How to Prepare Coral for Jewelry Making

Coral is a delicate, beautiful organic substance that is often used for jewelry making. You can find coral in many shades. You can purchase a large piece of coral and cut it into smaller pieces to use for jewelry making. This is more economical than purchasing smaller pieces. A few cuts, drilling a hole to string the piece, buffing and a quick cleaning is all you need to do to turn a large course piece of coral into smaller jewelry pieces.

Set your large piece of coral on a solid work surface. Draw lines on the coral with a pencil to indicate where you want to cut the coral.

Place a small to medium-sized cutting wheel on your Dremel tool. Make sure it is secured on snugly, and plug in the tool. Secure your air mask on your face, as well as your safety gloves and your magnifying safety glasses.

Hold your piece of coral and position it so you can see the pencil marks. With your other hand, grab the Dremel tool and turn it on. Slowly bring the blade of the Dremel tool toward your pencil mark and carefully cut the marked pieces away from the larger piece.

Mark where you want to drill a hole, if desired. Use a small drill bit to drill the hole. Make sure to place the hole in a thicker part of the coral so it doesn’t break off easily when strung for your desired jewelry piece.

Place the polishing wheel on your Dremel tool, and buff out any rough spots on your pieces of coral.

Clean the coral with a soft, damp cloth and allow it to air dry. Do not submerge it in water, as it may dull the exterior surface.

Store each piece of coral in an individual pouch to ensure that it does not get scratched.