Team botanical imagery with antique bezels to make Helen Cant’s jewellery

What you need...

• Beads: flowers, Czech glass; leaves, glass; round, faceted; round, glass
  
• Charms, antique brass, keys
  
• Bezels, antique brassplated: circle, oval, brooch, ring blank
  
• Resin, doming and glazing
  
• Paper, photo, matt-coated
  
• Chain: curb, trace
  
• Jump rings
  
• Head pins
  
• Earwires
  
• Clasps: toggle, lobster
  
• Measuring cups
  
• Lolly sticks
  
• Heat gun
  
• Paintbrush
  
• Glue, PVA
  
• Pliers: round-nosed, flat-nosed
  
• Cutters, wire

instructions

1. Necklace - 1 Cut out one of the large oval printed images, coat the reverse with PVA glue, then position into a large oval bezel. Press down to ensure it's completely adhered, then leave to fully dry. Apply six coats of PVA glue to seal, allowing the paper to dry between each and ensuring it's applied right to the very edges to prevent the resin seeping underneath. Once the last coat is fully dry, prepare 12ml of resin according to the manufacturer’s instructions. This will be enough to make all the pieces in the set.
   
   2 Pour a small amount into the centre of the bezel and spread it out to the edges using a lolly stick, adding more as necessary to fully coat the image. Remove any air bubbles by gently heating the resin for a few seconds at a time with a heat gun. Leave to dry away from sources of fluff and dust for at least 24 hours or until fully cured.
   
   3 Thread a yellow round glass bead followed by a pink glass flower onto a head pin, then form a wrapped loop. Repeat with a yellow round bead and purple glass flower. Create four beaded head pins using a selection of turquoise, pink and topaz faceted glass rounds.
   
   4 Cut small link trace chain to the desired finished length for the necklace. Attach the bezel to the centre with a 6mm jump ring. Secure an equal number of the beaded head pins, along with a glass leaf bead and an antique brass key charm, to the chain at both sides of the bezel.
   
   5 To form an extension chain, cut 4cm of medium link antique brass curb chain, create another single bead drop, then attach to the end of it. To finish, secure the extension chain and a lobster clasp to the ends of the necklace with jump rings.

2. Bracelet - 1 Cut out three small circular printed images and glue each one securely into a small round bezel. When dry, apply six coats of PVA glue as before. Once free of any moisture, pour a small amount of resin into the centre of each bezel, spreading it out to the edges and adding more as necessary. Remove any air bubbles and leave to cure.
   
   2 Link the bezels together with 6mm jump rings. Cut two equal pieces of large link curb chain to a length that, once added to the ends of the connected bezels, will create the desired size of bracelet. Secure a chain to the loop at each end of the bezels. Thread a yellow round and flower bead onto a head pin, then form a wrapped loop. Repeat to make three more flower drops.
   
   3 Create 12 single bead drops with a selection of pink, turquoise and topaz rounds. Using jump rings, secure an equal number of beaded head pins, along with a glass leaf bead and antique brass key charm, to the chain at both sides of the connected bezels. Secure a toggle clasp to the ends of the bracelet to finish.

3. Earrings - Cut two small round printed images and adhere into small circular bezels, before coating with PVA glue. When fully dry, pour in a small amount of resin, remove any air bubbles and leave to cure. Attach a key charm to the bottom loop of each bezel with 5mm jump rings, then fix earwires to the tops.