Anthropologie Stormy Seas Necklace; an Elegant Re-Vamp!

This Anthropologie Stormy Sea necklace is an oldie but goodie; I have been wanting to make a tutorial on this for a long time, and finally got around to it. What I love about it, like any Anthropologie item, is the uniqueness of it. It features drop beads and closes with a cotton tie. Plus, statement necklaces are totally in fashion right now. Designers like Kate Spade are totally on board with the trend!

*EDIT* Today, a day after I made this post, I got my August 2013 issue of Harper's Bazaar. What were the fashion/accessory features throughout the magazine??? BLACK, WHITE, and GOLD accessories. All in that color combo. Designers like Nicholas Kirkwood, Michael Kors and Lanvin's fall collections all feature these colors. What's also gonna be hot is chunky chains, chunky necklaces, and black boots/booties. What's more perfect to make for the upcoming fall trends than this necklace??? 

Another huge trend throughout the summer has been black and white, basically started by runway shows such as Marc Jacobs back this spring.

Obviously the trend has caught on. I went to Forever 21 the other day and the whole top floor was black and white! Part of my inspiration for this look came from Breakfast at Tiffany's; total elegance, black and white with a little gold (instead of silver) added in. I just happen to be partial to gold, use whatever metal color you like. I made this tutorial using mostly Cousin products, showing that you can make awesome jewelry without having to spend the $100 and up on "designer" pieces!

This is obviously a lot more glam than the original Anthropologie necklace. You can feel free to alter what beads you use, if you want a more casual feel skip the top drilled gold beads, or maybe switch the crystals for pearls for a new take on Audrey Hepburn's style.

I couldn't help myself, sorry. Like she would ever say that!? Oh well, it's my "artistic license...."

Ok, let's finally get started, shall we?

*mm always means millimeter* 

Step 1: Gather materials. Needed are pliers (here by Cousin), a plain white cotton tee shirt, 20mm acrylic briolettes (from Cousin), clear 6mm, 10mm and 15mm acrylic crystals (here by Cousin), 4mm metal beads, 10mm faceted gold beads, top drilled gold metal beads/charms (mine were 1.5" long, and hollow on the inside like tubes), jumprings and crimps, and fishing line (8 pound). 

Instead of the top drilled metal charms, try spike charms for a real edgy look (if you're not into Audrey.....)  You can find beads like this at Michaels or JoAnn.

I always like to use fishing line because it is clear and you get a lot more than if you buy a small little beading cord package! The kind I have is 8 pound so it is thin and not bulky.

Step 2: Cut about a 4' long piece of fishing line and fold in half. Thread on a jumpring and crimp, and at the halfway mark secure on the jumpring by crimping the clasp. It helps to use a bead board to lay out the composition of your beads. This is going to be the shorter strand of beads, so that the strand will be about 12" long. I started out with the 10mm crystal, alternating with metal beads, the briolettes and the metal charms, adding a large 15mm crystal in the very center.

Step 3: After stringing on all the beads for the shorter strand, use the other empty fishing line to create your longer strand. I played around with my composition; most importantly, you want this strand to be longer, mine was 14". 

I started by adding two (NOT THREE as the pic shows, sorry) 6mm crystals alternating with the metal beads, then used my 10mm crystals and faceted metal beads here (view pic below to see what combo I ended with)

The center of this strand has that metal faceted bead, and the beads lay nicely with the briolettes alternating spaces. When your strand is finished, add a crimp through both empty ends, then a jump ring. Thread back through the crimp, pull the line tight (not TOO tight though, you want a little bit of wiggle room) and crimp shut. Cut excess line off. 

Step 6: Cut four long pieces of your tee shirt (I went around the stomach area, about in .5" wide strips), and thread two through each jump ring. To tie, simply gently knot the strips together!

This really creates a statement! Pair with a totally on-trend black and white check dress (here, from Generation Bliss) and simple black peep-toe heels for a totally chic look!

Even though these gems are acrylic, they definitely sparkle.....

GOLD+BLACK+WHITE= totally awesome. In my book.

And to end with a theme quote: "Anyone who ever gave you confidence, you owe them a lot".

-Holly Golightly, Breakfast at Tiffany's, 1961

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!

And Mary's "What's the Story, Winston?" Necklace

The Real Winston

As soon as I saw this necklace online, I KNEW I had to do a tutorial. Swedish designer And Mary's What's the Story Winston? on ModCloth is just so awesome and totally DIY-worthy. Plus, this tutorial literally takes minutes and involves only minimal "ingredients", so there is no excuse for you guys not making one yourself!! 
Here is my "Winston"....

DIY Winston. 

I used a small plastic dog (like for dollhouses, or even maybe a kid's toy) and a scrap of ribbon I had laying around. The real necklace is porcelain; so if you drop it, you are kind of out of luck! My plastic version solves that. Also, on the necklace's website, many people had complaints about the bow unraveling, thus ruining their necklace. For my version, I used both superglue and hot glue (which seems to literally melt the plastic underneath and form a super-tough hold) to prevent this problem. Also, I sealed the ribbon with clear nail polish. No unraveling!

Winston's glamour shot

Let's get started.

Step 1: Gather materials. Needed are pliers, scissors, hot glue and superglue, clear nail polish, gold chain and a jumrping, thin satin ribbon (I used pink to match the real, but you can substitute colors), and a plastic dog figurine (mine was about 1" long and .75" high). The figurine needs to have a good clear neck spot to attach the ribbon to. If you don't have a dog, you can use another animal. Cats, giraffes, horses, what the heck. Just make sure you pick one with a clear neck spot. You can find a lot of these figurines on Amazon: puppies here, cute monkeys here, cute little random animals here, and I am OBSESSED with these little DOMO charms!!!

Step 2: Make the small bow. tie a bow in the center of your ribbon scrap. If you need help making a perfect bow, follow my tutorial here. Once done, drench the back of the knot with superglue, making sure to get around all sides to prevent unraveling. Paint the ends of the ribbon with clear nail polish to prevent fraying as well.

Step 3: Attach the "collar". With another piece of ribbon, take a dab of hot glue and squeeze it onto the back of your dog's neck. Immediately press one end of your ribbon on the glue, and press down to embed in the glue. Take your jumrping and thread it on the ribbon from the free end. Wrap the free end of ribbon around the front of the dog's neck VERY SNUGLY, so that the jumrping stands up and doesn't wobble, and so that the ribbon lays flat and tight against the neck. Wrap till it meets the back of the neck; dab some hot glue on this seam and press again firmly to embed the other end of the ribbon into the glue. Once dry, cut the ribbon as close to the glue as possible. Then, drench this seam with superglue, extending a little to the plastic as well, to really hold this in place. 

Step 4: Your dog should look like pic. 2. Then, take your bow from Step 1. Dab hot glue on the ribbon collar where you want your bow to lay, and press the bow (superglue side in) on the collar, embedding it in the glue. If you want to add superglue to the sides of this as well, you can. I added a very little amount behind the bow but where it meets the collar to keep the front clean but still give extra hold.

Then, attach your chain to this jumpring and wear!

Wasn't that worth it?!

Winston worn.

Winston likes cookies....

Close-up of Winston's behind

If you share/use/post this tutorial, please link back to me. It is much appreciated!