Combining Craft Supplies From Different Sources To Make Unique Handmade Jewelry:
Today’s post shows how to combine scrapbooking supplies not normally used with polymer clay, to make a cute number necklace for a 12 year old (my daughter).
The project is a result of the wonderful prize package I recently won from Tim Holtz, in a giveaway contest he held at his blog. Click on the following link to read the full story about everything that was in the package: Tim Holtz Ideology Scrapbooking Supplies
In a thank you note to Tim, I promised that I would figure out how to combine his products with some of my polymer clay techniques, and then post about it here at my blog.
Now if he had sent me distress ink, embossing powder, rubber stamps or maybe one of his new masks… any one of those things would have been easy to work into a polymer clay project.
But I received none of the above. Instead, Tim sent several packages of wonderful scrapbook embellishment products. Wow! I had no idea he was planning to give me so much cool stuff!
Having a fair amount of experience with paper crafts, I knew exactly how I could use these things for scrapbooking. But figuring out how to combine them with polymer clay, wasn’t as easy.
Like every creative idea, it can take a little time to brew. Surrounding yourself with the materials is the first step to triggering some visual sparks.
Most artist and craft studios I’ve seen (including mine), have all kinds of photos items and materials laid out where they can be seen for inspiration. It may appear as complete chaos to non-creative folks, but it’s how many great projects begin.
Well in the case of my Number 12 Necklace pictured above, I dumped out a pile of the metal numbers (Numerals – Tim Holtz’ Idea-ology line) on my work table. I also spread out the other items Tim sent… and of course a few polymer clay canes, beads and inks from the last project I had worked on.
It was the holes in the numbers that started the ideas flowing for me. When any item has a hole, it has the potential to be a charm or pendant.
So which number(s) to choose? It had to be of some significance to make any sense. A favorite number, an age, something important. I wouldn’t want to wear 42 around my neck, but my daughter doesn’t mind showing off her age. So 12 was the number I picked.
On the desk was a left over piece of a Mod Cane… perfect for this project. Taking some slices of the cane and piecing them together into a thin sheet, I covered the surface of the metal Numeral 1.
To cover the Number 2, I took a thicker chunk of the cane and ran it through the pasta machine to make a striped sheet in the same colors.
Both numbers were then baked in the oven, popped off the metal and glued back onto the metal again with Krazy Glue.
They were then sanded and buffed just like any polymer clay bead or pendant… making sure the metal edges were smooth as well, since the piece would be worn as jewelry against the skin.
To make the numbers look more dimensional and really have them pop, alcohol inks in Butterscotch and Wild Plum were dabbed around the edges with a Q-Tip.
Jump rings were added to the top holes for hanging. And the brads included in the Numerals product package were used to fill the lower holes.
All in all, this necklace turned out pretty cool! Willow (my daughter) loves it. And the 2 can always be changed to a 3 later this year when she has her next birthday.
I can see all kinds of design possibilities here… how about you?
Hi Cindy,
Really great use of unusual materials. The picture looks like the numbers are two different colors with the 2 appearing brown. Including the whole creative process in the blog is so helpful, especially to those of us with creative thinking challenges.
Many thanks.
MJ
What a fun idea! When I see the numbers I envision making a plaque for the entry way with our house numbers, or how nice it would be to make an awards plaque for a volunteer using the numbers to represent the years of service, you could do this for a wedding anniversary with a picture or birth announcement. So many possibilities, so little time! :)
Jeanne Collins
Great use of Tim’s goodies. I could also see it place on a journal or and a few watch cogs and have a steampunk embellishment for a hand bag. Great use for little bits of left over cane. Inspiration is always keen with new materials to work with. Illaya
What a great and awesome idea! Love it!
Nice job with these! What a lucky little girl to have such a crafty mom. XOXO Jamie
@MJ: Thanks! I know pictures don’t always show things as there are, so a few descriptive words do help when sharing an idea. Of course video is even better and that is why the tutorial videos are so great.
@Jeanne: Oooh good idea! The little holes would make them easy to mount on something too! I agree… so many possibilities, so little time!
@Illaya: Oooh another good idea! I like the idea of hanging them on a bag. It is amazing how little clay you need to add quite a bit of pattern to something like this!
@Cindy: Thanks! I love it too!
@Jamie: Thanks! I’m pretty lucky too! She is a sweetheart!
Very cool. You know how I love jewelry and this is a great idea. Thanks for sharing. Makes me want to clean off my work table and dive right in.
Love the ideas that everyone has come up with after seeing your idea with the goodies you won.It is nice to see other crafts cross over into polymer clay and vice versa. So many ideas and not enough time to do them all. I will have to make sure I live to be 120 yrs old to get to do them all. lol
{{Hugs}} Adrienne
@Susan: You’re welcome! Do let us know if you do this or a similar project. I’d love to see what you come up with!
@Adrienne: I know it’s fun to see what everyone else comes up with, isn’t it?! I agree about so many ideas too little time… when I was a kid I said that I would live to 300. That would help! Would probably need to be ‘nibbled on’ by Edward of Twilight if I wanted to get to 300 though. ;-)
Cindy…I know it’s been a few years since you made this 12, but do you know where you got the number cutters? I want to make some 12s for my Seahawk friends.
Hi Peg, I didn’t actually use number cutters for this project, I used metal numbers that I covered in polymer clay. I think Tim Holtz still carries those metal numbers, but you would have to Google it to find out where. And yes this was a long time ago… it won’t be too long before she could wear it in the opposite order as a 21 instead!
Oh congrats on the Seahawks win! I didn’t watch it but I hear it was the game of a lifetime. You must be very excited!!
It was a great game. Almost gave up but glad I kept on watching.