Fancy That Notion: February 2014

Monday, February 24, 2014

DIY Leather Diamond Necklace

Hello friends!

Today I have another fun leather jewelry tutorial for you! The leather was so generously provided by the Leather Hide Store (if you are looking to work with leather, they are definitely the place to go! Their leather is great quality and their customer service is amazing!)

I love working with leather in small amounts. So far, I haven't made a bigger project like a bag (although I know that one day I will!) because I just love these smaller pieces. Seriously, this necklace probably only requires a 4x4 square of each color that you choose, so you can use up some small scrap pieces with this project! Without further ado...

Supplies:

Leather scraps, one color or coordinating colors (again, my leather is from the Leather Hide Store)
Gold chain, 18.25"
Gold jump rings
Gold lobster clasps
Jewelry pliers
Pencil and paper
Diamond template
Thread and needle (optional)

Cut out of paper or cardstock two diamond templates of different sizes (mine were 2.5" and 1.75"). Trace onto the back of the leather with a pencil or washable marker. Cut eight large diamonds and 8 smaller ones. (I cut two diamonds of each color, one big one small.)

Put a jump ring on one end of the chain, and a jump ring and lobster clasp on the other end (make sure to close the jump rings tightly so that they will not come undone).

Using a leather hole puncher, put a hole in the top of each of the diamonds, making sure that they are all in the same place.

Arrange and re-arrange your leather pieces until you decide exactly how you wanted them lined up.

I even thread them all onto a string and held that around my neck to make sure I liked the arrangement.....but that might just be me going too far;) My order ended up being: small, small, big, big, small, big,small, big, small, big, big, small, big, small, small, big. I just found that lay out the best, but this is totally up to you:)

Tape your chain down onto the counter and lay out your pieces so that the amount of "left-over" chain on either side measures the same. Mine measures about 5" on each side, but again this will just depend on your spacing.

Open 16 jump rings. Pick up one of the outside diamonds and put the jump ring through. Lay the diamond back in place and slide the ring through the chain. Squeeze the jump ring closed. Do the same with the outside diamond on the other side. And then continue with all the diamonds, switching back and forth between left and right so that the leather pieces don't slowly move over to one side.

Here you can see the chain taped down.....and the finished product!

I love the rustic colors in this piece.

Even though making it is very simple, it still creates a "big effect"!

This necklace can incorporate so many colors so it matches with everything!

I might have even worn it with a purple skirt;)

How would you wear this statement necklace?

Make sure to check out the Leather Hide Store and like them on Facebook so you can see more leather tutorials!

Have a wonderful Monday, friends!

~Kelsey

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Monday, February 17, 2014

DIY Coffee Cozy w/Sunshine Shoppe Supply

I'm back today with another fun tutorial for you: a super easy, no-sew coffee cozy with a cute flower:) If you didn't see my Shabby Heart Sweatshirt, go check it out! But make sure to come back!;)

Once again, the flower in this project is from the Sunshine Shoppe Supply.

You will need

Felt
1 Flower
Fabric scissors
Coffee cozy template (I used the pattern from this site)
Pins
Sewing machine
Hot glue gun

Cut your coffee cozy out of felt.

Pin the short ends together.

Sew with 1/4" seam allowance

Iron down the middle of the seam so that it is not sticking up off of the coffee cozy and turn inside out.

Put glue on the back of your flower in a spiral and press it on to the coffee cozy. You can either put it on the seam to hide it, or directly across from it.

And voila, you have a super easy coffee cozy with a pop of color that you need until spring comes along!:)

Now take your coffee and go cozy up with a good book...out in the woods if you'd like! Oh, and you might wanna make the sweatshirt so that you don't get too cold;)

Don't worry, the weather's not always perfect here. It was actually like 20 degrees when we were taking these pictures.....and we had 9 inches of snow 3 days later:)

~Kelsey

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Wednesday, February 12, 2014

DIY: Leather Heart Necklace

Yoo-halllooooo!!!;)

How's your Wednesday? Nothing goin on? Good! Because I've got one last project for you to squeeze in before Valentine's Day !

This piece is the perfect compliment to whatever outfit you may have planned out for Friday! For those who are going all out in the pinks and reds, this will be the icing on the cake! And if you're going for the more neutral look, this provides a subtle pop of color that isn't too overwhelming. (See how I styled it with black and gold at the end of the post!)

What you'll need:

Red leather (mine is from the Leather Hide Store...look out for another post from them coming later this month!)
Leather hole punch (I got mine at Lowe's)
Gold chain - 19.5"
Gold lobster clasps
Gold jump rings
Jewelry pliers
Heart template (just google it and pick your favorite one:)

Trace your heart onto the back of the leather. You might want to go over the lines a few times to make sure that they are visible.

Cut the heart shape out.

If there are any pointy edges, trim them off so that they are rounded.

Measure and mark two dots on both sides of the top of the heart. (See picture below)

Punch these out with your hole puncher.

Open your first jump ring by inserting the smallest pliers you have and pulling them apart. You don't need to open it super far, just enough for it to fit into the hole in the leather.

Insert the jump ring into the hole and slide a lobster clasp onto the ring. Squeeze closed (I generally make the two sides of the jump ring overlap to make sure that they do not come open).

Repeat with the other side and put your lobster clasps onto the two rings.

Open up another jump ring. Slide one side through one end of the chain and the other side through the ring on the lobster clasp. Squeeze closed. Make sure that your chain is laying flat, not all twisted up, and repeat with the other side.

You can see here what I mean by making sure that the sides of your jump ring overlap.

And, voila, you have a LOVEly heart necklace to accent your Valentine's Day outfit!

My dear sisters were sweet enough to brave the cold snow to capture these photos. And to think that just a few days ago we had been taking pictures in the woods for a spring styled shoot!

We decided to style this necklace with neutral colors to make it stand out more. The black and white sweater creates a soft canvas while the gold polka dots keep the neutral from being too bland:)

This red leather from the Leather Hide Store is absolutely delicious (yes, that's the only word I use for leather anymore:). It is super soft and flexible, which makes it easy to work with, but still holds its shape nicely. I highly recommend checking out their site for all of your leather crafting needs:)