Craft Wars Inspired I Love Rock and Roll Necklace

Craft Wars Inspired I Love Rock and Roll Necklace 
Copyright Margot Potter 
All Rights Reserved 

I know, it's only rock and roll, but I like it, like it, yes I do. I could not believe last week's Craft Wars challenge wasn't mine! Rock and Roll? Uh, fronted several post punk era bands in the Bay Area back in the 80s. Jewelry? Uh, wrote seven books on jewelry making. Do I think I could have rocked that Pop Craft Challenge, uh, yeah. The Master Challenge on the other hand, dang. That was impressive. I kind of loved both of the projects, it must have been a tough call. I will not be torching duct tape at Studio Madge, because I'm thinking that may be a little, well, toxic. Though it was pretty bad ass! And how Stephen could have said there was too much glitter was beyond me. Rock and Roll is all about excess! 

I did not wish to take apart instruments or music equipment, egads! Sacrilege! Instead I spent one hour last night working with items I had at hand to make an edgy, glam rock necklace that I am LO-VING. Hammer, stamp, edge, drill and let 'er roll! I had some fun Blumenthal Lansing scissors buttons (runs with scissors, yes she does) and vintage metal wrench charms for the metal, some SWAROVSKI ELEMENTS for the glam and some ImpressArt blanks and stamps to get hammered for the heavy...add some r o c k with edged, crystallized and drilled Scrabble tiles and some 8 ball charm beads...well...it's a melange of crunchy fabulosity! Then the ribbon I found at Michaels on super clearance tied it all up nicely.

ROCK AND ROLL BABY!  

(DON'T FORGET TO VISIT YESTERDAY'S POST AND LEAVE A COMMENT THERE FOR A CHANCE TO WIN BLANKS AND A SET OF STAMPS!)

Materials
4 Scrabble tiles to spell r o c k
4 Elongated heart blanks from ImpressArt to spell r o l l
2 3mm crystal ab SWAROVSKI ELEMENTS flat back crystal
6 8mm red coral SWAROVSKI ELEMENTS rounds
6 10mm crystal SWAROVSKI ELEMENTS rounds
6 8mm Czech glass eight ball beads
4 Blumenthal Lansing scissors button charms
4 Silver tone wrench charms
Heavy duty silver tone chain
Red edged ribbons
30 6mm silver tone jump rings
4 10mm  silver tone jump rings
12 silver tone head pins
Krylon silver leafing pen
Ranger Alcohol Ink Cranberry
Ranger Alcohol Ink Pitch Black
Aleene's Glass and Bead Adhesive

Tools
2 pairs chain nose pliers (to attach charms with jump rings)
Round nose pliers
Ranger Pouncer with Felt Pad
Brass head stamping hammer
Steel head ball peen hammer
Steel bench block
2 hole punch
1/4" 6mm lower case letter stamps
Electric drill with 1/16" bit

(Beads are threaded with head pins and a loop is turned at the top with round nose pliers, then all charms are attached as in photo using a jump ring for each charm and working left to right at the bottom of each link. Click here for a video on how to make loops.)

Do you love rock and roll as much as I do?  Check out Craft Wars Vet Andrea Currie's FABULOUS mosaic guitar project she made for her hubby Cliff on their anniversary!  

And that's it, cuz I got a rock and roll heart! Here's a pic of me at the Keystone Palo Alto back in the day!

iLoveToCreate Retrofabulous Crafts: Burnt Offerings Decoupage Necklace

iLoveToCreate Retrofabulous Crafts
Burnt Offerings Decoupage Necklace
Margot Potter

In 2009 I published a book called Beyond the Bead.  It is by far my favorite book.  I had a blast making beads and components out of all sorts of wonderful things I found in the aisles at the craft and hardware stores.  One of the projects in the book used old book pages, wooden craft stars and a wood burning tool to create the look of aged and burned charms.  I loved making it, I love wearing it and I thought I'd share it with you.  I've seen some similar projects making the rounds on Pinterest, but this is my version from a few years ago.  Aleene's Collage Pauge is an amazing medium with endless uses and here you can see how nicely it seals the old paper to create charms that look fragile, but are tough and durable.  Add a little Aleene's sealer spray and you've got a necklace that will last a lifetime.

Materials
Old book pages
Wooden craft stars
Traci Bautista Aleene's Collage Pauge Matte
Aleene's Spray Acrylic Sealer Matte
Tiny key charms
Crystal beads
Aged brass chain
Clasp
10mm gold tone or aged brass jump rings

Tools
Chain nose pliers
Bent nose pliers
Wood burning tool

Attach paper to star using Collage Pauge. Make all five stars at the same time, cutting the paper around them after they dry with scissors. 

Seal the top of the star with decoupage medium, after it dries repeat. Turn star over and repeat the process 

for the opposite side.  

Use a wood burning tool to CAREFULLY burn the edges of the stars and add some burned areas in the centers. Work in a ventilated area, take your time and be careful, the tool gets very hot. Did I mention it gets hot? Because it does. So be careful. After burning, spray with Aleene's Spray Sealer in matte.

If your stars are not pre-drilled, use a 1/16" drill bit to drill a hole at the top of one point on each star. Attach the stars and the charms and beads to the chain using jump rings and your bent and chain nose pliers.

iLoveToCreate Retrofabulous Crafts: Sparkletastic Easter Earrings!

Sparkletastic Easter Earrings
iLoveToCreate Retrofabulous Crafts
Copyright Margot Potter
“These ARE your grandmother’s crafts...ya gotta problem with that?”

From McCall's Needlework and Crafts 1968

I have been toying with making a pair of sparkly Styrofoam earbobs for a while now. There are endless variations on this idea in my stash of vintage craft magazines. They’re also made of cork and wood...I’ve even seen these made of crumpled aluminum foil. The idea is to suspend a round ball on a thin chain for a pair of swingy earrings. Remember that these are styrofoam, so they weigh almost nothing, but if you like a more delicate silhouette, feel free to use smaller balls. I like my jewelry big and bold. These would be perfect for a teacher, young mom or if you’re feeling cheeky, to sport to the family Easter dinner. I’d make a matching necklace and wear this out and about just for fun, but I’m not afraid to be noticed.

Take this idea wherever you like, add sequins, seed beads, rhinestones. A splash of glitter gives it a little sparkle and the sparkly rick rack trim immediately evokes Easter eggs. I’m of the mind that life is short, so have a little fun now and then. What could be more fun than pink sparkly Styrofoam earbobs?!

Materials
2 1.5” Styrofoam balls
Sparkly silver rick rack trim
2 2” head pins
2 matching beads to secure headpins
2 ear wires
2 1” segments of thin chain
Aleene’s Foamtastic Glue
Crafty Chica Little Paints in red and white
Crafty Chica glitter in pink
Craft wire for painting and drying balls
Styrofoam block for drying balls

Tools
Chain nose pliers
Round nose pliers
Flush cutters
Foam brush
Scissors

Insert a 5-6” segment of craft wire into each Styrofoam ball. Mix red and white paints to make hot pink. Use a foam brush to pounce pink paint on surface of ball. Sprinkle glitter on ball and shake off excess. You will probably have to go back in for a second coat to hit any spots that aren’t fully covered, if you repaint make sure to re-glitter. Allow to dry, inserting wire into Styrofoam block.  Keep ball on wire. Run a bead of Aleene’s Foamtastic glue along rick rack trim. Wrap trim around center of ball. Insert back into block and allow to dry.

When glue is dry, GENTLY thread a beaded headpin into the center bottom of your ball and thread to the center top. Make sure pin is straight and take your time.  Bend wire at a 90 degree angle using chain nose pliers. Cut to 1/4” with wire cutters. Grasp end of wire with round nose pliers and CAREFULLY turn into a loop. Open loop to add chains using chain nose pliers.

Cut chains and thread on open end of loop. Use chain nose pliers to secure closed.  Use chain nose pliers to attach earring wires to top of chain.

Optional: Add a beehive, tiara and a pair of cat eye glasses...hee.

Free Mixed Media Jewelry Project: Shakespeare's Garden for Art Beads

Shakespeare's Garden Necklace by Margot Potter for Art Beads ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

View Two Shakespeare's Garden by Margot Potter for Art Beads ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

I received an email while I was in Cincy from the fine folks at Art Beads that a tutorial I'd created for them a while back is live on their site! The necklace above is called Shakespeare's Garden and it features beaded wire circles and stamped resin pendants in a whimsical and sculptural design. What I love most about this is that these circles have dimension, but also fluidity because the wire underneath is not stiff.

I've been playing with these beaded circles for several years and every time I think, we'll that's about all you can do with those, another idea pops into my head. I do love to explore a theme and the circle is such a powerful, archetypal and cross culturally relevant symbol. Endings and beginnings and the journeys we take come around and around and around. Each of us a point on the sacred hoop making our own unique way to the center of higher understanding and universal love. Even Einstein once postulated that if we stood staring into space and could see to the farthest reaches, we'd eventually see the back of our own heads. Round and round and round she goes...

Powerful stuff, that circle. And as for Shakespeare, I've had the pleasure and the privilege of playing some of his greatest female characters...including Viola from Twelfth Night.

If you follow this link, you can get the full tutorial with step by step photos for this design. Enjoy!

"O Mistress mine, where are you roaming?
O, stay and hear; your true love's coming,
That can sing both high and low:
Trip no further, pretty sweeting;
Journeys end in lovers meeting,
Every wise man's son doth know.
What is love? 'Tis not hereafter;
Present mirth hath present laughter;
What's to come is still unsure:
In delay there lies not plenty;
Then, come kiss me, sweet and twenty,
Youth's a stuff will not endure."
William Shakespeare-Twelfth Night

Love
Madge