Tips and Tricks  - "How-to-Section"                                                                             

• Instructions
• General Tips
• Patterns

Instructions:

Instructions printable version

Gather all the items you will need:  Tube(s) of Swarovski Crystal Flatback Rhinestones    Crystal Glue, Gem-Tac or E6000  Application Tools – Precision Tweezer, Positioning Picks Step One: Decide what you are going to crystal.  Endless possibilities include your cell phone, iPod, dance or figure skating costumes, jeans, t-shirt, purse, hat, backpack, sunglasses, prom dress, sun dress, shoes etc.  You are only limited by your own imagination. Step Two: Find a flat working space with room to work.  Spread your tools out. Make sure you have good lighting. You may want a small paper plate to use for squeezing out a bit of glue and a small shallow dish for your stones. Step Three: Decide on a pattern –make up your own or copy one of the patterns on our website. Do you have a pattern or lines on the item you are going to crystallize?  If so, follow it.  Outline important areas first.  To get a straight line, glue crystals following an edge and work your way out.  Step Four: Map out the pattern you’ve chosen to crystal –visually map it out or mark it with a pen. Step Five: Using a pin, poke a small hole in the tip of the crystal glue bottle or snip the tip with a scissor.  Use a small amount of glue. This is the tricky part – you want enough glue – not too much and not too little. If you’re working on a small area you may want to squirt some glue on a small piece of paper, or paper plate and dot using the positioning tool. Step Six: Place a crystal rhinestone on each dot. Repeat steps 4 and 5 until your work is done. Let dry, preferably for 24 hours.   Relax and Have Fun. P.S. You may want to work with a buddy. Washing guidelines: Wash garment inside out with cold water, hand wash or machine wash on gentle cycle. Hang to dry as heat will soften the glue.

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General Tips:

Remember the coverage amounts will vary with each project and each design. Use our Crystal Calculator ® to help figure out how many rhinestones you will need for your project.  When doing a phone, remove battery plate, faceplate and cover if possible, before stoning. Stone separately – plan for pattern continuity with the rest of your phone. This will avoid problems later.    If you are stoning an electronic device, shut it off first.   Good lighting. Use a small lamp to see detail, especially working with smaller stones.   The glue will dry clear however you still need to be careful about the amount you use. Give your item 24 hours to dry.   Use Goo Gone to remove any unwanted glue on fingers, tweezers, tabletops etc. Read the directions for use. Squeeze a little Goo Gone in the cap, dip tweezers, as it gets tacky and dry with a tissue or paper towel. Goo Gone is available in grocery or discount stores.   Pick up dropped stones. Swarovski rhinestones are valuable and difficult to replace. Extra stones are good to have on hand to touch up your project if needed at a later time.   Crystal rhinestones can be used on anything as long as you find the right glue for that particular surface. Our Crystal Glue can be used on most surfaces including clothing. Other glues to check out include Gem-Tac, Jewel-it and Flexible Stretchable, quick drying glues ie E6000.    Washing a clothing item with rhinestones is not recommended. If you must wash the item, turn garment inside out, use cold water and hand wash or machine wash on gentle cycle. Hang to dry as heat will soften the glue. If you do lose a stone, it’s probably in the washer, find it & glue back on.   You will lose stones with normal wear and tear, especially if you handle the item a lot. Plan for replacement stones.

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Patterns                                                                                                                                          Sample patterns printable version
	Choosing a pattern can be difficult. If you’re apprehensive about starting, don’t get too clever. Very simple patterns are gorgeous. Don’t get stressed. This should be fun!  Take a look at the sample diagrams and crystal patterns below for inspiration! You can also visit our Ideas gallery for more ideas!!

	Diagonal: Crystal, Capri Blue, Peridot		Plaid pattern with windowing: Citrine, Jet		Flowers: Crystal, Amethyst, Peridot
	Zig-Zag: Crystal, Siam, Citrine		3 Dots: Siam, Jet		Heart: Siam, Crystal
	Zig-Zag: Capri Blue, Siam		Flag: Crystal, Capri Blue, Siam		Lady Bug: Crystal, Siam, Jet