Embossed Brass DIY Charm Bracelets

Please don’t think I’ve gone DIY charm bracelet crazy over here, since I’ve made a few different versions lately!  It’s my current love at the moment (and they’re crazy easy to make) so I have one last way to personalize your own charm bangles, and I also want to share some fun from earlier this month when I hosted a little demo in the Prime Publishing booth at the Craft & Hobby Association Mega Show.

I headed out to Anaheim a few weeks ago to scope out what’s new in the craft industry, and to meet some friends and colleagues face to face (finally)!  I’ve been part of the Sizzix design team for a little over a year now, and I put a face to a name at last AND got to see all the amazing new goodies coming soon.

While I wan’t one of the fabulous designers doing a demo at the Sizzix booth, I did bring some Sizzix goodness with me, and showed a few dozen people just how easy it is to make brass charms with fun designs using the Sizzix Big Shot!

These bracelets are a great little project because they whip up in about 5 minutes, they’re great for a craft night because sharing supplies makes it more cost-effective, and probably my favorite feature about the Sizzix Big Shot is that with no cords and no software, it’s totally portable.

You’ll need the following tools and supplies to make these easy bangles, and I have to give a shout-out to my friends at Goody Beads who sent enough supplies to adorn 50 wrists with personalized charm bangles at the show.  I’ll leave affiliate links below to shop their store and the Sizzix website to pick up supplies if you’d love to make a few of these bangles at home!

For each bracelet, here’s what you will need:

• Sizzix Big Shot, Extended Platform, and Acrylic Cutting Pads
• Sizzix DecoEmboss Dies (any small designs work great!)
• Vintaj Reliefing Block
• 13mm Round Vintaj Brass Blank(s)
• Antique Brass Bangles or Expandable Bangles
• Antique Brass or Antique Gold 2″ Jewelry Head Pins
• 3-4 Antique Brass or Antique Gold 7mm Jump Rings
• Chain Nose Pliers
• Round Nose Pliers
• Wire Cutters
• 6mm or Smaller Beads You Love

All of the Sizzix DecoEmboss dies work great on Vintaj brass blanks; it’s what they’re designed to be used with.  The paper crafters I met at the show were surprised to learn that you can indeed emboss metal with the right dies!  Because the charms are small, choose dies with a small design, or choose a portion of a geometric design like I did with  this die called Moroccan Tile.  To keep it from shifting, you may wish to use a bit of masking tape or washi tape.

Close the folder, and place it between two acrylic cutting pads to make your “Sizzix sandwich”.  Set your tab to #1 on your platform if you’re using the Big Shot, and roll it through to emboss the metal.

Even though the design will show when you look closely, you will probably want to gently buff your charm to create contrast.  What’s cool when you emboss it is that the other side is debossed – giving you the negative of the design on the other side.  Buffing each side gently with a reliefing block will make your designs pop, and they’ll be a different perspective on each side.

You can make more embossed charms, or add more texture, color,, and shine by adding a few bead charms.  To create a beaded charm, thread a bead onto a 2″ jewelry head pin.  Wrap the wire over one side of a pair of round-nosed pliers, forming a loop.  Next, wrap the wire around the pin under the loop you created and above the bead, filling the space between with coiled wire.  Trim off any excess wire with wire cutters.

Using your chain nose pliers, twist open a jump ring, and and it to a charm.  Twist it closed again, and repeat for each charm, even if your bead charms appear to have large enough loops to fit.  The extra ring helps it to dangle and to hang well among the other charms.  string them onto your bangle bracelet to finish your piece!

These bracelets look great stacked together or worn with your other favorite bracelets, giving you a little shine, a little sparkle, and a way to make it totally your own by choosing to emboss your favorite designs!