Tutorial: Toggle Clasp #3

Weave any loose ends into the beadwork and finish as you normally would for your choice of thread.  Do not remove the final working thread from the beadwork at this point, in case you need to adjust the bracelet length.

This toggle clasp uses little peyote stalks that then attach to the clasp.  There are different methods of fastening the peyote stalks, depending on whether the attachment ring on the toggle is perpendicular or in line with the clasp.  This tutorial shows both methods as the toggle and ring are connected to the peyote stalks in different ways.  One attachment ring was too small for size 11 beads and so size 15's were also used.  Use this variety of techniques to fit the toggle clasp you have.

It anchors to the beadwork from the two central beads on the end of the beadwork.  I like to finish the existing thread and begin a new thread for the clasp.  This means that if the clasp thread should wear through, the beadwork will remain intact.  Add a new thread and stitch through the last three rows of the beadwork

Begin by starting a new thread and attaching it to the beadwork in your normal way and exit the beadwork at the point indicated below.

Thread along the top of the beadwork, through the bead highlighted blue and then the bead highlighted yellow.  Pick up a new bead as shown by the bead marked green.

Stitch through the blue bead so the green bead sits on top of the yellow bead, then pick up a new bead, highlighted in red.

Stitch through the green bead so that the red bead sits next to the green bead securely, then pick up another bead, highlighted yellow. 

Stitch through the red bead so the yellow bead sits snuggly on top of the green bead, then pick up another bead, highlighted blue.

Keep growing the peyote stalk in the same way until it is slightly longer than the length of half the toggle.  For my clasp, the stalk consisted of eight beads on both the left and right sides of the stalk.  The last two beads are highlighted blue and yellow with the thread exiting the yellow bead as shown below.

The attachment loop of the toggle clasp was two small to fit a size 11 bead through and so one size 11 bead was replaced with two size 15 beads.  Its good to have the metal of the clasp sit on beads rather than bare thread as thread would wear through over time.  Pick up three size 11s then two size 15s and then thread through the attachment loop of the clasp.

Pick up another two size 11's then stitch through the bead highlighted blue to create a loop with the two size 15's situated in the attachment loop of the clasp.

Stitch through the bead highlighted yellow then all the beads of the loop again.  The new thread pathway is now shown in red.

Stitch back down through the peyote stalk as shown by the red pathway.

Stitch through the main beadwork and then finish off your thread.

Check the length of the bracelet on your wrist with the two clasp pieces joined and add or remove rows as required and finish off the working thread.  Add a new thread to attach the metal clasp ring, exiting the beadwork as shown below.

Stitch along the top of the beadwork going through the blue bead and then the yellow bead.  Pick up a new bead, highlighted in green.

Stitch through the blue bead, then pick up a new bead, highlighted in red.

Stitch through the bead shown in green so the red bead sits snuggly, then pick up a new bead as shown in yellow.

Stitch through the bead highlighted red then pick up a new bead, highlighted blue.

Stitch through the bead highlighted yellow.  The stalk for the ring section of the clasp does not need to be as long.

The size 11's fit through the attachment loop of the ring section of the clasp.  Pick up five beads and thread through the attachment loop of the ring.

Stitch back through the bead highlighted yellow, from the outside of the peyote stalk to inside, then through the bead highlighted blue.

Pick up two beads.  The most recent thread path is shown in red.

The middle bead of the first loop sits in the attachment loop of the ring, pass the thread through this bead.  Pick up two further beads.

Stitch through the blue bead again, from the outside of the stalk to the inside.

This is a top view of the bead cluster you have created.  The peyote stalk ends in the blue and yellow beads which you can see at the bottom of the stack in the diagram below.  Four mini stalks are created, with the thread passing from the outside of the blue and yellow beads of the peyote stalk.  Each mini stalk consists of two beads.  The four mini stalks are then joined at the top by a single bead which sits in the attachment loop of the ring of the clasp.  

Two loops are created from the top of the peyote stalk which share a bead in the clasp.  The loops go around the attachment loop, fastening it to the bracelet.

A tidied up side view shows one side of the fastening with two of the mini stalks shown, which make up half of each of the loops.

Weave the thread through the beadwork back to the bracelet.  You can stitch through all the beads in the peyote stalk and the loops / mini stalks around the attachment loop again if required.  Once completed, weave the thread away and finish.