FIESTA BRACELET & EARRINGS

(©2006 Deborah Roberti)

MATERIALS (for a 7-inch bracelet, not including clasp)
• 4 yards waxed Nymo or C-Lon thread, size D, or 6 lb. FireLine
• About 350 size 11/0 seed beads
• About 50 4mm orange bicone crystals (I used Swarovski Topaz AB bicone crystals)
• About 50 4mm red bicone crystals (I used Swarovski Red Magma bicone crystals)
• About 36 4mm green bicone crystals (I used Swarovski Khaki bicone crystals)
• clasp
NOTE: I used orange, red and green bicone crystal beads but any size 4mm beads in any color will work just great.

Step 1: Thread your needle with 4 yards Nymo, C-Lon or Fireline (or start with a length that you feel comfortable with and add more later).

String an orange crystal, a seed bead, a green crystal, a seed bead, a red crystal, a seed bead, a green crystal and a seed bead.

Leaving about an 8-inch tail for attaching the clasp, tie the beads together into a circle:

Step 2: Go back through the orange crystal, the seed bead, the green crystal and the seed bead:

Step 3: String a green crystal, a seed bead, an orange crystal, a seed bead, a red crystal, a seed bead and an orange crystal.

Go around and back down through the seed bead that you exited at the end of the last step:

Step 4: Go down through the red crystal:

Step 5: String a seed bead, an orange crystal and a seed bead. Go around and up through the green crystal and through the seed bead that you exited at the end of Step 2 (both highlighted in RED):

Step 6: Continue on through the top green crystal:

Step 7: String a seed bead, a red crystal and a seed bead. Go around and down through the orange crystal and the seed bead highlighted in RED:

Step 8: Continue on around through the green crystal, the seed bead, the orange crystal and the seed bead highlighted in RED:

Step 9: String five seed beads.

Go around and back up through the seed bead that you exited at the end of the last step (highlighted in RED), forming a circle of six seed beads:

Step 10: Go through the next seed bead on the circle of six seed beads (highlighted in RED):

Step 11: String a green crystal, a seed bead, an orange crystal and a seed bead.

Go around and down through the red crystal and continue on through the seed bead on the circle of six seed beads that you exited at the end of the last step (both highlighted in RED):

Step 12: Go through the next seed bead on the circle of six seed beads (highlighted in RED):

Step 13: String an orange crystal, a seed bead, a red crystal and a seed bead.

Go around and down through the green crystal and continue on through the seed bead on the circle of six seed beads that you exited at the end of the last step (both highlighted in RED):

Step 14: Go through the next seed bead on the circle of six seed beads (highlighted in RED):

Step 15: String a red crystal, a seed bead, a red crystal, a seed bead, a green crystal and a seed bead.

Go around and back through the orange crystal and continue on through the seed bead on the circle of six seed beads that you exited at the end of the last step (both highlighted in RED):

For extra reinforcement, go back around through the beads highlighted in RED:

Step 16: Go through the next seed bead on the circle of six seed beads (highlighted in RED):

Step 17: String a green crystal, a seed bead, an orange crystal and a seed bead.

Go around and up through the red crystal and seed bead on the circle of six seed beads that you exited at the end of the last step (highlighted in RED):

Step 18: Go through the next seed bead on the circle of six seed beads and then down through the orange crystal highlighted in RED:

Step 19: String a seed bead, a red crystal and a seed bead. Go up through the green crystal highlighted in RED:

Step 20: Follow this path (all highlighted in RED) so that you exit out of the right-most seed bead: Go through the two seed beads on the circle of six seed beads, the orange crystal, the seed bead, the green crystal and the seed bead:

Step 21: String a green crystal, a seed bead, an orange crystal, a seed bead, a red crystal, a seed bead and an orange crystal.

Go around and back down through the seed bead that you exited at the end of the last step (highlighted in RED):

For extra reinforcement, go back around through the beads highlighted in RED:

Step 22: Go down through the red crystal:

Step 23: String a seed bead, an orange crystal and a seed bead.

Go around and up through the green crystal, the seed bead and the orange crystal highlighted in RED:

Step 24: String a seed bead, a red crystal and a seed bead.

Go around and down through green crystal, the seed bead and the green crystal highlighted in RED:

Step 25: Continue up through the seed bead, the orange crystal and the seed bead highlighted in RED:

Repeat Steps 9 to 25 until your bracelet is the length you want it, minus about a quarter-inch and the length of your clasp.

Step 26: To attach one end of the clasp, string three seed beads.

Go through the clasp and then back through the third seed bead that you just strung:

Step 27: String two more seed beads and go back up through the seed bead you exited at the end of Step 25 (highlighted in RED):

Go back around through the seed beads and the clasp several times to reinforce your attachment to the clasp.

Weave your way back into the bracelet, knot in several places and then cut your thread.
To attach the clasp to the other end of the bracelet, simply thread your needle with the tail thread from Step 1, go through the seed bead next to the knot and repeat Steps 26 and 27.

FIESTA EARRINGS

MATERIALS
• 2 yards waxed Nymo or C-Lon, size D, or 6 lb FireLine, for each earring
• About 100 size 11/0 seeds beads
• Approximately 20 4mm orange bicone crystals (I used topaz Swarovski crystals)
• Approximately 20 4mm red bicone crystals (I used Indian red Swarovski crystals)
• Approximately 12 4mm green bicone crystals (I used khaki Swarovski crystals)
• Two 3mm closed jump rings
• A pair of earring findings

To make the matching earrings, repeat Steps 1 to 25 but start with just a yard of thread and leave a 6-inch tail.

Next, repeat Steps 26 and 27, but instead of attaching a clasp, attach a 3mm closed jump ring. (Note, you can attach the beaded earring directly to the earring post or wire but I find that there’s a greater chance for the earring to slip off so I use a closed jump ring.)

Next, just attach the earring (via the closed jump ring) to your earring post or wire.
To finish the bottom of the earring, thread your needle with the tail thread from Step 1.

Go through the seed bead next to the knot. String 3 seed beads and go around and back through the seed bead that you just exited:

Weave your way back into the earring. Knot in several places and then cut your thread.