Pearls knotted using Soft Flex Extreme Wire in 24K Gold Plated,
925 Sterling Silver Plated and Champagne.
One of the neatest features of Soft Flex Beading Wire products is that you can actually knot the wire. You will not lose any strength or durability where the wire is knotted.
Tensile strength refers to the breaking point when the wire will snap under the stress of weight and pull. From the very beginning, it was important to us that our wire is strong enough to be knotted. And what that means to us, was not that it could just be knotted, but that it would not lose strength, work harden and break at the knot. So from day one, Soft Flex Beading Wire was tested for tensile strength with and without a knot. Our wire will not break under duress any sooner regardless of a knot or no knot.
Strong and flexible, Soft Flex was the first beading wire that could truly be knotted. It speaks volumes about the strength and durability of the product. If the product cannot be knotted then it will likely break easily if it is kinked. And there are beading wire brands made by other manufacturers that specifically advertise no knotting. Be aware.
Tying an Overhand Knot with Soft Flex Beading Wire
We sat down with Danielle Wickes. She is a jewelry designer and a content creator for John Bead. We discussed the hobby/ craft business, jewelry making, beading, and a fun technique that we have not really used in many videos - knotting. All of our wire diameters can be knotted, but we have never really explored this on our jewelry demonstrations. This was a great time to see what we had been missing. Learn more about John Bead, Danielle, and how to knot your beading wire to create a stunning jewelry aesthetic.
Tying an 8-Knot with Soft Flex Beading Wire
We at Soft Flex Company recommend that you use the 8-Knot when knotting any Soft Flex or Soft Touch Beading Wire. The 8-Knot is a Rock Climbing knot that has superior strength and keeps the wire in a continuous line, with no bend on either side of the knot.
Step 1: Begin a Loop - Pick up one end of your Soft Touch or Soft Flex beading wire and create a bend.
Step 2: Make a Loop - Take the end of the wire and make a loop in the wire. Make the loop fairly loose. Pass over the strand which leads to the rest of the wire. When this step is complete, you will have a single loop in the wire which you have to hold in place.
Step 3: Pass underneath the Wire - Take your end of the wire and pass it underneath the rest of the strand. This will form a second loop.
Step 4: Form the Figure Eight - Take your end of the wire, and pass it through the loop you made in step 2. As shown here, your end should enter the loop created in step 2 from the top, and exit at the bottom. Once you have passed your end through the loop, you pull your end of the wire all the way through.
Step 5: Pull Tight - Now, take each end of the wire and pull the knot tight. Before being tightened, the knot will resemble the figure eight. At this point, you will have formed a complete Figure 8-Knot.
HINT: When knotting .010 Soft Touch and .014 Soft Flex, you should use your fingertips to pull the knot tight. When working with .019 and .024 Soft Flex, you will need to use both hands to cinch the knot down tightly.
Macrame with Soft Flex Beading Wire
Macrame is likely derived from Arabic or Turkish words describing fringes and weaving techniques. It is a form of crafting textiles using knots - rather than knitting, crocheting or weaving.
Early macrame was used as a decorative fringe. It later fell into favor with sailors and was used for hammocks, fringe work on railing and bells and decorative finishes to knife handles and bottles. Macrame exploded in popularity during the 1970s and was used for wall hangings, jewelry, and clothing.
On into the 21st century, we have found macrame especially fun to use with Soft Flex Wire. Explore jewelry making with our colored wire and your favorite beads!
