Jewelry Making

DIY Jewelry, Beads And Patterns

Jewelry Artist Mini Interview-Jennifer Cameron/Glass Addictions

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Today’s mini interview is with lampwork artist Jennifer Cameron. Her business name is “Glass Addictions” and you will easily understand why when you see her work!

How did you start doing jewelry/beadmaking as a business?
My obsession with glass started with a simple class making a stained glass panel. I was immediately fell in love with glass and was compelled to start taking as many classes as I possibly could and planning vacations around what glass related places we could visit.
Within 3 years of that first class, I got my first kiln and started fusing. I desperately wanted to make lampwork beads too, but resisted…an entire YEAR of resisting! Now I have 4 kilns (one of which only anneals beads) and haven’t made a stained glass panel in 5 or 6 years.
Making jewelry out of my beads was a natural and unplanned progression. I was completely surprised by how much I enjoy creating jewelry and sometimes prefer making jewelry to making beads. I go through different creative phases like many other artisans.

Do you remember the first piece of jewelry you ever made?
It was probably a macaroni necklace for my mom! However, the first “serious” attempt at jewelry was probably one of my first fused dichroic cabs that I then wire wrapped into a bracelet using instructions from Jayne Persico’s book. I don’t really care for that style of wire wrapping now, but I still have that bracelet.

You are stuck on a desert island for a year and can only take 5 things to make
jewelry with-what would you take?
Are you kidding me? Is it possible to only have five? I like to have every tool known to man at
my disposal!  OK, I would definitely need my Lindstrom RX Pliers: Flatnose, Chainnose,
Roundnose, and Wire Cutters; and lots of wire.

What material would you like to work with/or what skill would you like to learn
that you haven?t yet?
I am really wanting to try some mixed media and collage, incorporating it into my jewelry and my home. There just aren’t enough hours in the day!

 

 

Luxury time is spent reading or taking classes for learning new techniques to incorporate into my work. Goofing off time is spent on twitter, facebook, and other social networking activites. I also homeschool my children, and work as the primary chauffer, secretary, accountant, maid, chef, and all the other mom stuff.
What do you do when you aren’t making jewelry?

Upcoming Show:Indiana Art Fair at the Indiana State Museum Feb. 21-22

Glass Addictions Links: website: http://www.glassaddictions.com/
blog: http://www.glassaddictions.blogspot.com
etsy: http://www.glassaddictions.etsy.com
1000 markets: http://www.glassaddictions.1000markets.com
twitter: http://twitter.com/GlassAddictions
Facebook: a really long link! Search for Glass Addictions on facebook or there are links on
my website and blog.

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10 DIY Recycled Christmas Jewelry Ideas

Turn old Christmas cards, broken jewellery, bottle caps, gift wrap, burnt-out Christmas lights, and forgotten beads into festive recycled Christmas jewelry with these clever DIY tutorials.

There is something wonderfully satisfying about making Christmas jewelry from things that might otherwise end up in the bin. Old Christmas cards, broken costume necklaces, bottle caps, leftover wrapping paper, odd beads, single earrings, and even those dead Christmas light bulbs all have a bit of festive life left in them if you look at them with crafty eyes.

I have a soft spot for recycled Christmas crafts because they feel a little more personal. Anyone can buy a pair of novelty earrings from a shop, but turning last year’s Christmas cards into beads, or making angel charms from broken jewellery, gives the finished piece a story. And honestly, at this stage of life, I am far more interested in a good story than another plastic bauble rolling under the couch for Aloo to find in February.

These DIY recycled jewelry ideas include upcycled earrings, bottle cap pendants, Christmas light jewelry, paper bead earrings, recycled gift card necklaces, angel charms, Santa bead ornaments, and altered art pendants. Some are directly festive, and others are clever recycled jewelry techniques that can easily be made Christmas-ready with holiday colours, old cards, wrapping paper, glitter, charms, or beads from your stash.

If you love sustainable crafting, handmade Christmas gifts, or jewellery making that uses what you already have, this roundup is a lovely place to start.

DIY Recycled Christmas Jewelry Ideas To Make From Your Stash

1. DIY Christmas Angels From Upcycled Jewellery

This is exactly the sort of recycled Christmas jewelry project I love because it turns broken necklaces, odd beads, and old costume jewellery into sweet little angel charms. The finished angels can become earrings, pendants, keychains, decorations, or bracelet charms, which makes them handy for gift-making. These would be especially meaningful if you used beads from a sentimental piece of jewellery that is no longer wearable.

2. Vintage Bead Santa

This CraftBits tutorial uses vintage jewellery that is no longer wearable to create cute little bead people, including Santa-style Christmas characters. You could turn them into pendants, brooches, bag charms, keychains, or Christmas necklace charms depending on how you finish them. It is a lovely way to keep old beads in circulation instead of letting them sit forgotten in a tin.

3. Sustainable Sparkle: Eco-Friendly Christmas Earrings

This tutorial repurposes old Christmas decorations into festive earrings, which is such a clever idea if you have little plastic picks, glittery berries, tiny ornaments, or trims that are too nice to throw away. The project shows how simple findings and glue can transform unwanted holiday decor into wearable Christmas accessories. I like this one for anyone who has a “maybe useful one day” box of Christmas bits under the craft table.

4. How To Make Recycled Christmas Light Jewelry

If you have a strand of Christmas lights that no longer works, don’t toss the whole thing straight away. This tutorial shows how to turn the little bulbs into holiday jewellery using jump rings, earring hooks, necklace chain, jewellery glue, and basic tools. It is quirky, nostalgic, and perfect for anyone who likes Christmas jewellery with a little retro sparkle.

5. Santa Bottle Cap Necklace

Bottle caps are brilliant for recycled Christmas jewelry because they already have that perfect little pendant shape. This Santa bottle cap necklace tutorial uses a printable image, bottle caps, epoxy stickers, and glue to create a festive necklace that would also work as a party favour or gift topper. You could make a whole batch using Santa, snowmen, gingerbread, vintage Christmas cards, or tiny family photos.

6. Resin Bottle Cap Bracelet

This CraftBits resin bottle cap bracelet is not Christmas-only, but it is a wonderful recycled jewelry technique to adapt for the holidays. Use old bottle caps, tiny Christmas images, scraps of wrapping paper, glitter, sequins, or miniature charms to create festive bracelet links. It would be a fun handmade gift for someone who likes chunky, playful jewellery.

7. Paper Bead Christmas Tree Earrings

These Christmas tree earrings are made from paper beads, and that makes them perfect for using up old Christmas wrapping paper, holiday scrapbook scraps, or even nice sections from old cards. They are lightweight, inexpensive, and look surprisingly polished once sealed. I especially like these for teacher gifts or craft stall makes because they are festive without needing expensive supplies.

8. Recycled Paper Beads

This CraftBits tutorial teaches the basic technique for making beads from recycled paper, junk mail, flyers, or any paper you already have. For Christmas jewelry, try using old wrapping paper, Christmas cards, sheet music from carols, catalogues, or red and green magazine pages. Once you have the beads made, you can string them into necklaces, bracelets, earrings, or charm dangles.

9. Altered Art Glass Slide Jewelry

Glass slide jewellery is a beautiful way to preserve tiny paper images, and it works so well with recycled Christmas cards. Cut out a small angel, snowflake, holly sprig, vintage Santa, or nativity detail from an old card and sandwich it inside the slide to create a pendant. This is a lovely grown-up recycled Christmas jewellery project if you want something more arty and keepsake-style.

10. How To Make A Necklace With Recycled Gift Cards

Old plastic gift cards are easy to forget about once the balance is gone, but this tutorial turns them into a modern recycled necklace. For a Christmas version, use red, green, silver, gold, or patterned gift cards, or cut shapes from old holiday-themed cards. This is a smart idea for anyone who likes bold, graphic jewellery and wants a recycled project that does not look too obviously “Christmas craft.”

Tips For Making Recycled Christmas Jewelry Look Gift-Worthy

The trick with recycled Christmas jewelry is to make the finish feel intentional. File sharp edges, seal paper beads, add a little polish with jump rings and proper findings, and choose a simple colour palette so the pieces look designed rather than thrown together after too much fruitcake.

Red, green, gold, silver, pearl white, icy blue, and clear crystal are all easy Christmas colour choices. If you prefer a softer vintage look, try old book pages, sheet music, muted gold, cream pearls, and tiny brass charms. For something more playful, use bright wrapping paper, glitter, jingle bells, recycled plastic, or novelty Christmas card images.

It is also worth saving broken jewellery throughout the year. A lone earring can become a pendant. A broken bracelet can be turned into charms. A pearl necklace with a snapped string can become angel beads. Even a Christmas decoration that has lost its hanger might have one last life as a brooch, necklace, or pair of earrings.

More Recycled Jewelry Inspiration

For more recycled jewellery ideas, you may also like CraftBits’ Computer Keyboard Earrings or Guitar Pick Necklace, both of which could be adapted into fun stocking stuffers for teenagers, music lovers, or the tech person in your family.

Recycled Christmas jewelry is such a lovely reminder that handmade gifts do not need to begin with a shopping trip. Sometimes the best materials are already sitting in a drawer, tangled in the bottom of a jewellery box, or tucked inside last year’s Christmas card pile waiting for a second chance.