How to Make Quality Jewelry the Easy Way: A Guide to Using Snaptite Castings and Faceted Gemstones

Buying jewelry gets expensive, especially if you have expensive tastes like I do. I don't tend to buy costume jewelry, but instead I prefer real gold and silver jewelry. I also enjoy the beauty of real gemstones as opposed to glass and synthetics. Making your own jewelry is fun, but before I found out about snaptite castings I didn't care for the jewelry I could make. Some people like that artsy look to their jewelry, but I prefer classic beauty. I want my jewelry to look professionally made. Even if I didn't pay a lot for a piece, I want it to look nice. I want my jewelry to be of real silver and gold, not some mystery metal. Perhaps most importantly, if I'm making jewelry myself, I want it to be easy to make. Using snaptite castings and faceted gemstones, anyone can easily make quality jewelry.

What is a Snaptite Casting?
A snaptite casting is a casting that is pre-set to fit a standard sized gemstone (often referred to as a calibrated gemstone). The snaptite casting is able to fit around a gemstone easily and securely once snapped into place. Don't be confused by pre-notched castings. Pre-notched castings are not the same as snaptite castings. Pre-notched castings require more skill to use as they do not just snap into place. You will need pliers to bend the prongs of a pre-notched casting into place, but you likely won't need pliers at all for a snaptite casting. Snaptite castings generally come in gold and silver, but if you're not into using quality metal you can often find them in goldtone and silvertone as well.

Faceted Gemstones
Faceted gemstones are gemstones that have already been cut. When you go into a department store's jewelry department, most of the gemstones you will see are faceted. Common shapes include: rounds, ovals, emerald cuts, hearts, and princess cuts (square). You can easily find faceted gemstones for sale online. Generally, faceted gemstones will be available for sale as either a single gemstone, a matched pair, a parcel of only a specific type of gemstone, or a mixed parcel. Prices vary, but generally buying a mixed faceted parcel will be cheapest. You can buy genuine gemstones, lab created versions of genuine gemstones, or cubic zirconia (and other man-made gemstones). Once you know what gemstones you have and what the sizes are, you'll be able to buy castings for them.
Making Jewelry

To get started, first you'll need to have your gemstones and castings ready. If you bought a parcel of gemstones that haven't been measured, you'll need to measure their sizes in millimeters. Then you'll search for the castings in the sizes you want. Common calibrated sizes include: 5x3mm ovals, 6x4mm ovals and emeralds, 7x5mm ovals and emeralds, 8x10mm ovals, 5mm rounds, 6mm rounds, 6mm hearts, and many more.

Just browse through any website that sells gemstones to see sizes that are commonly offered. Generally, the most common sizes sold are also going to be the easiest sizes to find castings for. Once you have your gemstones and castings, you're ready to start making jewelry. Simply lay the stone on a flat surface, table side down. Gently push the snaptite casting down over the stone. The casting will actually snap into place. At this point, take your 10x magnification jeweler's loupe and check that the prongs are holding the gemstone securely. If any of the prongs are out of place, you can make minor adjustments with a pair of pliers. Just push the prongs of opposite sides together at the same time until you have achieved your desired result.

Making jewelry with snaptite castings and faceted gemstones is easy and affordable. You'll pay a fraction of the price, yet the work you do in putting your pieces together is extremely minimal. You'll be making real jewelry of quality that you can wear yourself or give away as gifts. You could even sell the jewelry you put together. Your jewelry will look professional and bring you joy for many years to come.


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