Today, a fun tutorial for you. Please to peep these itty bitty earrings, which are just an inch long:
Cute, no? Here's a yellow pair.
The flowers are pressed glass; the stems are your basic seed beads. Now for the cool upcycled bit: those darling tiny leaves. Yep, you may have already guessed.
A green plastic straw from the Starbucks! Just the latest in my series of ideas for upcycling these dastardly iced drink cups - which have an unfortunate tendency to collect in my car, my trash and my life. (Click here to check out some of the other projects.)
So here's the DIY.
Cut a thin slice of straw. Smash it flat and poke a hole in the middle. Hey presto! The double-leaf shape forms automatically!
On a long headpin, thread a pretty bead for the flower. Then intersperse the leaves with seed beads, like so:
Cinch everything up tight, and create a wrapped loop at the top. First make a complete circle of wire:
Then use flat pliers (called chain-nose pliers) to make a couple of wire wraps beneath the loop.
Snip off the excess wire. If there's a sharp bit poking out, carefully tuck it in with the chain-nose pliers.
That's your flower stem done! If you have two ears, make a second one. Then just add earwires, and that's all she wrote.
I sure hope you liked this one. I have a couple more drinking straw ideas, hope to share them in a bit. Later, dearies!
Hi! Today, a new challenge for you lovely fans of Guess The Mystery Thing. Wanna play? Take a gander at this cute pair of earrings.
Can you identify the mysterious secret ingredient, i.e. the long, swoopy green-and-white jobbies?
We're playing on the honor system, so no peeking yet. What are those stripey things? Have your guess firmly seated in your brainpan before you scroll down for the reveal.
Brainpan set? Okay, let's do this!
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Hint: it's not from the dollar store. Not even from a yard sale or thrift shop. It's something I got at an actual, honest-to-gosh, full price retail establishment.
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Keep scrollin'...
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I try to predict how easy these challenges will be, but most of the time I'm wrong. This time I predict 85% will get this one.
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Ready to see the answer? Sure?
Okie doke! Here it is:
It's the waves in the hair of the mermaid on the cup from the Starbucks!
I cut out the hair with my littlest scissors:
With a thumbtack, I poked a hole in each tress. Then layered two of them (facing opposite directions), and incorporated them into in a chandelier-style earring, in the same way I would use any charm with a hole at the top.
I gifted these to one of my fave baristas - she loved them.
So let us know in the comments: didja know this one? If you guessed something different, what was it?
Do tell!
Hi again! Another Guess The Mystery Thing challenge is here. Wanna play? Take a look at the fancy silver 'tail' on this peacock necklace:
Can you figure out what I deconstructed to make it? What is that mysterious bauble? Here it is nekkid, hanging on a keychain:
As always, we are playing on the honor system. So no scrolling allowed until you have your guess firmly in mind.
Got it? Firmly? Then scroll at will.
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Hint: it's not made of metal. Wha...? Suddenly a bit harder, eh? You still have time to change your guess. Sure, we'll wait...got a new idea? Great! Now scroll onward.
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Ready?
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Okay, here goes nuthin'...
A plastic hand mirror from the dollar store. Isn't that funny? Looks so vintage-realistic, yet cost a buck. I bought a basketful!
Here's the DIY:
The plastic is what made this one fun for me! Instead of needing to fuss with a dremel tool or electric saw, I just scored the mirror handle with an exacto knife and snapped it off. Then I melted a small hole with a hot wire to add a jump ring. How easy shmeasy was that?
By the way, I now have several pretty oval mirror sections, sans handles, with which to play. Picture frames, maybe? Open to any and all suggestions for ways to use them.
Okay, do tell - did you get it right? If not, what was your guess? Let me know in the comments.
Well, hiya! Today brings a fresh new Guess The Mystery Thing challenge. Can you guess the origin of the fancy half-spheres in these cute earring holders?
As always, we are playing on the honor system. Do NOT be peeking until you be guessing! So take a moment and really concentrate...what are those mysteriously familiar objects?
Got your guess? Then start a-scrollin' for the answer!
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I think (maybe, possibly, perhaps?) this is an easy one. Hint: I found them at the dollar store.
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Ready?
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Okay - check it out.
Plastic hair bun covers! You know what I mean, right? It's really difficult trying to selfie the back of one's own head, but here's an attempt:
The DIY:
For the tortoise-shell one, I used a headpin to combine two bun covers, with a heavy bead underneath for weight, and a rubber washer in between for stability. For the white one, I just glued a bun cover into an upside-down crystal candlestick. Nothing could be simpler!
Now, do tell: did you guess the Mystery Thing? Let me know in the comments!
Hi! A new round of Guess The Mystery Thing is here. Let's see if anyone can identify the mysterious secret ingredient in this nifty stand-up picture frame.
I came up with the arrangement of curly wires to suspend the art like it's floating in the center. Isn't that fun? Here's how the frame looks with nothing inside:
So what on earth is that dark oil finished, antique-y looking base? Remember, we are playing on the honor system - no peeking until you have a guess. Then scroll down for the reveal.
Pause for thought...longer pause to reject the first thought and recombobulate...okay, got it?
Scroll away!
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I will give you a hint. It's not from the dollar store. In fact, it only cost fifty cents. Care to change your guess? Last chance!
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Almost there. Keep scrolling.
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Ready, Freddy?
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Here's the answer!
I know. A bunch of you are going, "Um, yeah. That's nice and all. But what the cock-a-doodle-doo is it?" Welp, it's called a rod chair and it's used in construction. It holds rebar in place when pouring concrete foundations.
You need some rod chairs in your life.
They are so cool. They stand up in both directions! They look all vintage-rusty-oily-industrial! They are delightfully cheap and multi-talented! In addition to making these cute picture frames, I love using them as little stands to display earrings. (A bit more advanced: I also solder them together to make exciting geometric wire sculptures.) I bet you guys could come up with other ways to use them - any thoughts?
And I definitely want to know what your guess was. Who knew the answer? Who had something completely different in mind? Do tell!
I hope you enjoyed that one! See ya next time.
Ready to play another round of Guess The Mystery Thing? Take a peek at my latest upcycled necklace, and see if you can identify the black honeycomb grid:
What is that spiky little item? Think you know? We are playing on the honor system, so no peeksies until you have your official final answer firmly in your head.
Got it? Then scroll down to the reveal!
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Keep a-goin'...
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I think it's a tough one. But I am generally way off when I predict that.
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Annnnd, here ya go! The Mystery Thing:
Plastic mesh that keeps leaves out of your roof gutter. It comes in a huge roll and is super easy to work with. The bumblebee design was the first thing that popped into my head.
I plan to use this a million ways - isn't it perfect for making cuff bracelets?! Hooray for the hardware store - yet again!
So please tell what you guessed in the comments - I just love hearing how you looked at the jewel without any context.
Hope you had fun - see ya!
Welp, time for another Guess The Mystery Thing scroll-down challenge! Take a look at these curvy beaded earring hangers:
This idea came about when I needed a way to organize lots of BIG statement earrings. (All the ones in this post are more than 3 inches long. I like big bobs and I cannot lie!) Mine were always getting tangled up, with each other or with other earrings hanging nearby. I came up with this trick to keep those statement earrings separated and on display.
So what are these handy dandy little things?
You know how it works. Honor system, people! No peeking until you have closed your eyes, made a wish, prayed to the gods of Mystery and come up with your own guess.
Think you know it? Then let's scroll!
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Keep a-scrollin'...
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Annnnd the answer is:
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Bing!
Shower curtain rings! The kind with built-in beads for rolling along the shower rod.
I discovered that a great way to use them is hung on a tie rack, to allow a bit of space between the big earrings and the wall:
So now comes the honor part....did you Guess The Mystery Thing? Or did you think of something different? Do tell!
p.s. If anybody's curious about the earrings, they're all upcycles of one sort or another. Here are the links:
Flamingos: http://www.michlinla.com/2011/11/mystery-thing-revealed-gold-bird.html
Woven Silver Teardrops: http://www.michlinla.com/2010/07/interesting-notion.html
Weird Flames: http://www.michlinla.com/2014/07/jewelry-before-and-after-leafy-linkers.html
Hello again! Let's play another round of my crafty guessing game, Guess The Mystery Thing. Challenging you, I am! Who can identify the original source from which I built this here cute little candlestick?
What is that mysterious white stuff? Think you know? No peeking until you have a guess. Then scroll on down to see the reveal.
Ready? Scroll away!
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A little further...
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I'm thinking a lot of people might get this one - but I have been wrong before.
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Here goes! The answer is:
The top bits from a plastic milk bottle.
The How-To is so simple. I turned the lid upside down for the base. I cut off the neck at just the spot where it begins to flare out.
Then I glued them together and inserted my candle. Isn't it odd how traditionally candlestick-like it looks?
One of these days I'm going to show you what I did with the rest of the bottle. (Hint: it's really cool.)
So did you get it right? If not, what did you think it was? Do, DO tell!
Ready to play a new round of Guess The Mystery Thing? Me, too! Look at this beautiful rose necklace:
And this other necklace, and this ring:
Oh, and some earrings, too.
What on earth is the original source for these delicate, delightful fleurs? I will say, this is kind of a strange one - I'm not sure anyone will get it unless they have actually seen this item in person. Good luck, everyone.
Reminder: we are playing on the honor system, dearies. Noooooo peeking until you have a guess. Only then may you scroll.
Ready? Think you know it?
Scroll, baby!
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Keep scrolling.
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Aaaand the answer is...tada!
The world's most ornamental iPhone case. From the dollar store!!! (The 99 Cents Only store, to be exact.) They are made of silicone. Can you believe how pretty they are? They come in a bunch of yummy colors. With some careful cutting, I harvested three different size roses from each case.
Cool, eh? I am partial to the ring, although it's such a strange green and goes with nothing I own. But it looks spectacular on.
Here's a tip on using silicone items in jewelry making. Learned this the hard way! Do not use a sharp object to poke a hole for jump rings. Over time, the poked hole will split, and your piece will fissure/disintegrate/fail spectacularly. (This won't happen for about a year - you will be lulled into thinking you made a wonderful jewel - then RIIIIIP!) So what to do? You can't melt a hole - they make fireproof potholders out of this stuff. Answer: punch a smooth-edged hole with a leather punch.
That's what I did with the earrings above, as well as this dangly necklace:
So now I want to hear what you guys thought it was...anybody get this one? What was your guess?
Well, isn't that a learned post title? Yes, this Guess the Mystery Thing challenge is about a stamen - you know, those little antennae-looking jobbies in the center of a flower.
Wanna play? Take a look at my pretty homemade presentation box:
The Mystery Thing is the silver stamen. What are those antennae-looking jobbies? Ooh, so familiar looking...
We're going to do a scroll down reveal, so don't peek until you think you know what it is. Oh, and this is also a double Mystery Thing - can you identify the white petals? I love making these candle-burned flowers, but hate
cutting fabric circles, so I have a little shortcut. Bonus points if
you can guess both items!
Thinking cap plugged in? Wheels turning? Playing the Final Jeopardy tune in your head? Okay, if you're ready - let's scroll!
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Scrolling...
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The answer is...tada!
Earnuts! (For clueless dudes and non-pierced-eared people, they go on the backs of post earrings.)
I unrolled three of them slightly, like so:
Then I stacked 'em on a headpin to make my silvery flower stamen.
Isn't that fun? Find those stray earnuts at the bottom of your jewelry box and give it a try.
Now for the bonus question: how did I cheat the flower circles? Answer:
Rose petals from the dollar store wedding section. True, I have to trim them a bit to get different sizes, but it really cuts down on that fabric-circle-cutting labor.
Okay, scout's honor - did you guess either Mystery Thing? Do tell!
