Bands of gold

Dazzle and shine wearing linda jones' chunky, colourful jewellery

Linda Jones, MJ Designer

These bright gold links remind me of sunnier days and are beautifully set off by the mix of coloured glass beads

With the doom and gloom of the darker skies and cold winds howling, this jewellery project should provide you with shafts of golden sunshine and glistening dabs of colour for that special Christmas party or evening out. The golden orbit rings used came from a chunky chain, but you can improvise with brass curtain rings instead!

Necklace

1. Cut 15cm of 0.6mm gold-plated wire and wrap to secure around one side of a large round chain link or curtain ring. Thread three glass beads in different colours onto the extending wire and wind round the opposite side of the ring. Continue wrapping and threading the wire with beads until you have nine to 12 beads strung within the circle. Repeat to create six beaded links in total.
2. Cut 7.5cm of 0.8mm gold-plated wire. Place round-nosed pliers at the centre of this length and bend it around the jaws to form a 'U' shape. Place Bands of gold this on one side of a beaded circle and wrap the ends of the wires around the frame to fasten, providing a loop projecting out on one side. Gently hammer the link on a steel stake to work harden, avoiding the beads on the circle. Repeat, this time using a plain link that hasn't been threaded with beaded wire; this will form one half of the clasp.
3. Lay the six beaded rings in a triangle shape, with the circles touching sides in decreasing rows of three at the top, followed by two, then the beaded ring with the U-shaped link at the base. Cut as much 0.6mm gold-plated wire as required to bind the circles where they touch, then wrap in between, one at a time to secure them together.
4. Cut 20cm to 30cm of gold-plated chain in half and attach to either side of the top row of beaded circles, using jump rings created from 0.8mm wire. Thread a gold teardrop bead with 0.8mm wire, forming a link at one end and a head pin at the other, then fasten it to the U-shaped link projecting from the last link at the bottom of the necklace.
5. To create the toggle half of the clasp, cut 7.5cm of 0.8mm gold-plated wire and create a small circle at the centre with the tips of round-nosed pliers, pulling the wires straight out on either side. Place the roundnosed pliers halfway along one of the projecting wires and bend it around the pliers and back towards the central link, wrapping closely at this point to secure. Repeat for the other side. Cut 30.5cm of 0.6mm gold-plated wire and randomly wrap this over both sides of the toggle end. Hammer gently on a steel block to flatten and work harden.
6. Cut another 3cm of 0.8mm wire and create a link at each end with round-nosed pliers. Hammer gently to work harden, then hold one end firmly with chain-nosed pliers and the other with flatnosed pliers. Gently turn one hand to form a twist in the flattened wire stem, then connect one end to the toggle unit and the other to one side of the necklace with a jump ring. Fasten the plain gold ring with the U-shaped link to the other side for the clasp to go through.

Earrings

1. Create a beaded circle, then make up and secure a projecting U-shaped link from one side of it in the same way as described for the necklace. Open the loop at the bottom of an earwire, remove the existing gold bead and replace with a 4mm red glass bead. Slip the U-shaped link of the earring onto the bottom of the earwire and close, then repeat to make a pair.

Bracelet

1. Create a beaded circle, then add a U-shaped link on one side, as described for the necklace. Repeat to create five beaded links in total, but add U-shaped links to both sides on the other four. Make a toggle clasp from gold-plated wire in the same way as the necklace, gently hammering to work harden.
2. To attach the toggle, cut 2cm of 0.8mm wire, create links at both ends with round-nosed pliers and hammer gently. Form a twist in the flattened wire stem using two pairs of pliers and connect one end to the toggle unit and the other to one of the beaded circles. Connect all the others together to form a chain, using two gold-plated jump rings between each one. Make a large wrapped loop on the circle with only one U-shaped link, so that the toggle clasp can be threaded through, gently hammering to work harden.