Tutorial - Making a Large Bead into a Fan/Light Pull

I've been asked how we attach the wire to the ball chain in the large textured tube beads in my Textured Tubes & More tutorial.

To make a ceiling fan/light pull you need some ball chain, couplings and adapters (in silver below right) that provide a way to connect your wire that is attached to your bead to the ball chain.

  

We had a difficult time finding the adapters and so I improvised a little and will show you a method that I use.

Supplies needed:

* A large bead with a large hole or one that you can drill a hole in at the top
* Ball chain
* Heavy 18 or 16 gauge wire in the same color to match your chain
* Two couplings that fit the ball chain
* Strong metal bead or bead cap
* Round nose pliers
* Wire cutters (heavy duty type)
* Drill bit - 5/32" or 4 mm (optional)


1.  Cut a piece of wire long enough that will go through your bead plus extra for finishing at the bottom end.  With your round nose pliers, make a small loop at the one end like you are making an eye pin.  You want a nice tight loop that will fit inside one of the couplings.  It doesn't have to look pretty as it won't be seen afterwards.

2.  Insert your wire into one of the couplings from the inside going out as shown:

3.  Attach the ball chain to the opposite end of the coupling

4.  You can make a large hole at the top of your bead before baking or drill it larger afterwards, whichever you prefer.   Make sure the hole is only large at the top part of your bead and not all the way through.  It should also be deep enough to hide the coupling end of the ball chain.

5.  Insert the wire through the top of the bead so the wire comes out the bottom end.

6.  Pull it all the way through until the coupling is hidden inside the top making sure it is nice and snug.

7.  Add a bead or bead cap to the bottom and then loop your wire.  The bead acts as a "washer" to anchor your wire and your bead on.

8.  Hang a decorative bead or dangle from the wire loop to finish it off.

9.  Attach the other coupling to the opposite end of the ball chain and your fan/light pull is ready to hang!

 Have fun and enjoy!

Textured Tubes & More Tutorial Now Available

I've had many requests on how to make our textured tube beads and pens and we now have a tutorial available for sale on ArtFire and in our Etsy shop.

In this tutorial you will learn to make tube beads with rich textures that are totally seamless!  I will also show you how to make larger focal beads (including the end caps) as well as covering pens and other tube shaped objects with this same technique.  The nice thing is that there is no sanding involved yet your pieces will have a silky smooth finish.

I've included a color guide and tips for using mica powders as well as texture ideas to use for your new creations.  As a bonus, I have added a color recipe sheet where I share with you how I achieve some of my favorite designs.

This tutorial consists of 18 pages broken down into 49 steps and includes more than 50 photos for easy and clear instruction.

This tutorial is also be available at Clay Lessons.

Some pens for autographing....

I finished covering some new pens the other day.  They are a twist style pen that I ordered from Boston Craftworks where they go together quite easily without the need for a pen press or other such tools.

I love covering pens and these were not only fun to clay with but feel really good when they are put together and have a nice weight to them.  The first set below I used the same "seamless" method I use to make my textured tube beads and my fan/light pulls.  I discovered it works great for covering pens as well!  I'm writing a tutorial for this and should be published in a few weeks.

There has been a lot of talk on the net lately about covering pens.  Surfingcat did some experiments with different pens that are good and not so good with claying and melt when heated.  Then Angela from Crafty Goat created an interesting blog post on the top four pens she discovered are oven safe.  I really like the Bic retractable one and think I might try some of those next for a more affordable and practical type pen to sell to replace the typical stick ones.

Fan/Light Pulls to Match

One thing about me is that I have this real matchy matchy thing.  When I use to sew more and made almost all my own clothes (I just don't have the time right now anymore) I had this thing about using every bit of left over pieces of fabric to make a matching handbag, hair bow, etc.  My friends told me they could always tell if I made it because it all coordinated.  Now when I make my own jewelry I have to have the whole matching set -- necklace/pendant, earrings, watch bracelet, hair barrette and even sometimes buttons for my shirt or sweater.

The same goes for my home.  Of course things don't match all the same there -- they just have to  coordinate well -- I like a mix of textures and colors as long as they are within the same theme.

So I decided to make our new fan/light pulls to match .. uh hum .. coordinate with .. our switch plate covers and cabinet knobs and here is the design I came up with.