Hi there my dear reader! Have you ever wonder what are crimp beads and how to use them?
Crimp beads are functional beads where you can use them as a support on your beading wire.
In this article, I cover 8 Types of Crimp Beads For Jewelry Making so you can make an informed decision on which crimps to use for your next project.
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8 Types of Crimp Beads For Jewelry Making
1. Gold Filled Round Crimp Beads
Crimp beads are typically made of copper or brass.
They are used to secure wire ends with flat finish by pinching them with a crimp bead tool or pliers.
MIssSupplies used a 14K gold plated crimp end bead to hold a small wire loop so the lobster clasp has a place to attach on the beading wire.
2. Sterling Silver Crimp Bead Tubes
You can also find crimp beads that is made of sterling silver to elevate product quality into premium standard as shown by BeadsFindingDepot.
Besides the normal round beads, there are also crimp tubes that offers different pattern and style for your jewelry design.
3. Floating Bead Necklace with Crimp Beads
Becky James from docrafts shared a tutorial video of her making a lovely floating style necklace with crimp bead tubes.
She explains that crimp bead has to be pinched in place with a flat nose pliers for the design to work.
She used crimp beads to form loop at the wire ends, and as a bead stopper for the floating beads illusion.
4. Basic Round Crimp Covers
You can make the boring flat crimp beads visually pleasing by adding on crimp bead covers.
Brean from Violetfluerjewelry on Etsy made an easy to follow tutorial video on how she used a crimp bead tool to assemble a crimp bead and its cover.
5. Clamshell Crimp Bead Covers
It can be tedious when making large amount of wire loop ends with crimp beads manually.
That is why clamshell crimp cover with a loop attachment are designed as end cap to counter the labor fatigue.
These silver plated knot cover crimp beads with loops sourced by Madameperlinashop .
The clamshell design can hide away crimps and knots while fasten securely on the beading wire.
The fused loop serves as a connection point for your findings.
The video shared by Esmeraldsjbeaute below shows a different clamshell crimp design with a hole at the center and double loop ends.
To use it as an end cap, you have to thread the beading wire through the center hole and crimp the wire end, then use pliers to pinch the opposite loop ends to close the cover.
6. Crimp Bead Cover with Hook
Unlike the previous looped crimp cover, the crimp bead cover with hook requires an extra step to use them.
Emma from Make and Fable explained in her website that after crimping the cover, grip the hook end with a chain nose pliers and bend it into a teardrop shaped loop.
7. Lollipop Crimp Beads
Next, a lollipop crimp bead is also known as a crimp stopper or a magic crimp.
It combines the function of crimp bead and crimp bead cover into one simple mechanism.
Aussie Bead Supply made a video how you can attach a clasp easily on your beading wire with a lollipop crimp bead.
Firstly thread your beading wire through the lollipop crimp and then your clasp.
After that, loop your wire through the crimp bead and press down hard on the bar fully into the bead with a chain nose pliers to secure your design.
8. Foldover Crimps
Another bonus item is the foldover crimp. If you are working with cords then this crimp is the one for you.
Jess from JewelryTutorialHQ shows how you can modify a flat cord crimp end for a round cord by using an angled nose pliers, round nose pliers and chain nose pliers.
Firstly, flatten out the fold over crimp with an angled nose pliers.
Then, roll the flat crimp with a round nose pliers.
Lastly, attach the rolled crimp onto the end of your round cord and adjust the tightness of the crimp.