Spiderweb Bracelet

Even though the weather is deceiving, I did let the calendar motivate me for a little Halloween project.   I have to say, this is probably one of my favorite projects I have done so far.  But maybe that’s just because most of what I make is for someone else, and this is just for me.  Yay! 

Not all the supplies were just sitting in my craft bins this time, I admit.  But it was still a pretty cost-effective project, assuming your craft-stock already has Mod Podge and E6000.  I managed to spend just $4, and I will have glass gems for projects upon projects to come.  Which is fine, because now that I found out how simple this is, I can finally splurge on some seasonal jewelry! (Update – want to see another idea?  I made the same bracelet with excerpts from a book in this post!  It’s such a versatile project!)

Now on to the tutorial!

Time: One hour from start to finish.  This includes some drying time in between, but you should also cure it for a few hours/overnight before wearing it.

Supplies:
 

• Bracelet base of your choice.  I found mine at Michael’s, on sale 40% off last week.  Find a coupon this week, if you need to.  Check to make sure it has a clasp – they consider this to be “chain” so I needed a separate clasp.
• Floral/decorative gems with a flat base.  I got these at Michael’s too since I was there, but I have seen them at my dollar store as well. 
• Design for the underside of your gems and the highlight of your bracelet.  I had picked up these Halloween stickers for another project, and they worked beautifully.  But you could use anything!  Print your own design, use magazine clippings, or even use photos for a non-Halloween theme!
• Mod Podge and paintbrush
• Amazing E6000 or similar heavy-duty, permanent adhesive

The hardest part for me was deciding on a design. 

Ultimately I settled on the spiderwebs, thinking that it would match more of my clothes if it was somewhat neutral and I would get more use out of it.

Because I was using stickers, I stuck them to a piece of paper first.  Obviously not necessary if your design is on paper already.  I traced around the base of my gems.  The base is a little smaller than the circumference, so make sure you don’t have extra paper hanging over the edges when you match it up for fit.

Use your paintbrush to spread a thin layer of mod podge on the backs of your gems.  Stick the designs on, making sure you place them so that the design will show through the top.  Then, add another coat of Mod Podge.  Let it dry.

This is a photo about 10 minutes in, you can see it’s still a bit cloudy-looking.  Wait until it has dried clear before continuing.  What’s cool (in my humble opinion, anyway) is that the rounded glass gives it a magnified look.

I used this time while I was waiting to attach my toggle clasp to my chain.  Tadaa.

Once all my gems were clear and dry, I used a thin coat of Amazing E6000 on the backs of them.  Try to get all the way to the egdes – just don’t over-do it, because you don’t want it squishing out over the edges.  Then just place the gems onto the blanks of your bracelet.  While these are a good fit size-wise, of course it’s not exact.  I just tried to get them as centered as possible.

Now leave it to cure.  I do most of my crafting at night after Raya goes to bed, so I left this overnight.

Then wear it or gift it, and bask in all the times you hear, “Wow, you MADE that?”

I link to these fabulous parties!