Make your own Bar and Toggle Clasp



Posted: Tuesday, April 17, 2007

by
Bead Realm

Why not customize your jewelry with your own unique handmade clasp? We featured how to make this toggle and bar clasp in our monthly newsletter and thought we'd share it with you. The variations are as endless as your imagination.

 





Materials:

A. 14 - 3x5mm Corrugated GP oval beads.
B. 4 - 3x5 Smoky Topaz AB Preciosa spacer beads
7 1/2" inches Gold Filled 20 gauge hard round wire.

Tools:

Make the Toggle:

  • Straighten and cut 4 1/2" inches of 20 gauge hard round wire. File ends to smoothen.

  • Measure 1/8" from the tip of your round nose plier and chain nose plier and make a mark, use this mark when grasping the wire.

  • Grasp the end of the wire, aligning it with the mark on your round nose pliers and make a double loop.



  • With your chain nose pliers grasp the inside of the double loop, next to the cut end, and bend the straight wire back 90 degrees.

    Loop centered over the wire.

  • Grasp the wire right below the double loop with your chain nose pliers (align the wire with the mark on the pliers), bend the straight section 45 degrees facing in the same direction as the hole in the loop.

    Grasp wire below loop and bend straight wire 45 degrees in the same direction as the hole in the loop.

  • String on the beads, A, B, A. The beads should measure just a touch over a 1/2 inch.

    Strung beads should measure just a touch over a half inch.

  • Holding the beads firmly back, bend the straight section 90 degrees in the opposite direction from the first bend (towards the right), to form a half square.

    Hold beads firmly back and bend straight section 90 degrees to form a half square.

  • Continue adding beads and bending the wire on the second and third section. Continue adding beads to form a square.

  • Add beads to the fourth section, then bend the straight wire 45 degrees towards the left (opposite direction).

    hen 4th section is complete, bend straight wire 45 degrees in the opposite direction

  • To join, wrap the wire around the straight section below the loop, Trim any access, and gently push in the cut end with your chain nose pliers.

    Make the Bar:

  • Straighten and cut 3" inches of 20 gauge hard round wire. File ends to smoothen.
  • Measure 1 1/4 inches on the wire and make a mark.
  • Grasp the wire with your round nose pliers (aligning the mark on the wire with the mark on your round nose plier), wrap the shortest wire section around the pliers and make a 270 degree loop.
    Wrap the shortest wire section around the round nose pliers and make a 270 degree loop.

  • Grasp the loop with your flat nose pliers, and wrap the longer wire around the shorter wire 3 times.

    Grasp loop with the flat nose or chain nose plier.Wrap the longer wire section around the shorter wire section 3 times.

  • Bend wires so they lay horizontal, opposite one another. Use your chain nose pliers to center the loop over your bar if needed.

    Bend wires so they are horizontal and opposite of each other, creating your bar.

  • Measure each straight section, you should have 13/16" inch (just a touch over 3/4") on each side.

    Each side of the bar should measure 13/16th of an inch, or just a touch over 3/4 inch.

  • Add 3 A's, grasp the top of the wire with the tip of your round nose pliers and make a loop. Grasp the bottom of the loop with your chain nose pliers and center the loop over the bar, then gently squeeze the eye loop closed. Finish the other side the same way.

    String on 3 A's, and make an eye loop with your round nose pliers. Your finished! Experiment, change beads, sizes, and the shape of your toggle and bar, try wrapping wire. Have fun and enjoy.

    Article and images are copyright of Bead Realm , all rights reserved.

    • This Article has been viewed 3,632 times. (Not updated in real-time.)
    Top-level comments on this article: (1 total)
    » left by Anonymous
     3 years 163 days ago.
    I love this.  It's so delicate looking, not bulky like most.
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