Make this quick-and-easy birthstone bracelet with peanut beads and bicone crystals. Itll come together in time for your birthday bash, plus it makes a great last-minute gift for all the other birthday girls on your calendar!

by Connie Whittaker

Substitute crystals for gemstones in a sparkling special-occasion (your birthday!) bracelet

Crystal birthstone bracelet

RIGHT-ANGLE WEAVE

Bead&Button Online Project 1 2013 Kalmbach Publishing Co. This material may not be reproduced in any form without permission from the publisher. www.BeadAndButton.com

a b

c d

e

ab

c

de

ab

e

c

d

3 mm bicone crystal

2 x 4 mm peanut bead

110 seed bead

FIGURE 1

FIGURE 2

stepbystep[1] On 2 yd. (1.8 m) of thread, pick up four 2 x 4 mm peanut beads. Tie the beads into a ring with a square knot (Online Beading Basics), leaving an 8-in. (20 cm) tail, and sew through a few more beads (figure 1, ab).[2] Work in right-angle weave as follows: Pick up three peanuts, and sew through the bead your thread exited in the previous stitch and the first two beads picked up in this stitch (bc). Repeat this stitch until the band is the desired length minus the length of your clasp (cd).[3] Pick up four peanuts and a jump ring attached to half of the clasp, and sew through the bead your thread exited in the previous stitch. Continue through all the beads picked up in this step (de). [4] With the tail, repeat step 3 to attach

the other half of the clasp at the other end of the band. End the tail (Online Basics).[5] With the working thread, pick up a 3 mm bicone crystal, an 110 seed bead, and a 3 mm. Skip the next edge peanut, and sew through the following peanut (figure 2, ab). Repeat this stitch to the end of the band (bc). Depending on how many right-angle weave stitches are in the band, your last embellishment stitch will end by sewing through the first peanut in the clasp loop (as in figure 2, point c) or by sewing through the last right-angle weave stitch (as in figure 3, point c). If the latter, pick up a 3 mm, and sew through the first peanut in the clasp loop to complete the embellishment.[6] Sew through the clasp loop (figures 2 and 3, cd), and embellish the other edge as a mirror image of the first edge (de). End the thread. w

materialsbracelet 7128 in. (19.120 cm) 76100 3 mm bicone crystals in your birthstone color 5g2x4mmpeanutbeads 1g110 seed beads claspwith2 attached 6 mm jump rings Fireline6lb.test beadingneedles,#12

DESIGNERS NOTES: This bracelet would make a great

Mothers Day gift. Select the appropriate crystal to represent each child, and work a repeating pattern that includes them all.

Dont want to use birthstone colors? Use your favorite pairing of crystals and peanut beads for an everyday bracelet.

Connie Whittaker is an associate editor at Bead&Button magazine. Email her at cwhittaker@beadandbutton.com.

www To brush up on the Online Beading Basics referenced in this story (plus other techniques!), go to www.BeadAndButton.com/Basics.

FIGURE 3

Bead&Button Online Project 2

Birthstone colors crystallizedManytraditionalbirthstoneshavedirectcrystalequivalents,butafewdonot.

Findthecrystalequivalentofyourtraditionalbirthstonebelow:

Month Birthstone Crystal color

January garnet garnet or Siam

February amethyst amethyst

March aquamarine aquamarine

April diamond crystal

May emerald emerald

June pearl light amethyst

July ruby ruby

August peridot peridot

September sapphire sapphire

October opal rose

November topaz/citrine topaz

December blue zircon blue zircon

January

February

March

May

June

July

April August

September

October

November

December

Bead&Button Online Project 3

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