Cool Britannia

Fly the flag with Linda Jones' fabulous beaded Brit-pop jewellery!

Linda Jones, MJ Designer

"Once you have mastered making one flag, I am sure you will want to create them for all your friends and family!"

This funky set encompasses the flavour of the British pop music industry, with a taste of punk fashion epitomised in the use of chain on the necklace and the safety pin brooch. The beaded Union Flags are quite easy to master and it's hard to stop at one, so why not make yourself the whole set, with earrings and a keyring to match.

Necklace

1. Following our diagram, make up a beaded flag by threading 4mm red, clear and blue rocailles onto 0.8mm wire, making up eight separate lengths in all. Cut each wire from the spool when complete and create a link with round-nosed pliers at each end.
2. Lay all the beaded wires out in sequence and working at the end of a spool of 0.8mm wire, thread a blue rocaille, followed by the top link of the first beaded length, another blue bead, the top link of the second beaded wire, and so on. Continue until all eight lengths have been threaded, finishing with a blue rocaille.
3. Push all the beads and stems together so that they sit tightly in a row and cut the wire from the spool leaving 1.5cm on each side, enough to create a link at each end. Repeat to connect the bottom links of the beaded stems. Using round-nosed pliers, create small links at each end.
4. Bend the corner links at each side of the unit against the beads with flat-nosed pliers, so that they do not protrude. Depending on how long the necklace is to be, you will need at least 26 jump rings. To make your own, wrap 0.8mm wire around the widest part of round-nosed pliers to create an even tight coil and snip off each ring with wire cutters.
5. Cut a length of 2mm cord to the same measurement as the trace chain selected. Add cord ends and connect the chain at either side. Find the centre of both and connect the beaded pendant into the chain and around the cord on each side. Working out from the central pendant, attach jump rings at intermittent intervals, attaching to the chain and around the cord.
6. For a little extra decoration, create an open spiral with 0.8mm wire and thread with red, white and blue 4mm beads. Curl a link at the end and attach to a few jump rings suspended from one of the cord ends. Add a fish hook clasp to the other.

Brooch

1. Create a beaded flag in the same way as the necklace, making up eight beaded stems with links either end. Lay them out in sequence and working from a spool of 0.8mm wire, alternate red beads and the top links of the beaded stems, starting and finishing with red rocailles. Push everything together tightly and cut from the spool, leaving 1.5cm either side to make links.
2. Repeat to connect the bottom links of the beaded stems, then bend the corner links at each side against the beads with flat-nosed pliers. Suspend each end link of the flag from jump rings onto the loops of a safety pin brooch finding. The central link of the brooch can be decorated with a small wire spiral and a ribbon, or a bead or charm of your choice.

Earrings

1. Working from the end of a spool of 0.8mm wire, create three beaded lengths of red, white and blue beads with links at each end. Pass another strand of 0.8mm wire through the top links of the beaded stems, alternating with 4mm blue beads. Create links at each end, then repeat to thread the bottom links in the same way.
2. To make the ‘hanger’ of the earring, cut 7.5cm of 0.8mm wire. Hold the centre of the strand with round-nosed pliers and cross the wire over on each side, creating a central loop. Form circular links at each end, spiralling them inwards until they are the correct width to suspend the beaded earring unit.
3. Create four jump rings (or use readymade) and connect two on each side of the beaded square, attaching them into each side of the hanger. Uncurl the end link of a fish hook earwire with round-nosed pliers, straighten with flat-nosed pliers and remove the silver bead. Add a 4mm blue bead and re-form the end link with roundnosed pliers.
4. Thread a 4mm red rocaille, followed by the silver bead removed from the earwire onto 0.8mm wire, creating a head pin at one end and a link at the other. Attach the dangle into the centre of the hanger and the earwire to the top loop. Repeat to make a pair.

Keyring

1. Create a beaded flag in the same way as the necklace but reversing the colours, making up eight beaded stems with links either end. Lay them out in sequence and working from a spool of 0.8mm wire, alternate blue beads and the top links of the beaded stems, starting and finishing with blue rocailles. Push everything together tightly and cut from the spool, leaving 1.5cm either side to make links.
2. Repeat to connect the bottom links of the beaded stems, then bend three of the corner links at each side against the beads with flat-nosed pliers. Thread a red, blue and clear rocaille onto 0.8mm wire, then cut from the spool, leaving enough either end to create links. Join one to the protruding link on the flag, then connect the other to a keyring.