Wire-Clipping Tips | Removing Tape Residue | Cleaning Bead Design Boards

A common tool you use for a manicure can help you with wire projects and look no further than your mail supplies to find a great bead design board cleaner.

1. Clip it
When working on a wire or stringing project, a pair of nail clippers is handy for making quick, close cuts. Clippers also relieve hand strain; you can trim with one hand, rather than hold a set of wire cutters with one hand and pull the wire taut with the other. Julia Prater, via e-mail

2. Squeaky clean
Sterling or gold-filled wire is often sold in coils, taped together. To remove tape residue, use an adhesive remover such as Goo Gone. Simply moisten a rag and rub it on the wire for low-effort cleaining. Veronica Stewart, via e-mail

3. Swap meet
My friends and I get together not only to make jewelry, but to swap beads and ideas. Spending time with one another helps stir our creative juices and encourages new possiblities for old beads. Plus, one person's trash truly can be another person's treasure. T. Duncan, via e-mail

4. Convenient reference
I removed the Basic Techniques section of BeadStyle and laminated each page at a copy store. I put the sheets on my bulletin board or in my bead box for easy reference. That way, there's no need to flip pages back and forth as I work on a project in the magazine. B. Earl, Denver, CO

5. Board again
Dust, broken beads, and tiny pieces of wire often get stuck in the channels of a bead design board. To clean the board, use a piece of mailing or packing tape. Just push the tape into the channels and corners to remove the dust. Your board will look brand new! Cheryl Cassidy, Springfield, MA

Related Issues

May 2005