Crystal garland. How it’s made?
Crystal garlands are the main component of some classic models. Iconic smooth lines and perfect combinations of a wide variety of components are the reason to associate chandeliers with luxury living standards.
How is crystal garland made? Which type of suspension and clips do we use? And do we have a relation between chandelier model and garland type? All of these questions are answered in this article.
No matter which type of assembly is used, the garland-making process requires a selection of crystals with specific numbers of holes in them and clips (wires) to arrange little pieces in one chain. We use brass-only clips, which improve the durability of garlands. As crystals are reasonably heavy, their weight should be taken into account when choosing clip types.
Types of fastening we use
After years of trials and errors we eliminated some types of fastening and now usually use these clips
- Classic Polished brass or nickel-plated clips (in sizes from 9 to 18mm)
- Decorated classic clips (both polished and nickel plated brass available)
- Pins
- Wires hand-made binding (thin and flexible brass wires).
First two types of clips work the same way. They are inserted into the crystals’ holes and clamped by fingers or special instruments (depending on sizes and thickness of a clip). While this method seems to be easy (it’s not, believe us), binding crystals may look absolutely confusing. And this confusion is absolutely objective.
Binding process explained
- First of all selected brass wire is cropped into pieces of exact length (the length of a wire should be calculated based on crystals’ width and expected distance between them)
- With special nippers wire is led through holes in crystals and fixed by circular motions.
- Wire’s leftovers get cut off. The length of leftover wire is a litmus paper for craftsmen. The less volume of waste the more professional skills one has.
The hardest part in the binding process is to keep a distance between crystals even, while every extra mm will be visible on the chandelier.
Which technique is used when?
As you may notice, the binding process is much more complicated and highly labor-intense. Then why do we still use it?
Well the reason is more motivated by the visual difference between the final look of crystal gorget. Binded garlands are visually way lighter. When using clips, garlands look more massive. Clips are great for such styles of chandelier like Secession or Baroque but don’t work right for traditional Swedish chandeliers.
There is no black and white, but a whole lot of different variables… Just like in life.
We do not have an established solution for every model, but always communicate with our customers to identify their needs and to propose the right model.
