Jewellry Set

I made these a while ago.  Just never photographed them to blog about.  I wear them lots.

 Three bracelets.

And a matching necklace.
You can find the tutorial for the bracelets HERE.

The Vintage Vogue Jewelry

First, a big thank you to all of you who left very kind comments on the dress yesterday.  It was fun to wear, and very fulfilling to get a UFO done!


So the day before Easter, I was in the fabric shop to get buttons for yesterday's dress - the bolero jacket, to be specific.  And of course I had to wander down the bead aisle.  That prompted an impromptu making of some jewelry to match the dress.

 I bought the 'plain' cultured pearl beads.  The other pink and flesh toned beads I already had at home.

  A little random stringing of some beads.

And a couple of french hooks, and voila.  New jewelry for a new/old dress!
You can find instructions for the earrings here and the bracelet here.

Giveaway!

So here it is, my very first

Giveaway

*The giveaway is now closed*

I had thought about waiting for 100 followers, but at this rate, that would be ages from now.  So, as I watched the followers creep toward 50, I made plans to do one then.  Well, the dahlia post brought all sorts of new followers, so here we are, up to 58!  And by now, you're dying to know what I'm giving away.

 This necklace and earring set!  Unique, original, and made by me!

 The pendant and round stones are 'Russian Jade'.  The beads are a silver lined transparent glass bead.  The necklace measures 17" long.

The matching earrings are 2" long.

The Rules

• Be a follower of The Life of Riley.
• Leave a comment on this post telling me which movie you have seen at least 3 times and why.  It can be one that you don't even like.  For example there are many 'kid' movies I've seen more than 3 times!

That's it!  I don't do Facebook, Twitter, I don't have a shop, and you don't even have to blog about the giveaway - unless you want to.  I will take comments until Saturday, 6 pm central time.  I will announce a winner some time on Sunday.

Good luck!

Crocheted Beaded Necklace

 First the Full Disclosure: I did not make this myself; I cannot crochet.

My mother-in-law actually made this.  Probably about 20 years ago.  And I think it's still pretty cool today - so I'm sharing it with you.

If you do know how to crochet I'm sure that you can figure it out.  The actual necklace measures about 70 inches long!  It looks like you just chain your thread and add a bead every few stitches.  Pretty simple.  I can see lots of possibilities with this simple idea!

Bracelet Tutorial

I made these for Mr. Riley's sister-in-law for Christmas this year.

I'll show you how I did the bracelets - if you promise not to laugh.  I hadn't entered the world of jewelry making before this, so for all I know I did it wrong.

You will need elastic beading thread.  Crimp beads. Needle nose pliers.  Beads of your choice.  The black/silver ones are from a kit from Micheals, the glass 'pearls' are from Hobby Lobby.

Cut your beading elastic to the length you want - remembering to leave extra to tie-off and finish the ends.  I found it helpful to tape down one end to the table so the beads didn't slide off.

 Start with a crimp bead and add other beads as desired.  End with another crimp bead.

Bring your two ends together and tie a knot.
Slide one end of each tie back through a crimp bead and pull tight.

 Squeeze your crimp beads with the needle nose pliers and trim the extra elastic.  Voila - an easy and fast bracelet.

Now if you choose, you can tie your bracelets together with a scrap of fabric or ribbon.  Check out these other bracelet sets I also made as gifts.

Come back tomorrow for 5 Minute Earrings.