Making a Rosary

Hand Crafted One-of-Kind Rosary

I’ve always loved Malas and often use them to help me meditate. For the past six years, I’ve been going to the Gem and Mineral show in Denver for the purpose of buying beads to make a new Mala. My collection is growing, as has the complexity of the designs. The last two Malas turned into unique, one-of-a-kind pieces of jewelry! This year I decided to take my Mala making skills in a slightly different direction and make a Rosary.

The idea came to me after arriving early to church with Andy on the day(s) he sings in the Sunday choir. About 20 minutes before the start of mass the congregation (those who are there early) say the Rosary. I tried to follow along but decided it might perhaps be easier if I had a Rosary myself. Not having one handy, I decided to make one. So, with this purpose in mind, I went to the Gem and Mineral show I looked for beads that would be good for a Rosary. I purchased a variety on the first day not knowing what color palette I wanted to go with. That evening, I looked them over and decided agates in earthtones made the most sense and then went back the next day to pick up a strand of yellow jade beads.

I had discussed my Rosary idea with Andy prior to going to Denver.  Rosaries always have a patron saint medal in the design and I wasn’t sure if I wanted to go with the patron saint of artists, the art or one that related to farming and gardening. Given the Catholic church we belong to is a farming community, I opted for the later. This is why I gravitated toward earth tone beads. Once I got back to Palisade, I set to work researching where to purchase the patron saint medal and the crucifix that is at the end of the Rosary. Originally, I was thinking I’d go with a sterling silver cross and medal but decided pewter would be better as it is humbler and would fit better with a Rosary made for a farmer, or gardener as is the case with me.

I order both from The Sisters of Carmel www.sistersofcarmel.com and once the arrived set to work. My mother had given me a diagram of the Rosary, so I’d have an idea of how to string the beads. To make the Rosary I first strung 54 beads, a set of ten agates, then a single yellow jade, then the next set of ten and so forth. The ten beads represent the Hail Mary prayer, the single bead is used both for the Our Father and the Glory Be prayer. With the beads on, I then knotted each one in, meaning I’d pull a bead to the end, tie a knot and then pull the next bead down. This is the basic construction method of all Malas. Once this was complete, I tied each end to the Patron Saint Medal. For my Rosary I decided on Saint Fiacre who is the patron saint of gardeners. Next, I tied a second string at the bottom of the medal and finished off the Rosary with five more beads, one jade at each end, again for both the Our Father and Glory Be, and three agates in the middle for the Hail Mary; once those were knotted in place, I added the cross at the end. It turned out to be a beautiful Rosary.

Interestingly, it is smaller than most Rosaries I’ve seen, and I’ve come to the conclusion it is because there is not a lot of space between each bead, only a single knot. This works out well for me as its smaller size makes it easier to carry. To further ensure durability, I put a dab of super glue on each knot that was tied to the medal and crucifix. With Rosary the completed, I took it to church and asked our priest to bless it. I now have a beautiful new Rosary, thoughtfully made and specific to this new chapter in my life.

I can’t wait to use it!