotted, I try out the thread size by passing it through a pearl twice, to see if 4 strands will go through. I also try a knot or two to see if the pearls slip.