My Little E really enjoys jewelry making. Despite the fact that she doesn’t love to have her hair brushed, she is quite fancy. She also loves nail polish. How can you not love nail polish? Since we tend to be “collectors” (on the brink of hoarding…) of nail polish, it seemed logical that we combine two of her favorite things into a craft.  She really enjoyed this project and had to make necklaces for all of your friends. The supplies are very simple and inexpensive. (my favorite kind) This is the kind of project you could dig around the toolbox and do on the spur of the moment. I have seen these done in some elaborate styles. Have fun with it.

Supplies:

• I got a container of 1 1/4″ Fender Washers. You can find other sizes and you could also combine different sizes layered on top.
• E6000 adhesive. I bought 10 tubes on a sale…but honestly, anything that will hold the gems on is good.
• Nail polish…the glitter is a bonus..or you could always add glitter on top of wet polish. We LOVE glitter.
• Gems of any kind. I find them in my travels and “collect” them. These came on sheets. They never stick as well as I would like, so that’s why I had Little E use the glue.
• Sting or leather twine for the actual necklace.

I’m not going to tell you that you won’t get nail polish on your fingers (or nose in some cases;) )..it’s bound to happen. A little mess is never the end of the world. You will want to cover both sides of the washer one at a time. This project does have a lot of stopping points as you wait for the polish to dry. We did several washers at a time and took breaks to snack or read in-between drying times. 

The number of layers you will need will depend on your polish. The lighter polish needed a couple of coats. The better polish covered in one coat.

The polish has to be totally dry before sticking on your gems. Little E used a toothpick to apply a bit of the glue to the washers and stuck on the gems. Again…walk away and let them dry.

That’s it for the washers…just loop in your necklace string and pull through its self and you have a necklace. 

I hope you and your little one enjoy this. Anytime they can make something and then wear it with pride is special. It gives them that handmade confidence that really carries over into other parts of life.