How to Make Your Own Wedding Hair Jewels

Wedding hair jewels can give you a sophisticated look on your wedding day without detracting from your dress. They go well in dark hair colors especially, but can be made with darker jewels for lighter hair. You can work these in after your hair is styled, so it is a cinch to place them to complete your look. They are relatively simple to make and can be customized your way to match your jewelry and wedding colors. Here's how to get started making your own wedding hair jewels.

Materials

You will need to determine what size beads you want to use for the jewels, what cut they should be, and how many you want. Think about your wedding hair style and use them as accents to beautify your look. If you have dark hair, you should consider using light jewels, and conversely if you have light hair you should consider darker jewels so that they stand out in contrast better.

At your local craft or beading store, choose the beads you want, some beading wire in silver or gold (depending on what will match better), and some wire cutters. You can also make them on premade, plain barrettes or small hair combs for an even easier project.

Making them

You will want to make them all in a consistent shape, but not necessarily size; varying sizes can give you more versatility in positioning and give you a better sparkle. Star shapes work great, but you can make circles, hearts, or clusters. For a star shape, create a 'skeleton' with the wire by cutting lengths that are all equal. Place two beads on the bottom, bend the end of the wire under the bead, and glue a second bead onto this. Continue to string the beads on until you are midway up the wire, then twist the wire around another wire (matching the middles) and continue stringing the wire with beads until you get to the end of the wire; repeat the same securing method as you did on the end for the top by gluing the bead and bending the wire edge down and hidden. Repeat the same process with the next piece of wire to make a cross or X shape. You can stop at this shape if you would like, but add one more beaded wire length for a star shape; for a snowflake, just add one more length of beaded wire, securing it in the middle. You can then wire on a larger bead for the middle to hide the middle twisting of the wire.

Heart shapes can be achieved by beading onto one length of wire, bending it into a V-shape, and then bending the two top points into a heart shape and securing in the middle. Circles are made by just bending the wire into a circle and securing the ends. For a cluster, you can make a spiral and secure the ends to the closed ring of the spiral.

Try using different sized beads for a more balanced look. Smaller beads should be placed into the center of a spiral, or along the edges of a star or snowflake shape. If you vary the sizes of the jewels, you should keep the number of beads consistent, but just use a smaller millimeter dimension. This will make it truly look like a smaller version of the same shape, rather than an incomplete one.

Attaching them to a barrette or comb

You are almost done; now all you need is a hair pin, barrette, or comb, depending on your personal style. Small hair pins can be hidden well into an up-do if the jewel is attached at the loop of the pin and pushed into hair straight, revealing only the hair jewel. The style of a hair jewel is all in the appearance of them 'floating' in your hair, so be sure to find a hair pin or barrette that blends well into your hair for an invisible attachment. Attach hair jewels to barrettes or combs with some more beading wire. Be sure to wrap ends of wires in as you go, so that you don't have anything poking into your scalp. Make only one to begin with and determine whether the attachment you are using will be hidden and comfortable. If not, than make the necessary adjustments before you make more.