Raw Materials for PinUp Poster Child Course
Below are the necessary materials needed to make a pendant such as I did in the online course, PinUp Poster Child.
The quantity of your materials may vary, depending on the size of your focal stone, the desired length of your dangles, the beads you've chosen to work around, and whether or not you've opted to create earrings instead of a pendant. Therefore, please use this list as a guide as opposed to a strict formula.
The caption below each item has usage details and recommended purchase amounts based on what I've created in the video modules of this course.
As always, please reach out to me should you have any questions.
Raw Materials KIT for PinUp Poster Child
Want to skip sourcing all the materials for your kit? You can buy one pre-made! I've put these kits together to help reduce the overwhelm and expense associated with searching out your raw materials. Bypass the minimum order quantities and get exactly what you need to create the project as I do in this course. Estimated savings when purchasing this pre-made kit is approximately $40 for US residents who shop with Rio Grande. PLEASE NOTE: This kit includes everything but beads and your focal stone. You'll still need to supply those.
Sterling Silver 6" Sheet, 20-Ga., Dead Soft
This is the material I use for the backplate of my pendant. You'll need enough sheet to accommodate the size of your bezel and also allow for some embellishments around the setting. For my stone, which was 1" x 1" approximately, I chose to use a 1.5" x 1.5" backplate. (Please note that measurements used in class may not reflect or fall within Rio's minimum order requirements- you may have to order more than you need.)
Sterling Silver 6" Sheet, 22-Ga., Dead Soft
This is optional. If you'd like to use a thinner gauge metal for your pendant's backplate, or if you'd prefer to make earrings, you may want a sheet that's a bit lighter in weight. This 22g is a step down from the 20g I used in the project, but it would work just fine. ** If you'd like to make earrings, I recommend purchasing 22g or 24g metal as your backplate, to keep the weight to a minimum. **
Sterling Silver "Crown" Gallery Wire, Hard (as rolled)
This is the gallery wire I opted to use for my bezel. You can choose an alternative style of gallery wire, or opt for a standard fine silver bezel strip. You'll need enough to accommodate the focal stone(s) you choose to use for this project. I generally like to order at least a foot so that I have plenty to play with.
Sterling Silver 2 x 1mm Rectangle Wire, Dead Soft
This is the wire we will use to build up our stone(s) within the bezel, utilizing it as a sort of shelf. If your focal stone is very chunky, you may not need this at all. If the edges are on the thin side, I highly recommend purchasing a couple inches of this material. You only need enough to run around the interior of each bezel you create (one bezel if making a pendant, two bezels if making earrings.) I like to order at least a foot at time so that I have plenty on hand with which to play around.
Sterling Silver 1.5mm Round Closed Ring
You'll need a few of these for creating connection points on your setting. While these jump rings don't offer any structural purpose or add any strength to our piece, they are a nice way to "finish" a drilled hole. One pack is more than enough!
Sterling Silver 3.6mm Round Closed Ring
These rings will be soldered to lengths of 16g wire, creating clean ends for connecting beads and attaching to the setting. One package is more than enough!
.925 Sterling Silver Casting Grain
We will be using this casting grain to embellish both our 16g wire accents and our bezel settings. The minimum order of one troy ounce will be more than enough!
Sterling Silver 3mm Tube Crimp Bead
This is my cheat method for creating small bails, as opposed to having to deal with cutting tubing. Perfect ends and a consistent size every time! You'll only need one or two of these, but unfortunately, they come in packs of 100. You'll have plenty to play with and use later on.
Sterling Silver 2mm Tube Crimp Bead
These will become the connection points on our bezel setting for adding our accent dangles. You'll only need a few, but as with the larger version, they only come in packs of 100. One pack will likely last you forever.
Sterling Silver 0.9mm Straight Bar and Link Chain, By the Foot
This is the chain I use in my demonstrations. You can opt to use this one as I do, or simply pick a chain that has links small enough that a drawn wire bead cannot pass through the links.
Sterling Silver Round Wire, 16-Ga., Dead Soft
We'll be using this wire to create the frames for connecting bails and beads to our work. This will also be used to create accent dangles, and we will practice adorning it with the casting grain. 16" should be enough to get you started.
Sterling Silver Round Wire, 26-Ga., Dead Soft
While I didn't need to use this in the video demonstrations, I still think it would be smart to have some of this super fine wire on hand. Sometimes even 24g wire is too thick to pass through certain small beads. I recommend purchasing a few feet of 26g just in case you find the beads you'd like to utilize have extremely small drill holes.
Sterling Silver Round Wire, 22-Ga., Dead Soft
This is the gauge wire I like to use for embellishing chain, as it has a bit more weight and presence than the finer gauges. Because it's also a bit thicker, I like to use it for attaching my bail, which I feel gives the final pendant a bit more structural integrity. I'd recommend at least 3' to get started, so that you have plenty to practice with.
Sterling Silver Round Wire, 24-Ga., Dead Soft
This finer 24g wire is great for trapping beads, as it heats quickly and is generally fine enough to pass through a multitude of drilled gemstones. I recommend purchasing at least 3' so that you have plenty to practice and play with.
Silver Sheet Solder, Medium
I use this solder for everything except closing bezels and ring bands. You'll use it for the majority of this course.
