DIY FABRIC STATEMENT NECKLACE

I love a good DIY and this time of year a do it yourself project can not only yield a thoughtful gift, but can be a great opportunity to gather your friends and family together for a fun crafternoon. One of my favorite parts of being a creative entrepreneur in the Bay area is that there are so many wonderfully imaginative people to collaborate with. For this project I teamed up with my pal and fellow creative entrepreneur Madeline Trait. Madeline pulled together a great post of this DIY for Martha Stewart herself. You can check it out here.

Madeline and I formally met last year, but I had been a fan of her beautiful hand painted cake toppers for years. With a similar design aesthetic, attention to detail and love of laughter, Madeline and I became instant friends. We were searching for a project to work on together and when she told me about this incredible Marimekko fabric covered necklace she had, well it was easy to get inspired. With our love of vibrant prints leading the way, we created this fun DIY that in 90 minutes has you looking like a fashion forward, femme fatale.

YOU WILL NEED:

90 Minutes
Fabric at least 1 yard
Embroidery thread
Wooden Beads - We used 1" and 3/4" but you can choose any size you like.
Scissors
Needle
Iron

Step 1. 

Cut your fabric into strips. For 1" beads the fabric needs to be 2.5" wide. For the 3/4" beads the fabric needs to be 2" wide. All strips should be no shorter than 30". The length of the strip determines how long your necklace will be. 

Step 2. 

With a hot iron, create a 1/4" hem on both sides of your fabric strip.

Step 3.

This is the fun part! To add your first bead, find the center of your fabric strip by folding it in half length wise. Next place your first bead in the center of the fabric strip and wrap the fabric entirely around the bead. Once the bead is completely covered in fabric you will secure either end with embroidery thread. Put your needle through the fabric to secure it tight, wrap it around several times and then knot it at the end. You will repeat this step until all your beads are covered.

Step 4.

To finish the necklace, tie remaining loose fabric into knots and then knot both sides together. You can also cut the remaining loose fabric into 3 strips to braid and then knot at the end. We did both. 

Step 5.

Ready to wear!

Happy crafting!

xoxo

Lisa + Madeline

Original photography, art direction + styling for Zelma Rose by Lisa Anderson Shaffer

You can check out this project over on the Martha Stewart Blog here. We love you M...