make a pendant style necklace using one of our simulated gemstones

Our second project will be to make a pendant style necklace using one of our simulated gemstones. Making the pendant itself is very simple and requires just a simulated gemstone and a pendant snap-fit finding in the same size. Adding this to a necklace requires 18 inches of commercial chain, a commercial clasp, 6 inches of 21 or 22 gauge wire and two 3mm round metal beads. The steps for making this pendant necklace using a snap-fit type of setting follow.

Step 1: Position your simulated gemstone on a smooth, flat surface like a cutting board, with the flat side of the gemstone down and the pointed side up.

Step 2: Position your snap-fit pendant finding on top of the gemstone as shown at right. Hold the setting in your non-dominant hand. Be certain to use a setting that matches the size of your gemstone.

Step 3: Using the thumb of your dominant hand, push down gently and symmetricallyon the setting until all 6 prongs snap into position. The only error that you can make is to push too hard. If you push too hard it will flatten the finding and you will need to re-shape it as we describe in blue, below.

Step 4: As we did for the earrings, you will need to squeeze each opposing pair of prongs gently in the jaws of your bent chain nose pliers to ensure that they are snugly seated against the gemstone. Do this for all three pair of opposing prongs. This completes the pendant portion of the necklace.

Step 5: To complete the necklace, we need to cut 18" of fine or medium commercial chain. Using the gold-filled pendant setting shown here, the links of the chain must be 2mm wide or smaller so that they will fit through the loop in the setting. You can purchase pre-made chain and modify it as discussed in Page 17 if you prefer. You can view our Sterling Silver Jewelry Chain here and our Gold-Filled Jewelry Chain here.

Step 6: We need to connect a clasp to the end of this chain. We make this connection using about 3" of 21 or 22 gauge wire on either side. 1/2 hard wire is preferred if available. Connect each side of the chain to your clasp, using a wrapped bead link and a 3mm metal bead. You can find instructions on how to make the wrapped bead link here. The clasp shown above-left is a 6mm magnetic clasp, but any commercial clasp will work.

Please note that very rarely, the prongs in a snap type setting can be bent during shipping. This doesn't happen often, but it has happened. If this happens, in almost all cases, the prongs can be easily bent back into shape. If you have a pair of chain nose pliers, this is the preferred tool to use to straighten the prongs. If you don't have pliers, your fingers will work. Please note the position of the prongs in the above photographs. The six prongs should form a circle that is smaller than the gemstone that you are setting.