One of my favorite combinations when making bracelets is leather and charms! When deciding what color of leather to use, I chose turquoise because it’s a color that always calms me – plus it seems to work for all seasons. It reminds me of the beach where I would love to be! I decided to make this a multi strand bracelet because the stacked bracelet look is such a huge trend right now. To make your own version of this multi strand leather charm bracelet, read on. It’s easier than you think! Continue Reading…
Make Your Own Rustic Copper Heart Bracelet
December 2, 2015The popularity of bracelets just keeps increasing, and having fallen in love with some similar styles, I decided to tackle copper soldering and hand formed wire bracelet making in the same project.
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Easy DIY Stackable Bracelets
November 30, 2015Ever wonder how to fill your wrists with deliciously colorful and fun stackable bracelets? Well here’s a super trendy DIY bracelet design you can make in about 5 minutes! Best yet, you can customize each bracelet with charms that match your interests — or the interests of friends, family, and customers. This design works great for making Awareness jewelry and seasonal themes too. Since I made these in November, I was ready for some Christmas Cheer. Continue Reading…
DIY Earrings with Swarovski Cosmic Rings
October 14, 2015I am absolutely in love with Swarovski’s cosmic crystal rings. There are so many things you can do with these! These cosmic rings sparkle everywhere you go. Here is one of my absolute favorite designs using cosmic crystal rings from Swarovski. Continue Reading…
Open Hearted Lariat Necklace
September 28, 2015Since October is Breast Cancer awareness month, I wanted to make a pink ribbon necklace that would do many things at once. I wanted it to look stylish, spread awareness, and encourage hope and solidarity. I came up with this simple but elegant Open Heart Lariat Necklace that literally takes seconds to put together and requires no tools! Read on to make your own. Continue Reading…
DIY Team Spirit Earrings
August 31, 2015With football season fast approaching, it’s time to break out your team spirit! Colorful jewelry that shows off team colors will make it easy for everyone to know who you’re cheering for! Simply swap out the Swarovski crystal colors to make earrings that support your favorite team!
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Create a Charm Bracelet
January 13, 2014Charm Bracelet
Create a beautiful, heirloom-quality charm bracelet using freshwater keishi pearls, Swarovski faceted crystal beads, and unique sterling silver bead caps, charms, and findings.
A four-piece jewelry making tool set and basic assembly techniques are all you need to create this stunning bracelet. I recommend using the Chain Stā tool which suspends the bracelet horizontally making it easier to see where you are placing charms.
Create Eight Styles of Charms
For this design, charms were arranged in the following pattern:
- Place an Ethereal Pearl Charm every 5 links.
- On the 3rd link after Ethereal Pearl, attach Oopsy Daisy Charm.
- On the 4th link after Ethereal Pearl, alternate Falling Leaf & Delicate Sprout Charms.
- On the 1st link after Ethereal Pearl, alternate Tender Bloom & Budding Flower Charms.
- On the 2nd link after Ethereal Pearl, alternate Cherry Blossom & Fresh Shoot Charms.
Ethereal Pearl Charm
Create 7 Ethereal Pearl Charms using: Center-Drilled Freshwater Keishi Pearl 2″ Ball End Head Pins 4mm Round Jump Rings
Oopsy Daisy Charm
Falling Leaf Charm
Delicate Sprout Charm
Budding Flower Charm
Cherry Blossom Charm
Have fun making the bracelet!
Create a Custom Personalized Necklace
December 6, 2013Personalized jewelry is very popular, and quite simple to create! A four-piece jewelry making tool set and basic assembly techniques are all you need to create custom necklaces.
It is easy to personalize jewelry using birthstone-color gemstones and Swarovski crystal, along with a sterling silver charm or two. Rings & Things sells a huge selection of lightweight budget-friendly sterling charms and necklace chains.
Chains are easily adorned with add-a-dangle, or add-a-gemstone charms. To create these assorted dangles, you just need a selection of small beads from your stash and some sterling ball-end head pins.
These colorful dangles allow you to add several birthstones to a custom piece, or accessorize it according the whimsy of the wearer. A mixture of natural stones, freshwater pearls and Swarovski crystals is very popular. Making oversized loops on the dangles makes it easy to slide them onto nearly any chain without adding a jump ring.
If you sell custom necklaces, consider displaying the basics in a fun display (along with a few completed samples):
- A tray of sterling silver charms
- An assortment of pre-made add-a-gemstone dangles
- A variety of pre-made add-a-birthstone crystal dangles
- A few styles of sterling silver necklace chains.
This jewelry also makes great gifts and mementos for friends, family and other loved ones. Have fun making these darling necklaces!
How to Make a Metal Box
October 28, 2013Make A Metal Box
A small metal box was turned into a framed reliquary, containing an antiqued frozen Charlotte doll. Create your own metal box that can be transformed into memory jewelry, a tiny shrine or used for some other whimsical (or practical) purpose.
To make a metal box, first decide on the type of metal, and the size of the box you want to create. I recommend using 20 gauge sheet metal for strength and durability. Copper or brass sheet metal are nice choices as they are inexpensive and they antique nicely.
Anneal the metal before cutting so that it can be manipulated more easily. Heat it with a torch until it is glowing red, let it cool naturally and clean thoroughly.
Cut the metal to size. This box was 1-1/2″ long and 3/4″ wide. It is 3/8″ deep. Draw lines of box using a Sharpie pen.
Cut one line of each corner to the point where it intersects with another line. Using wide flat nose pliers, bend the ends in, and the sides up, to create the box shape. Carefully fold each end of the box into place, making the corners square and secure. File if needed to remove any uneven edges.
Antique and colorize all parts you intend to assemble.
Fill back of frame with two-part epoxy. Center box over ornate brass frame and press into epoxy to place.
Using a two-part epoxy, UV resin, jeweler’s grade resin or other strong, clear glue, embed your treasures into your framed metal reliquary. Small toys, souvenirs, images layered in resin and tiny mementos are all used in creating custom memory jewelry.
Use epoxy to attach a magnet, let it cure and you are done! (Note: You could also attach a pin back or changeable bail in the same manner for a DIY jewelry brooch or pendant).
Questions? Please post them below!
How to Make Leather Bracelets – Two Finishing Methods
August 12, 2013In this do-it-yourself jewelry-making tutorial, the bracelet blanks from last week’s blog post, “Customizing Tim Holtz idea-ology® Word Bands for a Handmade Look”, combine with Rings & Things’ new leather strips to make two styles of leather cuffs.
Leather Bracelet Style One – A Single-Wrap Bracelet with Drawstring Clasp:
“In the Moment Leather Cuff Bracelet”
You will need the following tools and supplies:
ruler
1/2″ wide leather strip
3mm suede lace
5-ply waxed linen cord
large-hole bead (hole size 4mm)
customized Tim Holtz idea-ology® word bands
Sharpie®, Extra Fine Point
Leather Bracelet Style Two – A Double-Wrap Bracelet with Hitch Clasp:
“The Journey Leather Wrap Bracelet”
You will need the following tools and supplies:
ruler
Sharpie®, Extra Fine Point
1/2″ wide leather strip
5-ply waxed linen cord
customized Tim Holtz idea-ology® word bands
Make things,
Mollie