Tried my hand at some jewelry making

I wanted to try something totally different for birthday gifts for my two best friends this year.  After being friends for 44 years, they are pretty used to getting some ‘experimental’ hand crafted gifts from me.

I decided to dabble with JEWELRY making!  

Every time I go into a craft store, I spend at least half my time there wandering in a daze through the jewelry supply sections!  SO many pretty sparkly and shiney things to look at!  After years of resisting, I finally succumbed and bought some jewelry making supplies!

Here is what I came up with:

(this was the best I could do for a jewelry model!)

I started with the big oval yellowish pendant.  (you can see it better in the other pictures)  It has a picture of a FROG on the other side!  The two friends for whom I was making these and I collected frogs when we were in high school together; so HOW could I resist?!?!  I chose to face the from picture ‘backwards’, so it would be ‘closer to their heart’; just as their friendship is so close and dear to my heart.

Then I just looked around for other charms that caught my eye and were meaningful to us.

A clock: because they have always made time for me in their lives.

A key: because of the secrets and scars I keep hidden from everyone but them.

A cross: to remind us of God’s love and grace.

A bird and a cage: because we truly are ‘birds of a feather’.

I chose to TIE some of the charms on with thin satin ribbon (just to be different!) instead of use jump rings.

The clock and the cross charms are different styles on each necklace because I bought the charms in sets that had a variety of charms.

Will I make more jewelry?  Maybe.  I did manage to acquire a ‘few’ more jewelry components that I needed to make these 2 necklaces . . . so I will have to figure out a way to use the leftovers.

Maybe as embellishments like this on vintage keys?  (saw that idea on Pinterest)

I always have something that I can use KEYS on!

Those projects ought to have me all warmed up for the next REALLY BIG BLING PROJECT!

Using this stuff!  (that is a 1/2 gallon jar FULL of vintage bling!)

I really don’t ‘look for’ jewelry stuff.  But for some reason this treasure trove on vintage finery caught my eye at Stars one day last June as I was leaving after working on my booth.  It just happened to be a short time after my son announced his engagement.  It was a good price.  Better price with my dealer discount, so I bought it.

Just LOOK how much amazing old jewelry I have to work with?!?!?

So, what am I going to DO with it??   I want to make a wedding bouquet for Megan for my son and her wedding!  Have you SEEN the amazing  ‘vintage brooch bouquets’ on Pinterest  made from old jewelry like this?  You MUST go look!

Some of them are ‘a bit much’.  I want the one I make to be ‘elegant and understated’.  I am going to use gold and silver combined.  NO fake fabric flowers mixed in.  And I found a few new charms to tuck in here and there that will have sentimental value.  (an Eiffel tower for their trip to Paris.  A castle for the proposal which took place in a 500 year old castle in Istanbul.  A duck, for the Oregon Ducks, her Alma mater.  A starfish for her parents beach house where they had their engagement photos taken.  Both of their initials.  You get the idea)

I HOPE she will like it and want to carry it for her bridal bouquet.  BUT, I know it’s possible that she always dreamed of carrying a big flower bouquet on her wedding day.  In which case, I will be content for her to have it simply as a special gift and remembrance of their wedding day.