How do I Use Loose Pearls?

Loose pearls can be crafted into beautiful, one-of-a-kind jewelry pieces. You can use the pearls alone or combine them with crystals. Rings, earrings, necklaces, bracelets and brooches are all possibilities for using loose pearls depending on whether your gemstones are drilled or un-drilled.

Without holes drilled for beading, the use of loose pearls is more limited, but they are ideal for making clusters. Jeweler's glue can be used to adhere the pearls to each other to form beautiful cluster jewelry. Using this method, you could form pendants for necklaces or charm bracelets. A jewelry finding hanger must be glued onto the top of each cluster. The pearl clusters could be left as is or glued together along with smaller crystals to add sparkle.

Cluster-style earrings and brooches could also be made from loose pearls. The jewelry findings you use for these items should be strong enough and of good quality to hold the weight of the clustered pearls. Whether you add smaller crystals or not, you still don't have to use all the same size of pearl. Letting your imagination guide you to create a one-of-a-kind pearl cluster designs you love can be the key to a successful project.

For drilled pearls, you can use these like beads. Whether you choose to string them to make classic stranded necklaces or something more creative, there are many different possibilities when the loose pearls are hollow in the center. Other than necklaces, you could also make drop earrings and bracelets. Even a simple stretch bracelet made by alternating pearls and crystals can be stunning. Drop earrings can be made with pearls using a long jewelry finding called a head pin as well as an earring fitting.

If you have some colored pearls as well as neutral ones, mixing these in uniform designs may work well. If you'd like something more unique, consider using a quality wire with drilled loose pearls to create structured shapes that showcase the colored gems. For example, Tahitian pearls are often uniquely colored; surrounding these with white or black pearls in an original design you create can be stunning. It's a good idea to use gold wire and jewelry findings when creating pieces from gemstones. Depending on the colors of the pearls you use in your crafted jewelry pieces, you may decide on either white or yellow gold findings and wire.