The Big-Ass Book of Bling Read online

  5 Glue that on top of the three large circles.

  6 Top off with a gem and let dry.

  7 Turn the circles over and glue the clip-on earring blank to the back on the upper end of the circle. IMPORTANT! Do not put glue on the flat disk part of the earring! Glue on the scalloped part. The flat part has to rest comfortably against your foot.

  8 Repeat steps 1 through 7 for your second clip.

  HERE’S HOW

  FOR THE SMALLER CLIPS

  1 Cut two small circles in your vinyl and glue them together using E-6000.

  2 Glue the feather and clip-on earring blank on the upper part of the circle and let dry.

  3 Repeat steps 1 and 2 to make your second clip.

  BLOOMING FUSION

  Scraps of leather, vinyl, and chain make up this large-and-in-charge piece. Add more flowers, change the colors, use silver chain instead . . . shake it up! Make one that suits your personal style and enjoy knocking a simple outfit out of the park!

  YOU’LL NEED

  Scraps of leather and vinyl in several different colors

  Scissors

  E-6000 glue

  Fiskars pinking shears

  Large pin

  3 large pearls

  3 flathead jewelry pins

  Needle-nose pliers (and wirecutters if the pliers don’t have them)

  2 yards of several different sizes of gold-tone chain

  10 gold-tone jump rings

  2 metal end caps

  HERE’S HOW

  1 Cut your flowers using the patterns below. You will need 17 flowers altogether—five large, five medium, and four small, all in different leathers and vinyls, so that when you assemble them they have variation. Leave out three of the medium flowers to cover the backs.

  2 Glue them together with E-6000.

  3 Using the pinking shears, cut three small circles. They should be about 1 inch in diameter.

  4 Poke a hole in the center of each one with a large pin.

  5 Put a pearl on a flathead jewelry pin and poke it through the hole from the front to the back of the flower. Bend the pin so that all the pieces are secured together.

  6 Glue a flower on the back of each of the flowers to give it a finished look.

  7 Create a three-strand necklace out of your long chain and connect the ends of the chains together with jump rings. Make sure the strands are long enough to fit over your head.

  8 To make your tassel, cut a piece of vinyl or leather 2 inches by 4 inches and fringe it with scissors. Glue it inside an end cap.

  9 Create chain tassels with five 4-inch pieces of chain on a jump ring.

  10 Poke holes on opposite ends of each flower with a large pin and add jump rings. Link them to the chain.

  11 Add your chain and leather tassels where you feel they look best.

  BLOOMING WALLET

  It’s like a corsage, but it has money in it. Seriously, wouldn’t you rather have a bouquet full of money?

  YOU’LL NEED

  Vinyl or leather scraps

  Scissors

  E-6000 glue

  24 inches of 18- to 20-gauge wire

  Needle-nose pliers (and wirecutters if the pliers don’t have them)

  8 crystal or pearl beads

  6 inches of leather, suede, or faux suede lace

  Hot glue gun and glue sticks

  Fiskars pinking shears

  Large pin

  3 yards of twine to match one of your colors

  Clothespins

  Wallet

  HERE’S HOW

  1 Using the patterns below, with regular scissors, cut out enough flower shapes from your vinyl or leather to create six flowers that have three to four layers of petals each.

  2 Glue the flowers together with E-6000 and let dry.

  3 Cut eight 3-inch pieces of wire. Bend small loops in each wire and attach a crystal or pearl bead to each wire.

  4 Roll your leather or suede lace into a spiral disk (like a cinnamon bun) and hot-glue the end of the disk down so that it holds together. Using pinking shears, cut small circles just a bit bigger than the disk.

  5 Mount the disk on the small pinked circle and then on the flat flowers. Poke a hole through the center with a large pin and push one of the wires with a bead through all of the layers and bend the wire to hold the flower together. Repeat this process for the rest of your flowers.

  6 Cut out eight to ten 8-inch pieces of twine and twist a piece of wire around the center to keep it together, creating a tassel.

  7 Glue the tassels and the flowers on the top of the wallet and let dry. Use clothespins to secure the flowers in place on the wallet while they dry.

  8 Glue a flower over the snap on the front with E-6000 and let dry.

  RAIN FOREST

  When I was growing up, my mother and I had an obsession with Cher. I loved her costumes and my mom loved her belly button. In 1985, right after I moved to NYC, I ran into Cher at a salon on the Upper East Side, and she was just lovely to me. My obsession continues, and I’ve designed this necklace in honor of her. It’s very “Gypsys, Tramps & Thieves,” with a little “Half-Breed” thrown in for good measure.

  YOU’LL NEED

  4 pieces of approximately 30-inch gold-tone chains in different sizes plus about 60 inches for the tassels

  Needle-nose pliers (and wirecutters if the pliers don’t have them)

  2 medium gold-tone jump rings

  1 large gold-tone lobster claw

  1/4 yard of vinyl or leather in any color you like

  Scissors

  24 inches of 20-gauge wire

  Sewing machine with zigzag stitch

  Lumiere paint in Metallic Copper

  Paintbrush

  Krylon Metallic Gold spray paint

  1/2 yard of leather, suede, or faux suede lace (I used orange)

  1/2-inch-diameter flat-back acrylic gems (I used orange)

  Hot glue gun and glue sticks

  15 large gold-tone jump rings (you can make your own by following the instructions in the Crystal Chain-link Necklaces project)

  HERE’S HOW

  1 Cut four pieces of 30-inch-long chain and create a four-strand necklace by connecting them all together with a jump ring at each end and a lobster claw for the closure.

  2 Cut four feathers out of leather or vinyl using the pattern below.

  3 Cut your wire the length of each feather and then zigzag over the wire by placing the wire onto the center of the back of each feather. On the sewing machine, zigzag over it to keep the wire in place.

  4 Fringe the feather with scissors.

  5 Add shimmer to the feathers by painting on the Lumiere copper. Add as much or as little as you want.

  6 Dust the edges of each feather with the Krylon gold spray paint and let dry.

  7 Cut seven 6-inch pieces of leather or suede lace and roll them like a cinnamon bun to create leather disks. Secure the ends with hot glue.

  8 Hot-glue a gem on each leather disk.

  9 Bend the end of each feather to create a loop. Add a large jump ring on the loop and hang at different points along your multistrand necklace. You will have to experiment.

  10 Slip a jump ring through your gem-covered leather disks and hang from different points along your necklace.

  11 Cut the extra chain into 5-inch pieces and add them to a jump ring to create a tassel. Make two of these and attach them at different points along your necklace.

  WHIRLY BROOCHES

  Okay, after creating 150 projects for this book, I just didn’t know what else to name these. My brain is whirling around right now and Whirly Brooches was the only thing I could come up with. It happens.

  YOU’LL NEED

  Leather or vinyl scraps in two matching colors

  Scissors

  E-6000 glue

  Clothespins

  Lumiere acrylic paints in pearl turquoise, green, and gold

  Small paintbrush

  Hot glue gun and glue sticks

  Pearls in
different sizes

  Pin backs for as many brooches as you want to make

  14 inches of leather, suede, or faux suede lace (for the Leafy Brooch)

  Toothpicks

  HERE’S HOW

  1 For each brooch, cut 5 sets of circles (small, medium, and large) in different colors of vinyl or leather, starting at 3 inches in diameter and getting smaller.

  2 Cut to the center of each circle, overlapping about 1/4 inch where you cut to create an almost flat cone shape. Secure with a dab of E-6000 and a clothespin until it dries.

  3 Paint the edges of each circle with the Lumiere paint and let dry.

  4 Glue sets of three circles together with E-6000 and let dry.

  5 Cut out an oval 4 inches by 3 inches from your vinyl or leather. Glue several flowers on with E-6000 and let dry.

  6 Glue a pearl in the center of each flower with E-6000.

  7 Glue a pin back to the brooch with E-6000 and let dry.

  FOR THE LEAFY BROOCH

  1 Cut a set of four circles, the largest being 31/2 inches in diameter and getting smaller.

  2 Cut to the center of each circle, overlapping about 1/4 inch where you cut to create a very flat cone shape. Secure with a dab of E-6000 glue and a clothespin until it dries.

  3 Paint the edges of each circle with turquoise and gold Lumiere paint.

  4 Create spiral disks by rolling up the leather or suede lace (like a cinnamon bun). Secure the edge with hot glue.

  5 Cut five leaves about 2 inches long by 1 inch wide from your vinyl or leather.

  6 Add a dab of hot glue at the end of each leaf and pinch until it dries. This will give it some dimension.

  7 Paint the edges of each leaf green and gold.

  8 Cut an oval about 3 inches by 2 inches from your vinyl or leather and glue on your large circular flower with E-6000.

  9 Using a tiny dab of hot glue, position the leaves under the big flower. With dabs of E-6000 on a toothpick, glue them in place.

  10 Glue on your leather disks and then the pearls with more E-6000 and let dry.

  11 Flip the piece over and glue your pin back on with E-6000.

  COMING AND GOING IN CIRCLES

  My mom once told me that people who draw circles are crazy. She told me this as I was drawing circles. Even though most people who know me would agree that I am a little off my rocker, I still love every kind of circle, and they look terrific on this bag and wallet. It’s a great way to revamp an old purse or spruce up a cheapo wallet. With just a few supplies, you can take this technique and apply it to just about anything.

  YOU’LL NEED

  1/4 yard of six different colors of vinyl or leather

  3 circle patterns of different sizes (glasses or stencils)

  Fiskars pinking shears

  E-6000 glue

  Old purse and wallet

  FOR THE WALLET

  Above, plus flat-back acrylic gems

  FOR THE PURSE DANGLE AND KEY CHAIN

  Flat-back acrylic gems

  Large pin

  2 jump rings

  8 inches of medium silver- or gold-tone chain

  Needle-nose pliers (and wirecutters if the pliers don’t have them)

  Hot glue gun and glue sticks

  HERE’S HOW

  1 Trace six of each size of circle (small, medium, and large) on the back of your vinyl or leather.

  2 Cut them out with pinking shears.

  3 Experiment with color combinations on your bag before you start gluing and figure out how many you’ll need for the project. Depending on the size of the bag, you may have to cut more.

  4 Glue the circles together, layering one on top of another from smallest to largest, using the E-6000 first before putting them on the bag.

  5 Glue the finished circles to the bag and lay something heavy over it so they dry in place and flat.

  FOR THE WALLET

  You will need only two different-size circles (small and medium) for the wallet in several different colors of vinyl. My circles were about 11/2 inches and 1 inch in diameter.

  1 Cut out your circles using pinking shears.

  2 Figure out your color combinations and how they will look on your wallet.

  3 Layer your circles and glue them together first before you put them on the wallet and before you add the gems.

  4 Glue the circles on the wallet and lay a book on top so they dry flat and in place.

  5 When dry, add a gem to the center of each circle with more E-6000 and let dry.

  FOR THE KEY CHAIN OR PURSE DANGLE

  1 Glue together two sets of three circles, adding a flat-back gem to the center of each set, and let dry.

  2 Glue the finished circles back to back with hot glue.

  3 Poke a hole on the edge of the two-sided circle with a large pin and push a jump ring through the hole.

  4 Add the chain and close the jump ring.

  GARDEN PARTY

  When I was growing up, my brothers and I would spend Saturdays with our dad at work. We loved watching him fix cars and do upholstery in the back of his shop. He was good at it, too—both the upholstery and fixing cars. As you can guess, I was always in the sewing part of the shop playing with vinyl and my brothers were usually outside getting dirty. I used to get the most amazing scraps of vinyl to play with, and this is where my obsession with vinyl flowers began. Change the colors of this project to fit your own taste and style.

  YOU’LL NEED

  Scraps of vinyl or leather in different colors

  Scissors

  E-6000 glue

  Clothespins

  Lumiere pearl turquoise acrylic paint

  21 inches of 18-gauge wire

  Needle-nose pliers (and wirecutters if the pliers don’t have them)

  Several crystal beads

  Several pearl beads

  3 yards of blue leather, suede, or faux suede lace

  Hot glue gun and glue sticks

  Fiskars pinking shears

  Large pin

  4 silver-tone jump rings

  16 inches medium silver-tone chain

  1 silver-tone lobster claw closure

  HERE’S HOW

  1 Using the patterns below, cut out enough flower shapes with regular scissors to create six flowers with three to four layers of petals each.

  2 Cut to the center of the curved-edge flowers, overlapping the edges where you cut about 1/4 inch so it creates a very flat cone shape, and glue them together with E-6000. This will make them look three-dimensional. Hold in place with clothespins while they dry.

  3 Paint the edges with the pearl turquoise acrylic paint and let dry.

  4 Glue the flowers together with E-6000 glue and let dry.

  5 Cut the wire into seven 3-inch pieces. Bend small loops in the wire, and put a crystal or pearl bead on each one.

  6 Cut five pieces of the leather or suede lace into 6-inch pieces. Roll each into a spiral disk (like a cinnamon bun) and hot-glue the end of the lace to the disk so that it holds together. Make five of these.

  7 With pinking shears, cut five small circles just a bit bigger than the disks.

  8 Mount the disks on the small pinked circles and then on the flat flowers and put a wire with a bead through all of the layers. Bend the wire on the back of the flower to secure the piece.

  9 Cut out a base piece of vinyl or leather in the size you want that will accommodate all your flowers.

  10 Cut out two pieces of vinyl or leather about 4 inches wide by 6 inches long and fringe them.

  11 Cut several pieces of the leather or suede lace about 8 inches long.

  12 Glue the fringe and leather strips on the base and the flowers over the top of the fringed pieces with E-6000 and let dry.

  13 Poke a hole in the sides of your flower piece with a large pin and add a jump ring on each side. Cut your chain into two 8-inch pieces and attach to jump ring on each side.

  14 Add jump rings to the ends of the chain and a lobster claw for the closure.

  WOODN’
T IT BE LOVELY?

  As I’m writing this, I realize that everything I know about wood, I learned from my grandfather. He had a tiny shed behind his house filled with tools perfectly mounted on pegboard. He was a skilled carpenter who loved to fish and was rarely without his Old Fart baseball cap. For Christmas one year I asked him for wood blocks and got exactly what I wished for—TONS of them. Not just a small set, but literally hundreds in all different shapes and sizes—they were beautiful. Slowly over time I learned how to use the band saw, the jigsaw, and finally, when I was old enough, the chop saw. I think about him every time I make a project with wood, even with the most basic tools.

  BLUE BIRD BANGLE

  The first person I showed this to thought I was out of my mind. The second and third people who saw it fell madly in love with it. I’m no longer friends with the first person, who clearly has no taste. This is by far my favorite project in this book. I have no idea why it speaks to me so much, it just does.

  YOU’LL NEED

  1/4-inch birch plywood (4 inches by 4 inches)

  Jigsaw with fine blade or band saw (or, better yet, someone to cut for you!)

  Fine sandpaper

  Minwax Express Color in Indigo

  Minwax Polycrylic clear coat

  Small paintbrushes

  Cast of bird head (casting instructions and materials)

  Krylon spray paint in Metallic Gold

  E-6000 glue