Suggestions for Homemade Jewelry

Jewelry is an important symbol of affection or gratitude for a person. Because of the meaning behind jewelry, it can be expensive especially when the materials used are rare and valuable, such as gold or sterling silver. However, necklaces and bracelets need not be limited to expensive materials that has to be purchased from stores. You can make your own jewelry using simple materials and yet the time and thought you will place in making them will make the jewelry more special.

There are many jewelry items that you can personally make and you do not have to undergo extensive training to make them or purchase expensive materials either. All you need is a local hobby store, and your creativity to make one item after another that can impress not just the receiver, but yourself as well.

Bracelets can be easily made with a few simple materials. Whether made of leather, beads, or just simple strings, you can make the chain easily and add any pendant, accessory or embellishment that you can think of. For formal bracelets, you can use special beads, or silver embellishment. Funkier bracelets that you can use probably for a young or teen receiver would be made of cartoon characters or sometimes even buttons.

Necklaces are also easy to make and you can be very expressive when it comes to the pendant. It can be a simple image such as a heart or a star, or it can be silver pendants spelling out the person’s name.

Earrings that are styled dangling are easier to make than studs. Materials for earrings are inexpensive and are readily available from hobby stores.

You can also make hair accessories or hair jewelries. Swarovski-embellished pins are elegant but can expensive. Hair clips with floral designs or geometric patterns are cheaper and they can be great gifts as well.

Anklets are great gifts especially if you have been out of town. A seashell from your beach trip, or a small pin or pendant from your last cultural trip can be used as an accessory for a homemade anklet made of string, leather or beads.

Packaging is very important in homemade jewelry. It can enhance the beauty of the jewelry and make it look more presentable when you are giving it. A homemade jewelry may be inexpensive for the most part, but what the receiver will truly appreciate is not the cost, but how carefully and thoughtfully you have prepared the gift. Small boxes are readily available from stores, and do not forget to put ribbons or laces to make the packaging even more elegant.

As mentioned, jewelry is special because of the meaning and thoughtfulness behind it. So whether you are working with sterling silver or ordinary strings in making your jewelry, it will be a treasure that is worth keeping because of the bond created between the giver and the receiver. With this, it becomes as valuable, if not more valuable, than gold or diamonds that you can simply purchase anytime and anywhere.

Ricky Dean writes about various arts and craft topics. To learn how to make jewelry, visit Dinosauric.

By Ricky Dean
Published: 11/25/2010

Read the rest of this entry »

Unique Handmade Jewelry

Beautiful jewelry is something one can never have enough; well, I am sure most women would agree with me on this point. If you enjoy wearing jewelry as much as I do, I am sure you must be having enough to start off your own lil’ jewelry shop by now! I love going through boutiques for designer jewelry and scrounging around in flea markets for unique jewelry pieces as well. The flea markets can have loads of designs in store for you and if you lucky enough, with some amount of haggling, you can be the proud owner of some unique jewelry without really spending too much! But there is one area that I have explored and that is wearing unique handmade jewelry. Such handmade jewelry is a great option as it is easy on the pocket and you can create stunning pieces of jewelry by exercising your mind! Wearing unique handmade jewelry gives one the satisfaction of wearing an exclusive piece! This can also make a very stylish and personalized gift as well. You must note that there are three basic techniques when you are dealing with unique handmade jewelry. The first is where you string the beads; the kind of string you use will depend upon what you are planning to design. To keep a distance between the beads, one can make the use of knots or crimps. Wire is also used to make unique kind of jewelry. Here, beads are used in combination to create snazzy designs. Bead weaving is another technique where in, really tiny beads are interwoven and threaded to make small but intricate patterns.

Tips to make your own Unique Handmade Jewelry:

How to make a Y shaped necklace:
What you will need

• Beading wire or thread
• Beads and fasteners
• Wire cutters /heavy-duty scissors
• Crimping pliers and/or flat-nosed pliers

Instructions:
First, cut a longer length of the string material. This should be at least twice the length of the drop that you would require. Then thread a small bead to the middle area. Use the two ends of the thread and double thread it with the beads that are required for the central drop because this is a Y shaped necklace. The small bead you have used before will help to keep the other beads in place.

Now, you need to separate the threads into single strands. You also need to thread beads on each side as per your choice. Use a fastener to secure the piece.

How to make a beaded ring:
What you will need

• Pliers
• Small, flat feature bead (dark blue-1)
• Crimps (2)
• Nylon bead cord
• Size 11 seed beads (light blue-25)

Instructions:
This method of unique handmade jewelry can help you have different colors of rings to match every outfit!

First, you need to slide the first crimp onto the nylon bead cord. Do it gently taking care that it does not squash. Thread all the blue seed beads on this nylon thread. Now, you need to slide the second crimp onto this thread as well. Next, thread the small and flat feature bead. Now, pick one end of the nylon thread (which is on the side of the feature bead) and thread this through the first crimp on the other end. This would result in the crimp having two lots of nylon bead cord passing through it. Now, you need to pull both the ends of the cord. This will help to make the ring tight. Once you have decided upon the accurate width that you require, press both the crimps. This would keep the nylon bead in place. Any excess thread can be simply cut off.

Unique handmade jewelry is a great way to showcase your talent and you can have variations in it as well. If you have a basic sense of design and colors, it can help you create unique and stunning pieces with ease. Selecting the right colors, proportion of the beads you use, the kind of designs you select and even the proportion of the entire piece matters when you create any kind of unique handmade jewelry. Use your creativity to make attractive jewelry designs and have a new look every day!
By Kashmira Lad

Read the rest of this entry »