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Accessories, I will have you know, contain within them the power to make or break a look. They are as important as the outfit, if not more. Additionally, they indicate that the wearer has put some thought into what they choose to wear, always a welcome sign of grooming and style.
Unfortunately, they can be quite expensive and just out of reach for everyday use. Fret not, because I also come bearing good news. DIY jewelry! Making one’s own jewelry is always a dicey idea to adopt, owing to poor art and crafts skills ( guilty).
But with some solid fail-proof tricks up your sleeve, as I shall share with you shortly, it is well worth a try.
1. Beaded Wrap Bracelet
Bracelets perhaps require the simplest construction and offer the widest range of options. This wrap bracelet does away with annoying clasps and uses a button instead, to keep the bracelet in place.
In addition, the wrap style ensures a snug fit. Customise with glass beads, as given in the link. You can also make alterations of your own.
2. Beaded Ankle Bracelet
Shorts, sandals, summer. Ankle bracelets are low-key but very interesting accessories, calling focus to the feet as they do.
These bracelets are super easy to make, and they use natural hemp cords for both flexibility and strength.
Pro Tip: Use larger beads for lower chances of fraying.
3. A Wish Bottle Necklace
A tiny bottle as the pendant. A dandelion encased inside it. An interesting idea and one I have tried myself, a wish bottle necklace is just the right mix of quirk and elegance.
You can replace the dandelion with glitter, flower fronds or tulle.
4. Safety Pin Bracelet
What better way to put the safety pins you have lying around the house than to string them together as a bracelet? Functional and edgy, painting the pins a different colour works too.
The best part? You can take one out and give out to a friend in need.
5. Heart-shaped Ring
All you need is a heart-shaped case ( size as per preference), a ring, and glitter or sequins of your choice. They make for quirky accessories and great gifts.
6. Yarn Bracelets
Bracelets made of yarn. Perfectly imbibing a boho-chic vibe, they are great accompaniments to your outfit for the next music festival you go to.
You can also use two different coloured-yarns and weave them together.
7. Cracked Marble Bracelets
The cracking of marbles is a rather fun experiment and requires adult supervision. All you need to do is heat a number of marbles at a high temperature and transfer them immediately into a bowl of ice water. They will crack, forming little fissures.
String them in the form of a necklace.
8. Painted Leather Bracelets
Recycle an old bag or belt to make fun leather bracelets. Paint them a single colour or etch a design of your choice you can later fill in with contrasting colours.
9. Butterfly Pendants
A wearable butterfly shadowbox, each of them unique. Buy a selection of feather butterflies and glue their backs to a framed square ( or any other shape) of an old parchment/book.
You can use the feather butterflies as earrings, too.
10. Studded Bracelets
Simple and fun projects, all you need is a fabric strip, some super glue and a selection of studs of different sizes and shapes. Stick them on, let the glue dry and voila, you have yourself a cool bracelet.
11. Paper Earrings
Not as fragile as they sound, earrings made out of craft paper ( the thick variety) hold up pretty well. Buy some in a colour of your choice, and make cut-out designs. You can make several of these, one for every mood.
12. Tassel Necklace
Make jewelry out of an old metal chain and some tassels. Polish the chain until all traces of rust or grime is removed. Hang the tassels from it, as few or as many as you like. Slick and simple, they can brighten up an otherwise drab outfit.
13. Plastic Canvas Bracelets
Cut up plastic canvas into little squares, and string them together to make a bracelet.
Simple, fun, colourful.
14. Flower Bracelet
If you like the floral component in your attire in the guise of an accessory, this is what you need to do.
Purchase craft flowers and use super-glue to stick them onto the ring.
15. Flower Headbands
The perfect accessory for a wedding or a picnic, flower headbands can make even a simple dress look ethereal.
Stick the flowers and foliage onto the rim of the headband. Use twine for a more natural effect.
16. Rose Hair Ties
Pipe cleaners in your colour of choice, woven together to make a rose you can attach to a plain old hair tie. Rose hair ties, people!
17. A Wire Knot Ring
The best possible use of recycling, use an old strip of wire and knot into a ring of choice.
18. Braided Bead Necklace
Far from difficult, fashioning a braided necklace takes all of an hour and looks stunning. Buy beads of your favourite colour(s) and get braiding!
19. Bottle Cap Necklace
Turn up the quirk factor by upcycling old bottle caps as necklaces. Paint them how you like, adding details to customise. You could also string them together on a chain.
20. Charm Photo Bracelet
A bracelet bearing photos of your loved ones. Remarkably easy to make, all you need to do is cut up faces of the family and frame them in charm containers of your preferred shape.
Pro Tip: Use black and white photographs for a vintage touch.
21. Shell Necklace
A throwback to the 90s when shell necklaces were all the rage, make one of your own at home. Use a fabric cord if you want it to be a choker and string together store-bought shells.
You could even use actual shells from the beach. Be careful to drill the holes carefully so as not to break the surface.
22. DIY Statement Necklace
A statement necklace is something every woman( and man!) should own. It is an extension of its wearer, a reflection of their style. They also cost the big bucks.
Luckily for you, a DIY necklace that serves a statement is pretty cool. This tutorial involves the braiding of two paracords of different colours, in order to provide shape and heft.
23. Resolution Bracelets
Wear your new year’s resolution on your wrist with these attractive bracelets. Trace your resolution with a sharpie on a plastic sheet and cut it to attach it to the bracelet.
Although if you ask me, a resolution can really be made all year round!
24. Mini Terrarium Necklaces
An accessory to let the world know your love of nature, mini terrarium necklaces are unusual and quite lovely to wear around the neck.
25. Bamboo and Hemp Bracelet
Go au naturel with this bracelet made of hemp cords and featuring a painted square of bamboo at the centre. You can paint it in holiday colours, as indicative of your favourite football team or just as fancy commands.
26. Dangling Pearl Earrings
Quick and easy, this tutorial helps you craft pearl danglers that are exactly how you want them. All you need are pearl beads, a link chain, jump rings and a cutter.
27. Bead Necklace using Nail Polish
Now this one is a personal favourite and employs both a classic wood finish in colours very unlike wood. If you are thinking that you are to pain the beads with nail polish, you have nailed it!
As simple as it gets, this takes all of fifteen minutes.
28. Wood Burned Earrings
As we are on the topic of jewelry, I thought to include another favourite- wood burned earrings.
Paint your choice of design on wooden tag embellishments( easily available) and you’re all set.
29. Rhinestone Studded Hair Clips
A surefire way to ensure your hair has that extra pizazz, turn your clips into stunning rhinestone-studded accessories.
You can also use sequins, glitter, or any other paste stone of your choice.
30. Lace Jewelry
Not a standard material one uses to craft jewelry, lace is for those who like their accessories to be interesting. And, like lace.
You can use lace cut-outs of your preferred design.
31. Coin Rings
Coin rings make for great DIY projects because of the permanence they assure. They are unaffected by water and inclement weather and are the right combination of class and bling.
32. Gold Chain Ring
Use your gold chain as a substitute for a ring when fancy strikes. Wrap it around the finger. Position the pendant so that it becomes the centrepiece of the ring. You can switch the pendant out periodically.
33. Gem Studded Necklace Collar
Recycle an old dog collar as the base for a cool new necklace. Cover it with a fabric or leather, and proceed to glue rhinestones/gems on the surface.
Wear it as a choker.
34. Ice Cream Necklaces
Beat the heat this summer with faux ice creams around your neck. A super simple and easy DIY, all you need to do is either fashion ice cream cut-outs from cardboard or fabric. Use traditional ice cream colours to depict different flavours.
35. Glitter Vinyl Tube Bracelets
Glitter bracelets ensure adornment for the wrists and attention from onlookers. Glitter vinyl tube bracelets are, however, a notch higher.
Fill the vinyl tubes with glitter, sequins or art dust. Seal, and twist into circles. Wear them around your wrist. The best part? These bracelets last ages.
36. Tie-Dye Finger Knit Necklaces
There was a time in the not-so-distant past when I would tie-dye all my handkerchiefs obsessively. I did this for days and then moved onto other aspects of clothing until I stumbled upon this genius tutorial.
A tie-dyed scarf always looks gorgeous, and a tie-dyed necklace? Even more so. Finger knitting the fabric adds texture and shape.
37. Dip Dye Rope Necklace
Even simpler than tie-dyeing, dip dyeing takes all of ten minutes, including the drying process.
Fashion a necklace out of individual rope strands, and dye in a colour of your choice. You can spread the colour out evenly or not. According to preference.
38. Flip Flop Earrings
Another perfect summer accessory, you can now hang flip flops from your ears as you frolic on the beach.
39. Geometric Gem Earrings
Shrink plastic is a great material to craft with, owing to the ease of use as well as the promise to retain shape. This also makes them the ideal material to manufacture earrings out of.
These geometric earrings are very easy to craft and are sure to impress.
40. Neon Bib Necklace
A necklace reminiscent of a bib in terms of shape, but neon and vibrant. This tutorial is both easy and helpful and is the right choice for those looking to add a statement piece to their accessory collection.
41. Dragonfly Earrings
Wear the insects on your ears, courtesy of artfully twisted wires and strategically placed pins.
42. Fork Ring
Slightly more heavy duty than the other ideas on the list, this will require a metal cutter, a steady hand and a discerning eye.
The finished product, unsurprisingly, is exquisite.
43. Washer Necklace
Purchase a packet of washers or use the spare ones you have at home, use paint/ nail polish of your choice and string them together to form a necklace.
44. Glitter Rings
Blend the glitter with glue and pour onto the ring surface until it is dry. After the setting is complete, position it with care and dexterity. There you have it, a statement ring.
45. Wire Wrapped Rock Ring
A rock for a ring. No, I am not talking about diamonds. I speak of a plain rock, an ordinary pebble, the commonplace stone. Bring it home, clean it and paint it a different colour. Wrap it in gold or silver wire to secure the stone and glue it onto a ring.
46. Hair Tie Cuff
This hair tie cuff is made of a plumbing ring, a painted plumbing ring. Smart and secure, it is a simple but attractive hair accessory.
47. Cable Knit Bracelet
Knit yourself a bracelet to remind you of the winter. If you are not a knitter, simply use the material from an old sweater to wrap cuffs.
48. Nautical Rope Bracelet
Exactly how it sounds, these bracelets are bits of rope twisted to form conventional nautical lies. If you love the sea ( or just find the idea cool), I would suggest you get twisting!
49. Paper Bracelets (sculpted)
Paper bracelets might be single-use only, but they sure look fun. Fold paper (use stiff paper) into sculptural shapes to wear around the wrist.
50. Ombre Cuff
Wrap an old cuff in a wide variety of threads and/or differently coloured yarn, to create a pleasing ombre effect.
51. T-shirt Bracelets
Another great recycling hack, cut, thread and weave strips of old t-shirts to make bracelets. Use different textures and colours for both diversity and shape.
It might be the end of the list but certainly does not indicate an end of inspiration. Diverse and person-specific, jewelry asks to be DIY-ed. And when armed with a ready list of interesting ideas, the least you can do is try.
