Sundance-Inspired Kisses and Hugs Earrings Tutorial

I have been a fan of the lustrous freshwater pearl since I was a young girl, though I don't know if that's due to my mum's love of pearls, or because of the many jewellery stores in my birthplace of Singapore which displayed strand upon strand of freshwater pearls on their walls.  Whatever the case, I adore wearing pearl jewellery and am always on the lookout for pieces which aren't your typical "twinset and pearls" look.

I am in love with Sundance's freshwater pearl range of jewellery, but since they don't easily ship to Australia, I ended up creating my own Kisses and Hugs-inspired set of earrings and necklace.  And now I'm sharing a tutorial so that you can very easily make yourself this fun set of pieces too.  All at a fraction of the cost too by substituting sparkly Czech glass beads for the gemstones in the originals.  This tutorial is for the earrings only, stay tuned for the necklace tutorial in coming weeks.

Supplies

- 2 x potato-shaped freshwater pearls, approximately 8mm

- 4 x dark red Czech glass rondelles, 4mm

- 6 x medium red Czech glass rondelles, 4mm

- 2 x gold-plated headpins, 30mm long (22-24 gauge should be thin enough to fit through the narrow holes in freshwater pearl beads)

- 2 x gold-plated lobster/leverback earring hooks

- jewellery pliers

Method

1. String the beads onto a headpin in the following order: one freshwater pearl, two dark red rondelles, three medium red rondelles.

2. Cut off excess head pin, leaving about 8-10mm of extra wire to form a loop.  Using jewellery pliers, carefully bend the head pin at a 90 degree angle to the beads.

3. Use the round nose pliers to form a partial loop in the extra wire.  Hook oone earring clasp onto the partial wire loop.  Close the loop and straighten out the wire and loop to neaten.

4. Repeat with the remaining beads and beading supplies.  And there you have it, a very fancy-looking pair of pearl earrings!

Don't think you have the skills to make a pair for yourself? Then message me to commission a custom pair in your choice of colours.  :)

Alternatives

- If you prefer to wear jewellery in other finishes, substitute silver-plated, copper or brass findings for the gold-plated ones in the supplies list.

- Making these earrings for someone with sensitive ears?  Leverback hooks also come in sterling silver, gold vermeil and 14K gold.

- Not a fan of red?  Use rondelle beads in shades of your favourite colour to keep the ombre look.  Or use any combination of your preferred colours to make a truly one of a kind pair of earrings.