Springtime Jewelry Crafts
There are so many pretty jewelry ideas with a springtime theme! Here are some ideas to help you create lovely jewelry crafts this spring.
1. Flat Marble Pins
For this craft, you’ll need small pressed flowers, or maybe the petals from a larger pressed flower. This is a good one to do with older kids and teens. Here’s what else you’ll need:
* Flat, clear marbles such as you see in the bottom of flower vases (available at craft stores)
* Small, pressed flowers
* Decoupage medium or white glue
* White craft foam
* Small paint brush
* Hot glue gun
* Safety pin
Gather six of the clear marbles and lay them flat-side-up on your work surface. Dab a bit of decoupage medium on the flat side and lay a flower or petal on it. Gently seal with more decoupage medium by going once over the pressed flower. Repeat with the other five marbles.
Next, cut out a square of craft foam about 4 inches square. In the center, hot glue one of the marbles. Hot glue the other five around this center one, attaching them both to the craft foam and to the center marble. When dry, cut a close circle around the marbles. You now have a circular piece. To the back, glue the safety pin using the hot glue.
Variation 1: Glue marbles down in any shape you like, such as circles, squares, or zigzags.
Variation 2: If you don’t have pressed flowers, use dabs of acrylic paint on the flat side of the marbles to create colorful flower shapes. No decoupage medium required.
2. Button Flower Pendant
Use craft foam and buttons to make this colorful necklace. You’ll need:
* Buttons in various sizes and colors
* Craft foam
* Hot glue
* Scissors
* Necklace cord (leather or synthetic), at least 24 inches
* Pencil
Choose a color of craft foam. Using the hot glue, mount buttons onto the craft foam in flower shapes. Try using one large button surrounded by smaller ones, or a small button glued to the top of a larger one.
When it’s dry, cut a circle closely around the flower shape. Use this circle to trace another circle of the same size. Cut the second circle out. Next, lay the pendant flower-side-down on your work surface, and lay two ends of the necklace cord across it. Use two beads of hot glue to secure the ends. Then hot glue the second circle down over the back of this one, so the necklace cord ends are sandwiched between foam circles. Allow to dry.
3. Polymer Clay Flower Pendant
Polymer clay is baked in your home oven to become permanent and hard. Bake this piece before stringing it on necklace cord. Here’s what you’ll need:
* White, blue, green, pink and yellow polymer clay
* Toothpick
Knead the white and blue clay together so the swirls are distinctive (think clouds in a blue sky). Make a flat disk out of this blue-and-white combination, about the size of a 50-cent piece.
Roll five tiny balls of pink clay and one of yellow. Press the yellow ball into the blue-and-white disk, pressing to make a circle. Do the same with the pink clay balls – these are to be the petals surrounding the yellow flower center. Make more flowers if you like.
Roll a bit of the green clay into a thin strand and pinch off a few bits of it, pressing them into the bottom half of the disk. Let them partially cover the flower(s). Use the toothpick to poke a hole through the top and bake according to the package directions. When cool, thread onto necklace cord.