Having helped a lovely customer in the shop recently with a simple request for a long and elegant necklace that’d be quick to make and importantly “not boring”. We chatted through some options but she loved the idea of adding a few bright coloured beads into a long ready-made chain. It’s such a simple idea and really effective!
I thought I’d make another version using our new star links. Combined with our metal star beads. You can use a ready-made chain to make things simple and easy. I’ve chosen my favourite, our 28’’ belcher chain. You don’t have to use a ready-made chain. You could create your own from a length of chain and add your own clasp. Or why not use any off cuts of chain from previous projects to create your own longer necklace.
I wanted to keep the overall design simple (it’s quite easy to get carried away). So I planned out my design on my bead mat. I chose to use 3 of each item. On one side I grouped the items together and on the other side spread them apart a little.
Materials used
3 x 12mm Star Links Silver Plated
3 x 6mm Star Bead Silver Plated
1 x 28” Belcher Chain Silver Plated
4 x 4mm Jump Rings Silver Plated
3 x Eyepins Silver Plated
You’ll also need the use of Round Nose Pliers, Chain Nose Pliers and Wire Cutters.
Preparing the design
I cut the chain where I planned to add in components. I counted the links between the spaced out section, so that the spaces between them will look balanced.
Using eye pins I turned the star beads into links (with a loop each side). We have a helpful video showing how to make loops which might be useful, at the bottom of the page.
Now to assemble your long and elegant necklace
Using a 4mm jump ring connect the first star link to the left side of the chain. Use another 4mm jump ring to connect the same star link to the next short length of chain. Use the loops either side of a star bead link to connect the chain to the next short section. Then use another 4mm jump ring to connect the end of the previous section of chain to the next (middle) section. We have another useful video showing how to open and close jump rings which you’ll also find at the bottom of the page.
Working up the other (right) side of the necklace connect a star bead link to the end of the necklace. Then add the star link to the other side. Use the last star bead link to connect the star link to the last section of chain. The necklace is complete! We hope you’ve enjoyed creating your Star connections long and elegant necklace.
This simple design can easily be adapted to any length and to add in as many or a few beads and connectors as you like. It can also be a fantastic way of using up odd lengths of chain and beads from your stash. A mixture of different chain styles would look fantastic too.
You can find more helpful and informative tutorials and top tips on our YouTube channel here.