accessories Archives - Two Twenty One

How to Turn a Regular Scarf into an Infinity Scarf

If you know me well you know my love of pashminas and scarves. I have a collection of about 30– near hoarder status. On a recent shopping adventure I scooped up a couple lightweight scarves to add to my collection. One scarf is an infinity scarf, but the other wasn’t. I thought the regular scarf would look better as an infinity scarf so I decided to perform minor cosmetic surgery on the scarf. And the best news yet, I didn’t even have to break out my sewing machine.

Here’s what I started with. A regular scarf from Forever 21. Let’s call it Jen Aniston pre-nose job.

I grabbed some Heat n Bond while at Walmart (don’t judge me), my iron, and scissors.

I followed the instructions on the back of the Heat n Bond packaging because good girls read the directions.

I started by putting the Heat n Bond on one end of the scarf, and I stuck my iron on top for 2 seconds. I did this along the entire edge of one side of the scarf.

Then I peeled off the paper. See how the film stuck to the scarf?

I took the other end of the scarf, folded it under so there would be a seam instead of it looking like I put the two edges together. I bonded the two ends of the scarf together by holding my iron on the scarf for about 6 seconds in each spot. I let the scarf cool, and then it was ready to go.

And here she is now– Jen Aniston post-nose job. Some people know how to make cosmetic surgery work for them, like this scarf and Jen. Lindsay Lohan, on the other hand, wellllll. . .

Seriously, this is the easiest DIY no-sew project ever. I’m already debating what I can Heat n Bond next.

Have you used Heat n Bond?
Have you ever turned a regular scarf into an infinity scarf?

I’m sharing this at the following parties: Home Stories A to Z, Tatertots and Jello, House of Hepworths, The Shabby Creek Cottage, Liz Marie Blog, The Shabby Nest, Positively Splendid, Whipperberry, Funky Junk Interiors, Classy Clutter, Today’s Creative Blog, The Inspiration Gallery, and Serenity Now.

This post contains affiliate links.

24 Comments · Filed Under: accessories, DIY, no sew ·

How to Make a State Necklace {DIY}

I’m pretty sure many of you have seen those state shaped necklaces floating around the Interweb for the past couple years. I’ve looked into them and debated purchasing, but the $50+ price tag always gets me. Don’t get me wrong, I support handmade items, but I’m a cheapskate when it comes to certain things (she get it from her momma), especially things I can DIY. When I start making my millions I’ll by handmade like it’s my job. Until then, I’ll save my $50 for our electric bill and attempt to make my own.

In attempt to make my own state shaped necklace, I did a little researching last night and found a great tutorial on the blog, V Juliet. I had everything I needed so no trip to the store was necessary.
Cha-ching.

Here’s what I used:
22 gauge wire (JoAnn)
round nose pliers (JoAnn)
wire cutters (JoAnn)
masking tape
outline of Indiana (found here)
card stock (Walmart)
chain necklace (Etsy)

I started by searching Google images for an outline of Indiana. Then I scaled down the image to 2″ by 2″ in Photoshop and printed it onto card stock. I grabbed my wire and made a loop at the top for the necklace with my round nose pliers. My loop wasn’t made using a specific looping method. But if you YouTube search “simple wire loop” you’ll find a bunch of examples. Plus, it’s easier to watch a video than to try to decipher photos. Make sure you make a big enough loop to feed your necklace through.

After I made my loop, I started to trace my Indiana shape with the wire and my round nose pliers. I used masking tape to secure the wire as I went along.

For the Ohio River part of my state, I gently bent the wire with my round nose pliers. Sometimes I would hold the wire in place with the pliers and bend the wire with my free hand. Trial and error, people, trial and error.

Be careful when doing twists and turns. If you put too much stress on the wire it will snap. Here’s your proof:

After tracing the state, I removed the masking tape. Then I made a couple loops around my original loop and cut the wire with my wire cutters. Since I was putting this on a necklace, I gently turned my loop to face the opposite direction so the pendant would look right once I fed the necklace through the loop.

Full disclosure: I ended up making five Indiana shaped pendants. Proof that not all bloggers get it right the first time. The pendants are placed in chronological order– from first to last attempt.

More disclosure: it took me 5-10 minutes to make each pendant.

I like how the rose gold looking pendant (#2) turned out, but I didn’t have a matching necklace on hand to go with it, so I decided to make a sterling silver plated one. I finally got it on the third try. I envy all of you who live in states like Colorado.

It turned out pretty well if I do say so myself. I plan on making some for Christmas gifts, and keeping one (or more) for myself.

Will you dare to give handmade on Monday morning for Dare to DIY: give handmade? Need some extra inspiration? See how Kim, Michelle, and Rachel gave handmade.

What do you think about the whole state shaped necklace craze?
Think you’ll attempt this DIY project?

I’m sharing this at the following parties: Home Stories A to Z, Tatertots and Jello, House of Hepworths, The Shabby Creek Cottage, Tidy Mom, Liz Marie Blog, Craftomaniac, The Shabby Nest, Positively Splendid, Whipperberry, Funky Junk Interiors, Classy Clutter, Today’s Creative Blog, Uncommon Designs, Live Laugh Rowe, Miss Mustard Seed, and Serenity Now.

44 Comments · Filed Under: accessories, Dare to DIY, DIY, jewelry ·

Braided Chain Bracelet {How to Make a Bracelet}

Hey, friends! How was your weekend? We drove to Cleveland on Friday for a friend’s wedding that evening. Does spending 5+ hours in a car make your butt fall asleep? Yeah, mine too.

It dawned on me a couple days before the wedding that I didn’t have a bracelet to go with the dress I was planning to wear. So I did what any DIYer would do– I whipped up my own bracelet.

I came across this blog post by Kellie from Nest of Posies about a week ago, which led me to this tutorial by Erica from Honestly… WTF?

I got all of my supplies from JoAnn Fabric. I used some coupons so the price in the parentheses is actually what I paid.

large lobster claw clasp: $3.99 ($3.19)
5 embroidery threads: $1.95 ($1.56)
1/2 yard large gold chain link (found in the lace by-the-yard section): $9.99 ($6)

The total cost of my bracelet was about $6. The half yard of gold chain allows you to make two bracelets so I’ll be making another one soon. I should also let you know that it took me about an hour to make the bracelet.

I followed Erica’s tutorial but after a while I got rid of the bobby pins. Another issue I ran into was the links. The links below the link I was working with would get in the way so I ended up disconnecting those links. I would add them back on one at a time as I braided the thread on.

At the end of the wedding festivities (belly dancers and all), I realized that I didn’t have a good photo of myself modeling the bracelet. All I had were some fantastic photo booth photos. Hopefully my friend doesn’t kill me for posting these. Love you, Kristin!

So I threw the dress back on yesterday to take this photo. My head is intentionally not in the photo because I was sans makeup and my hair was beyond frightening. You’re welcome.

I know the bracelet is super matchy-matchy, but I like it. I paired it with fuchsia and gold teardrop dangle earrings from Forever 21, which can somewhat be seen in the sequin-hat-wearing gangster/evil bunny rabbit photo above.

What do you think of the bracelet?
What’s your favorite thing about weddings/wedding receptions?
Do you have a quintessential photo booth pose?

In other news, I’m going to try to post 4 days a week from now on (Mon-Thur). I have all my posts lined up for this week. Pats on the back are welcome. Be sure to come back tomorrow! I’m sharing some thrifting finds.

I’ll be linking up at the following parties:
Home Stories A to Z
Tatertots and Jello
House of Hepworths
The Shabby Creek Cottage
Tidy Mom