Bead, bead on a string.

Do you also keep little nothings around the house hoping that one day you will use them again?

I do that. Everything I have used for upcycling mysister’s dress were things that were not used anymore, but saved “for later” – maybe I’ll use them sometime… The same with the plastic jar I have used for my first upcycled flower pot.  I am planning to start reusing – in different ways and for different purposes-  all the little nothings  I have saved along the time… to stop having them well hidden and give them a new purpose.

Recently I went through all my cases and boxes and I ran into some old wooden beads. Long time ago they were a necklace whose string decided to not want its destiny anymore. The string left us, but the beads stayed. I keep looking at them for some days now, thinking what to do with them, as their colour perfectly matches one of the shirts I love.

So I took some cotton string and cut 4 stripes of about 2 meters each and I folded all of them in half.

Then I made a knot at that end of the string  bunch.

I cut another stripe of cotton thread of about 1 meter. I tied it at the base of the big knot and I started tying it around the loop of the knot.  

And another knot…and another knot…and another knot…

Once I finished the whole loop, I glued the end of the string to the base of the knot. I used some decoupage glue ( some sort of Mod Podge) for fabric, but I think any type of glue would do.  

For me to be able to line up the beads on the string, it seemed easier to fix the bunch of strings to the table with some adhesive tape.

Riiight, so now we play around with the beads. From here on, it is up to your imagination.

The last bead will play the role of  the necklace lock. How? I tied a knot having the bead in the middle.

I cut out the uneven ends of the strings and then glued and wrapped them around the base of the lock.

And here’s the result.

Before I showed you this tutorial, I admit, I first made a test necklace…

I’ll think up other designs because I really enjoyed making these two necklaces.