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Bead Wraps as End Caps
Free instructions for making a end cap link using beads and jewelry wire.
These instructions will document how to make a wrapped bead cap as shown at right. This technique is a decorative way to embellish a bead using wire.
Step 1: Cut a segment of 22 gauge wire about 6" long. Straighten this wire using your nylon jaw pliers.
Step 2: Bend the wire 90 degrees about 2 1/2" from one end. Make a wrapped loop at this point, but do not cut the excess wire. You should have about 1 3/4" of excess wire. Make the wrapped loop with about two wraps of wire around the stem. You can view our free instructions for making a wrapped loop here. After you have completed the wrapped loop add an 8mm or larger bead to the wire. At this point your wire and bead should appear as shown at right.
Step 3: Using your bent chain nose pliers, grasp the wire immediately above (or below as shown at left) the bead and bend the wire about 90 degrees
Step 4: Using your round nose pliers, make a loop in the wire centered on the wire inside the bead. Make the loop as close to the 90 degree bend in the wire as possible so that the final loop will be centered on the wire inside the bead. At this point your wire and bead should appear as shown at right.
Step 5: If you are connecting this bead in a chain, you can connect this segment to the rest of the chain at this point, before you complete the second wrap. When you are ready, grasp the new loop with your bent chain nose pliers and wrap the wire tail around the wire coming out of the bead. At this point you will have a wrapped loop above and below the bead with about 2 wraps of wire on both sides.
Step 6: Grasp the loop on one end in your bent chain nose pliers and hold the loop while you continue to wrap the wire. At this point the wire should begin to make a spiral on the side of the bead. Complete about 4 loops of wire on either side of the bead. See the pictures below for how this should appear.
Step 7: Using your flush cutter, cut the excess wire. Squeeze the cut end of the wire with your bent chain nose pliers so that it lays flat. See the picture at right for a completed bead with end cap wraps.
