Gemstone/Mineral Necklace

Hi, this Instructable will demonstrate how to make a simple necklace using gemstones and minerals. I personally like gems and minerals and displaying them for others to see.

Tips before buying materials:

- Think of a flattering chain color for the mineral in use (if the mineral is of a cool color use a silver chain if it is a warm color use a gold chain)

- One necklace chain, I use 20", but you can buy any length you want since this will be more of a charm.

- Clasps

- Jumprings

- Thin wire of the same color as the necklace chain

- Gemstones or minerals of your choosing

For the necklace chain, there are 4 parts needed including:

- necklace chain cut to the preferred length

- 1 clasp

- 2 jump rings

Once these are collected, they will be assembled into the configuration shown in the picture. Each end of the necklace chain will have a jump ring, then on one end, a clasp is attached. The easiest method I found was to use 2 pairs of needlenose pliers to hold each end of the jump ring to bend them with precision.

To decide on the placement of the mineral, simply find the side that looks the best or the side that is most appealing to you and face it outwards. If the necklace will be constructed using multiple gems, place all of them in the manner that is most appealing to you.

In my case, I wanted to use two pieces of the same mineral for a tiered necklace. To do this, I laid out the minerals with the chain to measure the chain for cutting.

The minerals are easiest to tie when starting with the back. So I lay the wire down then lay the minerals on top of the wire. Crossing and twisting the wires will allow for the mineral to be held tightly so it minimizes the chance of a mineral falling out.

When finished tying, attempt to move the mineral around to make sure it is stuck, if there is any movement, tighten the wire.

Attaching the mineral charm to the necklace is simple since it is just a jump ring connecting the charm to the necklace. Again, this is easily done by using two pairs of needlenose pliers.