I Spya necklace

Spring is inching its way into our lives here in Massachusetts. The days are longer, the snow is finally melting, and—my turtlenecks have been relegated to the back of the closet. THAT is a big deal. And what does that mean…really? It means it’s time to embellish…to decorate that neck that has been ignored, no invisible, lo these many months.

But, much like my winter wardrobe that I am very tired of come March, looking over my necklaces had me wanting something more, too.

Seeking some inspiration, I checked out the spring offerings from Interweave and was struck by the two “Remixed Media” DVDs by Candie Cooper. Wow. I was totally inspired by the thought of using wood. Candie shows how to use everyday tools to cut wood to the shape you want to use to create interesting jewelry shapes. I'm sure like me, you have a lot of odd pieces of wood around the house you can use to make jewelry with, too.

 

The necklace

I had some narrow wooden trim pieces leftover from a house project and decided to start with those. I gathered some supplies: cardboard, glue, paint, Mod Podge®, tape, beads, fabric, metallic ribbon, and some silver wire, and got started.

 

 

How to:

		Cut two 2" sections of the trim, and glue them together, side by side. Once the glue is dry, paint as desired.  I painted the outside area and the ends of the wood a golden beige, and painted the rest with Mod Podge, wanting to give it a glow, rather than color.
		Glue metallic ribbon in the grooves of the wood and also in the center where the 2 pieces of trim were joined. Wrap the ribbons to the back and tape them in place.
		Cut a piece of cardboard slightly smaller than the wooden piece, and cut a piece of fabric 1/2" larger all around than the cardboard. Glue the fabric to the cardboard, wrapping it tightly. Create a bale, using the silver wire and tape it to the back of the cardboard to hold it in place.
		Glue the fabric-covered piece to the back of the wooden piece, and then add your beads to the front.

And there you go.  Ready to wear…ready to enjoy.

Take a look at Candie’s Remixed Media DVDs: Remixed Media: Transforming Metal Found Objects for Your Jewelry and Remixed Media: Making Custom Beads and Pendants with Acrylic and Wood, and make your mark.

Start spring with  a whole new jewelry wardrobe!

I hope you have as much fun as I did.