McCabe - Creating Crystal Jewelry with Swarovski

Creating
Crystal Jewelry
with Swarovski

65 Sparkling Designs with Crystal Beads and Stones

Laura McCabe

Copyright 2008 Laura McCabe
Creative Publishing international, Inc.
400 First Avenue North
Minneapolis, MN 55401
1-800-328-3895
www.creativepub.com

All rights reserved. No part of this work covered by the copyrights hereon may be reproduced or used in any form or by any meansgraphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping of information on storage and retrieval systemswithout the written permission of the publisher.

Due to differing conditions, materials, and skill levels, the publisher and various manufacturers disclaim any liability for unsatisfactory results or injury due to improper use of tools, materials, or information in this publication.

ISBN-13: 978-1-58923-345-4
ISBN-10: 1-58923-345-X

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

Digital edition: 978-1-61673-820-4

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
McCabe, Laura.
Creating crystal jewelry with Swarovski : 65 sparkling designs with crystal beads and stones /
Laura McCabe.
p. cm.
ISBN 1-58923-345-X
1. Beadwork--Patterns. 2. Jewelry making. 3. Swarovski (Firm) I. Title.
TT860.M37 2008
745.594'2--dc22 2007034367
CIP

Technical Editor: Judith Durant
Project Manager: Amy C. Fletcher
Copy Editor: Kristy Mulkern
Proofreader: Elizabeth Foz
Book Design: Stephen Gleason
Cover Design: Stephen Gleason
Page Layout: Stephen Gleason
Illustrations: Julia S. Pretl
Photographs: Jack Deutsch Photography
Photo Stylist: Laura Maffeo
Printed at R.R. Donnelley

During the past few years, I have focused my efforts almost entirely on making bead-woven jewelry with crystal beads and stones. Inspired by a love of historical costume, an appreciation of anything vintage, and an obsession with all things sparkly, I have worked to incorporate not only beads into my work, but also some of the fabulous crystal stones found in costume jewelry. I have a much more simple taste in the jewelry I choose to wear, but the opportunity to design and create with endless bling has brought me much pleasure and a real appreciation for crystal as an object. I hope these projects will inspire each of you to continue along a path of creativity, originality, and craftsmanship that celebrates the past and, with our dedication, will persevere for generations into the future.

Thanks to all the people without whose dedication, hard work, and patience this book would not have been possible.

First and foremost, thanks to my husband, Michael, who has been my greatest advocate, an endless source of support and encouragement, and the one to organize me enough to make this book happen.

Thank you to my family and friends whose encouragement, support, and patience have carried me through the past few years, and thanks to Po, for her company and presence in the writing of this book.

Thanks to all my students, who over the years have helped to refine these projects. Thanks to Deborah Cannarella, editorial mastermind and general overseer. Thanks to project manager Amy Fletcher and art director Sylvia McArdle. Thanks also to Jack Deutsch and Laura Maffeo, photographer and stylist, whose efforts exceeded all my wildest expectations and successfully captured the intricacy and detail of beadwork. Thanks also to Julia Pretl, graphic illustrator extraordinaire; to Judith Durant, technical editor; and to all the other folks at Rockport Publishers and Creative Publishing international for their labors and efforts.

This book is dedicated to the woman who kept me laughing when I probably should have been crying. For your endless support, wisdom and humor, thank you Lilli B.

Chapter 1
THE FASHION HISTORY OF CUT CRYSTAL

Chapter 2
SEED BEADS AND CRYSTALS

Chapter 3
TOOLS AND MATERIALS

Chapter 4
FOUR BASIC STITCHES

Chapter 5
TWO BEZELING TECHNIQUES

Chapter 6
CREATING CLOSURE

Chapter 7
EMBELLISHMENTS

Cut crystal has a fascinating history, in which crystal objects are intertwined with beauty, aristocracy, costume history, and couture fashion. First developed in the eighteenth century in English glassworks, cut crystal (a leaded glass) was intended to capture the luxury and opulence of aristocratic costume and jewelry. During this time, Georges-Frederic Strass, jeweler to the French king Louis XV, set cut crystals in ornate settings as if they were gemstones. For the next few centuries, the name Strass was tied to the concept of crystal jewelryand was, in fact, another name for cut stones.

In the late-nineteenth century, when the glass industry of Europe was in Bohemia, jewelry and cut-crystal design were influenced by the elaborate beauty of the Byzantine and Austro-Hungarian empires. In this golden age of industrialism and unmatched aesthetics, cut crystal made a giant leap forward, thanks to a young, entrepreneurial artisan named Daniel Swarovski.

After apprenticing to crystal cutters in Bohemia and developing his own mechanized crystal-cutting technology, Swarovski moved to Wattens, a small village in Austria. In 1895, he founded the Swarovski company with two partners, Franz Weis and Armand Kosmann. A few years later, the Swarovski family took sole ownership of the company, which is still a family-owned business.

Throughout the twentieth century, the Swarovski name and the product it represents were inextricably tied to haute couture and the fashion industry. Great designers of the modern era worked directly with the Swarovski company. Coco Chanel, Elsa Schiaparelli, Paul Poiret, Madame Vionnet, and Christian Diorto name a fewall worked with Swarovskis stones and beads to add the magic of crystal to their designs. In the early 1950s, Dior worked closely with Manfed Swarovski to create the now well-known AB, or Aurora Borealis, finish.

Crystal found its way into every walk of life from the glamorous fashions of Hollywood in the 1930s and 1940s to the funkadelic, futuristic groove of garments of the 1960s. The quality, elegance, and sparkle appeal of crystal have made it a timeless fashion statement.

Today, the magic and beauty of crystal still capture our imagination. It embellishes couture and ready-to-wear fashions and is a popular trend in the DIY (do it yourself) world. The Swarovski company, now in its fifth generation, still produces high-quality beads and stones that, with cutting-edge technology, will continue to sparkle long into the future.

You can buy seed beads in a wide range of sizes from a number of sources. These beads are made today as they always have beena long tube of glass is drawn across a wooden or metal support that runs the length of a large room. When the glass tube hardens, it is cut into small pieces. The pieces are then tumbled to smooth the edges and make the seed beads.