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May 17, 2012

...crystal beaded light bulb cover tutorial


hello my dears!!

has it really been a whole two weeks since my last post?!?!
W-O-W
just like that
~ poof ~

oh, where do the days wander to...

do you suppose a tutorial would make up for it?

hhhmmm?!



here are the supplies you will need to make one
light cover



*10 crystazzi 6mm round crystal sets
(each set has 14 pieces)
in your choice of colors
mine were a mix of clear and ab
i purchased these at Michael's
*  7 crystazzi 4mm round crystal sets
(each set has 17 pieces)
in your choice of colors
* 1 spool of 24 gauge silver beading wire
* a pair of round nose jewelry pliers
* a pair of jewelry wire cutters

 
the light bulb i wanted to use had an iridescent finish on it
so for this crystal cover 
i used a mix of clear crystals and ab crystals (iridescent)
for some added whimsy.

here is my pattern




ready to begin?


step 1: cut a piece of wire about  24" in length
this will be what i will call, your "anchor wire"
quite simply,
it is the wire to which everything is attached to

step 2: cut 6, 16" individual pieces of wire

step 3: start your wire as i have below.
thread a small crystal bead on the anchor wire,
then take a piece of your 16" wire and bend that over your 24" anchor wire
thread one of your larger crystal beads
 over BOTH wires to secure it to your anchor wire




repeat this entire process for all your  16" lengths of wire
so it looks like this




step 4: from this point, treat each wire as it's own
and thread on 5 smaller crystal beads to each wire
like so:




step 5: now add 10 larger crystal beads to each wire
step 6: add 1 more small bead to the bottom of each wire
step 7: to finish each wire off,
use your round nose pliers to make a loop
 on each crystal strand end like this




you should end up with something that looks like this




step 8: now we are going to finish of the "anchor wire"
grasp each end of the anchor wire
and bring both pieces of wire together
step 9: thread a large crystal bead onto BOTH wires
(just like you did when you first started)




pull the wire close to the top like so




step 10: again, just like you did the previous wires,
add 5 small crystal  beads to each of the wires




and then 10 large crystal beads
and 1 small one at each end.




finish each end with your rounded nose pliers




step 11: your crystal strands are complete.
 now we are wiring all the strands together
 about half way down,
to start forming the light bulb cover
like in the photo below


  

pick one of the beaded strands to begin
and place a piece of  16" wire under it about half way down




now fold over the right side wire




then the left side




simply pull the two wires until they are secure on the crystal strand




and move on to the next crystal strand,
repeating the cross over wire steps




stringin',  stringin', stringin',
keep those fingers stringin'

my bad!
i just gave my dog a rawhide chip and was already singin' it!!
lol!!




when you are all finished
you should end up with something resembling a crystal wig!!

hahahahhh!!

but seriously ~
doesn't it look like one?!




i bet Cher would love one:)




at this point,
i took my desired light bulb and placed my crystal wig on it





and simply secured each wires end
onto the strand next to it to complete it

step 12: stringing the bottom
take a  14" piece of wire,
 and make a round loop on one of the ends
like i have done here




slip the wire into one of the crystal strands looped bottoms
and then thread a small bead on
then another crystal strand
then a small bead




repeat until all crystal strands are anchored to that wire




when you reach the end
that's it!
you need to leave one end free
to be able to wrap it around your light bulb base




it doesn't need to be really long,
about 2" or so is enough 




all that is left
is for you to put it on your light bulb
and
 ~ viola ~

your crystal beaded light bulb cover is complete!!




oohhhh
ppurrr-ty!!




 my chandie floor lamp
looks glamorous with it's new
iridescent crystal cover!




or should i say,
illuminated?!?!








and how about you, my dears?
are you inspired to give this a try for your pretty lamps?

i'd love for you to share how your turns out if you do:)


sharing this tutorial with:
brambleberry cottage's: time travel thursday
common ground's: vintage inspiration
french country cottage's: feathered nest friday
romantic home's: show and tell friday
the charm of home's: home sweet home
rooted in thyme's: simple sweet fridays



here's to elegant illumination!

11 comments:

  1. This is beautiful! I have always toyed with the idea of trying to make one of these, but wasn't exactly sure how to do it. Thank you so much for the tutorial. Yours is lovely!

    xo,
    Kathleen

    ReplyDelete
  2. Oh thank you Rosemary for your lovely tutorial.

    I will save my next light bulb to make one too.

    It will have to wait until I return from France at the end of July.

    I think they will make beautiful heirloom decorations for the Christmas tree - have you made them this way too??

    It's very generous of you to share your technique with us - MERCI mon amie!!!

    Shane xv

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  3. Oh, how absolutely pretty!! Thank you for sharing your knowledge!!!

    ReplyDelete
  4. Luv luv luv, Rosemary!!! What a patient girl you are! Thanks for sharing another beautifully done tutorial with us! This is just beautiful!

    xoxo laurie

    ReplyDelete
  5. Thanks so much for posting this! i want to make some. They are so expensive to buy usually..but then the materials probably aren't cheap. Love it!

    ReplyDelete
  6. oh my gosh...it is so beautiful! I love the look!!
    I am your newest follower..pls follow back if you can.
    happy weekend!

    ReplyDelete
  7. Great post,I really like your article

    ReplyDelete
  8. What a beautiful crystal lightbulb! Thanks so much for sharing your tutorial on Simple & Sweet Fridays. I'm always amazed of your talent and ideas. It keeps me inspired. Thanks again for all your wonderful comments on my blog, I'm so honored. Have a great week!

    Jody

    ReplyDelete
  9. this is beautiful and just what i am looking for as purchasing them is sooo expensive. however, my chandelier won't take the kind of bulb you used - i have a small round one with a standard bulb base. do you have any adjustments that you recommend? if i have to figure out on my own, i will share my results if successful!

    ReplyDelete
  10. People like you are why I never get any work done. I just love absolutely love everything you do I want to make it all. I would love to see more pics of your floor lamp .it's gorgeous!!!

    ReplyDelete

be kind ~ be graceful ~ be beautiful ~ be you!