Last year, I went on a trip to Cali. Too bad I didn't blog about it or anything, like I did while in Miami. I stayed in San Francisco, and traveled down to Half Moon Bay and Santa Cruz AND to Napa Valley!!! Total missed opportunity :(
Lesson learned.
So I will play catch-up.
It was Surf Country. I had never seen anything like it. Windsurfers, surfboarders, swimmers and all. The ocean there was not an aqua color, like in Miami. It was more of a Cornflower Blue, a truer blue.
And with surfing, comes seriously cool, laid-back jewelry. To me at least.
Natural hemp, wood, and glass beads combine with an easy technique to make this surfer-style men's necklace.
The colors can be changed, depending on what beads you have on hand. If you want to make this in a more feminine color scheme for girl surfers (or wannabes) feel free.
The black beads and glass beads you see are all from Cousin Beads. You can find these at craft stores all over like Michael's and JoAnn Fabrics. I think the contrast between the natural wood and hemp, and then the shiny glass beads makes a seemingly-simple necklace very multi-dimensional.
Ok, enough talk. Let's start pretending we're in Cali (and for readers who are, I envy you).
Step 1: Gather materials. Needed are: scissors, natural hemp cord, a 20mm (millimeter) oval black bead, 10mm wood beads, assorted glass beads (from Cousin, Jewelry Basics card #34713074), and black 5mm beads (from Cousin, Jewelry Basics card #34722032).
Step 2: Cut about a 4 foot length of hemp. With one end of the cord, it helps to dip it in ModPodge and let it dry: this will make the end you will be stringing with strong and easier to string with, it's a simple tip I do for all types of soft cords including embroidery floss if I will be stringing with it.
With one end, fold over a couple inches of the cord, and use this to create a looped knot right at the end. Just tie a knot like you would if you had one string, but make sure to incorporate the two. It should look like the last picture.
Step 3: It helps to have a bead board here; that way, you can lay out your pattern and make sure it will be long enough! If you don't, you can use a bead mat as well to make sure the beads don't roll around everywhere!
To make my pattern, place the oval black bead at the center. My necklace ended up being 17" long. Alternate between the 5mm black beads and 10mm wood beads, adding in a glass bead every two to three beads. You may need to alter this pattern some, depending on how long you want your necklace to turn out!
You need to make sure these beads' holes are large enough for the hemp, but not too large that they won't be caught by your knots. If you need to make a bead's hole larger, you can use a bead reamer (mine from Cousin). DO NOT use reamers on crystals!
Step 4: Add on your bead and string up right to the end, where your first loop knot is. Make another knot right after this bead, and pull tight. It will catch the bead in place. String on your next bead, and make yet another knot. Just keep repeating this method over and over again until....
Step 5: You finish. After the last bead, add on a glass bead that is large enough to go through the loop knot, can catches sufficiently (doesn't fall through the loop). This will be our closure bead. Just simply catch this bead with a last knot, making sure you leave a very small amount of string (as seen in the second pic) as a place for the loop to sit, when closed (third pic).
You are finished! This is a super-simple pattern that can be changed up to create a bunch of different looks.
Mix contrasting colors for maximum impact; try pink and lime, neon orange and blue, or even lemon yellow and bright purple. I bet it would stand out great against summer-tanned skin, of which I do not have :( .........
This is meant to be more of a choker-style. Make sure to measure your neck before doing this project to make sure of the size you need at the end.
Thank you, Bobby (NOT a surfer, just a brother) for modeling.
Instructions and all photos copyright Allison Beth Cooling. Don't post this tutorial or any of my pictures without crediting me, and don't claim as your own please!
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