Adding "Bling" To Your Beads

Once in a while you think your bead would be enhanced with a bit of sparkle. There are quite a few options, silver, gold or palladium leaf or foil, dichro, fine silver wire, aventurine copper flakes or perhaps you're ready to try Cubic Zirconium which are also known as CZs.

This Christmas Tree (http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=7806618) has 5 CZs that are 2mm. The tree is about 1.2" tall with a 1/16th vertical hole. I skipped putting CZs on the back side, because it seemed like they would be wasted in that location.

There are all kinds of methods for placing CZs in your beads, but this is what I did.

1. Get out your CZs and put a few extra on your graphite pad, or where ever you're placing them.
(They are slippery!)
2. Warm your bead in the spot where you are going to put them.
3. Pick up your CZ with needlenose tweezers. Look carefully, because there is a top and bottom to them.
4. Warm your CZ slightly in the outer part of your flame.
5. Place it onto the warm spot of your bead and press in gently so it is sunk into the glass up to the top edge of it.
6. It is optional whether you add a bit of clear glass to case it. I have used CZs both ways, (with and without the extra clear glass and both ways work fine for me.
7. CZs can be purchased through http://www.pehnec.com/ Keep your choices small, and feel free to vary the colors of them.
8. To see a slightly different way to set CZs, visit www.KimMiles.com She not only makes beautiful beads, but she incorporates CZs and makes them even more lovely.