Homemade Gift: Beaded Necklace

Friday, November 18, 2011
 I've become a little obsessive about making these necklaces.  Sometimes this happens.  I've made them with a series of beads like the above, and flowers like the one below. 
 I've made them in just about every color combination.  In a box, with a fox, in a tree with a flea....I think that just about covers the gist.  They are pretty affordable and easy to make and they fulfill some sort of hole or something in the portion of my being crying for...ummm...necklaces with pearls and flowers?!?
I bought the pearls, these little pins, a small set of jewelery making tools (which I already had), a chain, clasp, and little circles to attach it all together (I don't know what those are called, but they sell them in packs of approximately a million). 
Thread a bead on one of the wire pins. 
 Take one of these little round tip pliers and curl the second end over into a circle so both ends have circles like the first one.
 Snip off the excess, and then complete. 
 From there on, as I curled the wire into the circle, I pushed it through the last circle I had formed to create a chain 'o beads. 
 See the chain grow?  Grow chain, grow. 
 7 beads was just about perfect.  When the blue and black necklace I just repeated this process with the blue bead.  For the flower, I created a little base for the flower and strung two of the circle things through.  I took 12 inches of 1 inch fabric.  I tied the end and then twisted and wound it, and glued it down to the base. 
 Glamour glue job. 
 Covered up.  I left the edge of the fabric a little rough.  I glued a circle of felt onto the back.
I used another little circle thing (it opens and shuts with the needle nose pliers...people that know what they are doing just rolled their eyes).  I attached a chain and clasp to make it the length I wanted, and then I made 364 more...per friend. 
I did find these uber cute seed packet printable (free!) at Just Something I Made that I print off, cut out, glue together, and package these little gals up in for gifting purposes.  (Melia at Yesterday on Tuesday originally pointed these out, she has great finds.) 
They come in all colors, which is convenient given my rainbow of beaded jewelry being produced at the sweatshop formerly known as my residence. 

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