Beaded Hoop Earrings: Threading Beads onto Wire Hoops

Beaded hoop earrings are about as simple as earring making gets, because the hoop does most of the work. Ready-made beadable wire hoops have a small loop at one end and a straight wire at the other: beads slide on, the tip of the wire is bent up to latch into the loop, and the earring is done. The only planning needed is working out how many beads fit, and that comes straight from the size of the hoop.

What you need

• 2 beadable wire hoops, about 1 in (25 mm) across, with a loop at one end and a straight wire end
• 20 round beads, 4 mm (10 per hoop), plus a few spares; the pattern below uses 12 teal, 4 gold and 4 white
• Chain-nose pliers
• A ruler and a bead mat

Beadable hoops are sold in several diameters and wire thicknesses, and they are described along with the other common parts in the earring findings guide. The wire is often around 20- to 22-gauge (0.8 to 0.64 mm); a table of American wire gauge sizes converts other gauges to millimeters. What matters in practice is that the bead holes are wider than the wire.

How many beads fit on a hoop

The wire of a hoop is a circle, so its length is the diameter multiplied by 3.14. A 25 mm hoop has about 25 × 3.14 = 78.5 mm of wire, a little over 3 in.

Not all of that wire can carry beads. The last 1/8 in (3 mm) of the straight end is bent up to form the latch, and the stretch of wire next to it passes through the ear and must stay bare. For a hoop with beads along the lower half, as in this project, leave about 1.5 in (38 mm) bare in total. That gives 78.5 − 38 = 40.5 mm of beaded wire, and 40.5 ÷ 4 = 10 beads of 4 mm, which take up 40 mm.

The same sum works for any hoop and any bead. Seed beads are the one case that needs care: they are counted per inch of strung length rather than by their width. Size 8/0 beads run at about 11 per inch, so 40 mm (about 1.6 in) holds roughly 17 of them. Seed beads vary by maker, so string a few against a ruler and check. The bead size guide has the full beads-per-inch table.

For a fuller look on the 1 in hoop, leave only about 7/8 in (22 mm) bare. That gives 78.5 − 22 = 56.5 mm, which is 14 beads of 4 mm (56 mm). Do not fill a hoop further than that: the wire needs free space to pass through the ear.

Plan the pattern

A hoop is seen from the side with the lowest point in the middle, so symmetric patterns look best. With an even count of ten there are two middle beads. The pattern used here reads, from one side to the other: 3 teal, 1 gold, 2 white, 1 gold, 3 teal. That is 3 + 1 + 2 + 1 + 3 = 10 beads. Two hoops need 12 teal, 4 gold and 4 white, which is 20 beads in all.

Lay both rows out on the mat before threading anything. If choosing colors is the hard part, see the guide to bead color combinations.

Thread and close the hoops

1. Check the wire end. Some hoops arrive with the tip already bent. If the beads will not pass the bend, straighten the tip gently with the chain-nose pliers. Do this once only; rebending weakens wire.
2. Thread the first hoop. Hold the hoop by its loop end and slide the ten beads onto the straight end in pattern order. Let them run down to the bottom of the curve.
3. Check the spacing. Hold the hoop up as it will hang. The beads should settle along the lower half, with bare wire on both sides. Measure the bare straight end: at least 5/8 in (16 mm) should be free for the ear and the latch.
4. Bend the latch. Grip the last 1/8 in (3 mm) of the straight end in the tip of the chain-nose pliers and bend it up to roughly a right angle, pointing away from the center of the hoop. Press the two ends of the hoop toward each other and let the bent tip hook into the small loop.
5. Test the catch. Open and close the hoop twice. The tip should hook into the loop without being forced and stay there. If it slips out, make the bend a little sharper.
6. Make the second hoop. Thread the second row of beads in the same order and latch it the same way.

To wear the earrings, unhook the tip, pass the straight end through the ear from the front and latch it behind the earlobe.

If this happens, do that

• The beads slide up toward the latch. On a half-filled hoop the beads are free to move and settle at the lowest point when worn. If that movement is unwelcome, use the fuller count of 14 beads so there is less room to travel.
• The hoop has turned oval. Too much pressure while bending the tip pulls the circle out of shape. Slide the hoop over a round marker or a thick pen and press it gently back into a curve.
• The hoops do not match. Count the beads on each one. A single extra bead shifts the pattern off center.

Variations

Seed bead hoops. Fill the lower half with about 17 size 8/0 seed beads in one color, or in three blocks of 6, 5 and 6.

A center drop. Thread five 4 mm beads, then a small bead drop by its loop, then five more beads. The drop hangs at the lowest point of the hoop. The loop is the one taught in the simple bead drop earrings tutorial, and it must be large enough to slide over the hoop wire.