Rings & Things Jewelry Blog

Created by: Polly Nobbs-LaRue Designer TipsWhen scouring yard sales and 2nd-hand stores for old watches, try to pick up a wide variety of brands and eras, for the best variety of gears. Or look for bulk watch gears on etsy, ebay or amazon. To get the widest variety of gears, consider both small tins and bulk bags from a few sources.Wear safety glasses when cutting, drilling or punching.Lay out pattern; carefully set aside, away from your hammering surface.Decide the size rivets yo …

Created by: Polly Nobbs-LaRueDesigner TipsUse heavy-duty flush cutters to cut approximately 1 loop from the spool of 12-gauge antiqued copper wire. Make sure both ends are cut flat (flush) so they fit together well inside the crimp.Slide nuts, washers, large-hole beads, holey found objects, etc onto the wire.Place one end of wire half-way into crimp connector. Place other side of wire in the opposite end so wires meet in the middle.Use the back notch of the Mighty Crimping Pliers, to gently - bu …

Created by: Polly Nobbs-LaRueDesigner TipsCut a 20-gauge or 24-gauge 0.25" (wide) strip of copper, brass or sterling sheet approximately 2.75" long.Smooth and straighten with a nylon hammer.Optional: Texture or stamp if desired. (see "Creating a Stamped Metal Charm" technique sheet below) File corners and edges smooth, using #2-cut needle file, so the ring fits comfortably.Optional: Antique components if desired before assembling!Use nylon-jaw ring-bending pliers to bend ring into shape. Overlap …