You've seen those fancy donut focal beads, made of semi-precious stone. But how to hang them, you've wondered. Just what to do with them? How to hang an oversized donut bead, and make it look classy?

Here is my solution: hang it with wire and dress up the wire with coordinating dangling beads. I get a lot of compliments on these!

Skill Level: Intrepid Beginner.

Techniques: Basic stringing, crimping, opening and closing jumprings, and wrapped wire loops.

Supplies

• 1 strand 6 mm hematite rounds - I used 34 beads in this project. There were quite a few left over. (I used magnetic as that was what I could find, but it's not necessary. I find working with magnetic beads annoying as they keep sticking to things.)

• 12 x 6mm hematite stars (you may have to buy a strand if you can't find them sold individually)

• 1 strand 8 mm carnelian rounds (I used 43, it was most of the strand.)

• 2 inch carved carnelian donut (I chose the donut bead first, and I took care to choose the 8mm carnelian rounds to match the color of the donut.)

• 1 strand quartz chips - you don't need that many, but its unusual to be able to buy less than a full strand. And they aren't very expensive. I like to keep some on hand, as they are cheap, attractive filler in pricey semi-precious stone jewelry.

• 50x 6mm daisy spacers
• 16x 2 mm sterling rounds
• 8 inches 20 gauge (approx. 1 mm) sterling wire or silver plated Artistic brand wire
• 1 filigree sterling box clasp (secure, easy to use, attractive, comfortable - my criteria for a clasp.)
• 2 x sterling Tornado crimps (Tornado crimps are the new twisted crimps that don't require using crimp pliers)
• 3 feet softflex or similar beading cable in .019 (medium diameter.)
• 13 x 2 or 3 inch bali-style headpins (long headpins are easier to wrap, even if you do have to cut wire off, I like to make it easy on myself. For this reason, I chose lightweight headpins too.)
• 3 x 8mm sterling jumprings (7 or 9 mm is ok too.)

Tools

• wire cutters (I use the wire cutters to cut the beading cable as well as the wire.)
• chain nose pliers
• round nose pliers
• crimp pliers (optional)

Let's Begin!

There's some pretty nice findings available for attaching donuts, but sometimes, they just aren't big enough! Too much pressure on the stone can crack it.

Start in the center of the necklace, and make each side the same.

• string three 6mm hematite rounds, these are the center. If you want to make this necklace with other stones or beads, feel free, but choose beads for the center remembering that you will be hanging something in the middle so you won't want to use stones that are very soft and subject to wear, i.e. pearls, turquoise, or coral.
  
  
• on each side of these three beads, string
• one 6mm daisy spacer
• one 8mm carnelian
• repeat, 3 times
• add another daisy spacer
• then add three 6 mm hematite round
• another 6mm daisy spacer
• add 3 more 8mm carnelian separated with a daisy spacer, end w daisy spacer

• Now add 5 quartz chips. They are irregular in size, but I find that if I just use the same number, instead of worrying about it, it works out ok in the end.
• add one 2mm round sterling ball, then
• three time 6mm hematite star, separated with 2 mm rounds, ending with  a 2mm round
• add 5 more quartz chips.

• now repeat the carnelian, hematite, carnelian pattern:
• one 6mm daisy spacer, one 8mm carnelian, repeat three times, add a daisy spacer,
• three 6 mm hematite round
• one 6mm daisy spacer, one 8mm carnelian, repeat three times, add a daisy spacer,

• Repeat the quartz chips and stars pattern
• Now add 5 quartz chips. They are irregular in size, but I find that if I just use the same number, instead of worrying about it, it works out ok in the end.
• add one 2mm round sterling ball, then
• three time 6mm hematite star, separated with 2 mm rounds, ending with a 2mm round
• add 5 more quartz chips.

Now we are into the home stretch (or the part that tends to disappear under collars and beside and behind your neck.) Repeat the carnelian, hematite, carnelian pattern:

• one 6mm daisy spacer, one 8mm carnelian, repeat three times, add a daisy spacer,
• three 6 mm hematite round
• one 6mm daisy spacer, one 8mm carnelian, repeat three times, add a daisy spacer

• end with three 6mm hematite round, and a daisy spacer
• add the Tornado crimp, loop the beading wire through the clasp, and back through the crimp. Ensure the two strands of beading wire inside the crimp are laying side by side.
• Crush the Tornado crimp with your chain nose pliers. Turn it over and crush it again from the other side. The Tornado crimp, because of it's spiral design, does not need to be crimped with crimp pliers.

Make the other side of the necklace the same way (if you haven't already). Pull the cable tight and secure with a Tornado crimp.

When pulling the cable tight, you don't want to leave a lot of the cable visible, but you also don't want it so tight that it does not drape nicely, or puts so much pressure on the beads that it damages them.

It helps to hold up the necklace and shake it carefully to "settle" the chips and beads nicely together.

Take your 8 inches of wire, and fold the wire in half. Place the wire through the center of the donut.

holding the wire steady with the pliers and pushing the wire around with your thumb and fingers can help you get a nice smooth wrap.

Add a jumpring on either side of the center bead, and loop the third bead through both.

Always open and close jumprings by twisting to the side instead of pulling straight out.

Now, we are going to disguise that rather plain piece of wire that is supporting the donut.

Thread some beads, the 6 mm hematite and the 8 mm Carnelian onto the decorative headpins. Form most of a loop in the wire, but do not wrap the loop!

then wrap the tail of the headpin around and down to the bead. Wrapping about 3 times is about right. (My loops got a little wonky, but they will be hidden by the bead above it. You can round them up with your round nose pliers if you wish.)

Continue to add beads on the wire, working from bottom to top.

And there you have it! You need never fear to buy that big, showy donut bead that you love again!

The gunmetal gray and red and white give this a very Oriental flare.

Another version, done in rose quartz and clear quartz.

Tip! Pluck the magnetic beads that have stuck to the necklace off before you try it on. Otherwise, when you do knock them off, you'll think that the wire has broken or that you didn't get the crimp crimped properly and that the necklace is falling apart. I, personally, nearly had heart failure as I put the necklace on and heard the bounce and rattle of falling beads!

Then retrieve them off all your tools. This is the most annoying part of using magnetic beads!