Halloween Charm Swap

Remember my Charmed Halloween series? It all started when Thespa from Vintiquities Workshop invited me to join in on her very fun Halloween Charm exchange.

I made 15 charms. Three each of five different styles.

You can find a tutorial on how to make each one:

"Watching Eye"

"Potion No. 9"

"Mummy"

"Spider"

"Caged Skull"

 

I sent my charms off to Thespa and in a few days received 15 awesome charms back. I was amazed at the variety...all so very cool and with the added bonus of fun and creative packaging! I almost hated to remove them from their tags!

 

 

I didn't want to make a bracelet that had every single charm on it - my wrist are very small and couldn't pull it off. My solution was to create a bracelet that I could add a few of the smaller charms to. It will be very easy to swap them out and use some of the other charms for a different look. It's like getting several bracelets in one!

 

I plan to use some of the larger charms for necklace pendants.

Check out Thespa's Halloween blog hop link party 

to see what everyone else created!

Happy Halloween!

 

Caged Skull - A Charmed Halloween Tutorial

Time for the last tutorial in my "Charmed Halloween" series.

CAGED SKULL

Supplies and Tools Needed:

For the Charm:
Plastic skull, about 3/4" x 1/2" (Mine was from a purchased bracelet)  

Two tiny green iridescent beads
Dark annealed steel wire, 24 & 28 gauge

Round-nose pliers

Flat-nose pliers

Wire cutters

Epoxy glue (I used E6000)

 

For the Tag:

Small shipping tag

Brown ink pad (I used Staz-On)

Desired images (I found mine at The Graphics Fairy)

Modge Podge

Paint brush

Scissors

1. Cut the bracelet apart and choose a skull.

 

 2. Glue one bead into each eye socket. Tip: Slide the bead on a piece of wire, apply a small dab of glue, place into the socket, hold for a minute and then slide wire out while holding bead into place with your finger.

 3. Cut three 6" pieces of 24 gauge wire and one 6" piece of 28 gauge. Place the center of a 24 gauge piece in the flat-nose pliers and bend the ends upward to form a "U" shape. Repeat for the other two. Bundle the wires together and secure at the center bottom by wrapping several times with the 28 gauge wire.

4. Trim the short tail of the 28 gauge wire that extends downward. Slide the skull on the long tail that extends upward.

5. Spread the 24 gauge wires apart and gather them together above the skull to form the cage.

  

 6. Wrap the 28 gauge wire around the other wires several times to secure them into place and then trim the 28 gauge wire.

7. Spread the 24 gauge wires so that five are extending outward and one is extending upward.

8. Trim each wire extending outward to about 1/2" and use the pliers to curve them downward over the wrapped area.

9. Make a wrapped loop in the wire extending upward.
(Find out how to make a wrapped loop here)

For the Tag:

Remove the string from the mailing tag. Use Modge Podge to glue an image collage to one side of it. Let dry. Repeat for the other side. Once dried, rub with brown ink to age the images. Use the string to tie the charm onto the tag.

Front of Tag

Back of Tag

 

I hope you enjoyed this tutorial.

More tutorials from the Charmed Halloween series:

"Watching Eye"

"Potion No. 9"

"Mummy"

"Spider" 

Sharing with: Funky Junk Interiors: SNS 159

Thanks for stopping by! 

 

Mummy - A Charmed Halloween Tutorial

Time for another tutorial in my "Charmed Halloween" series.

 MUMMY

Supplies and Tools Needed:

1 small wood rectangle (about 3/4" x 1")

2 small plastic googly eyes 

scraps of muslin

coffee or tea (to stain the muslin)

24 gauge dark annealed steel wire

Brown ink pad (I used Staz-On)

Round-nose pliers

Flat-nose pliers

Wire cutters

Modge Podge

Paint brush

Scissors

Sandpaper

For tag: small shipping tag, desired images (I found mine at The Graphics Fairy)

1. Tear the muslin into several 1/4" - 3/8" wide strips. Immerse the strips into coffee or tea to stain them. Remove and rinse. Ball them up and let them dry naturally or use a blow dryer. (Wadding them into a ball will give them a crinkled effect). Once dry, separate the strands.

 2. Rub a light amount of the brown ink onto the eyeballs to slightly darken them.

 

3. Wrap wire lengthwise around the wood piece and finish at the top with a wrapped loop. (Find out how to make a wrapped loop here)

 4. Use the Modge Podge to adhere a muslin strip to the wood piece by wrapping it to cover the wood. Glue the eyes into place.

 

5. Loosely glue muslin strips in a messy fashion to cover the first layer of muslin leaving the eyes uncovered.

6. Apply a thick coat of Modge Podge to the muslin to protect it and keep it from fraying. Let dry.

7. Lightly sand the muslin to remove some of the sharpness of the stiffened fabric.

For the Tag: 

Remove the string from the mailing tag. Use Modge Podge to glue an image collage to one side of it. Let dry. Repeat for the other side. Once dried, rub with brown ink to age the images. Use the string to tie the charm onto the tag.

 Front of Tag

Back of Tag

I hope you enjoyed this tutorial.

Be sure to return in a couple of days for the next tutorial

in my "Charmed Halloween" series!

More tutorials from the Charmed Halloween series:

"Watching Eye"

"Potion No. 9"

"Spider"

"Caged Skull"

Sharing with: Fireflies and Jellybeans: show Off Your Stuff , I Gotta Create!: Wildly Original Party, Happy-Go-Lucky: Shine on Friday, Here Comes the Sun: Fabulous Friday, Funky Junk Interiors: SNS 156 & 159, Craft-O-Maniac: Craft-O-Maniac Monday

Thanks for stopping by!

POTION No. 9 - A Charmed Halloween Tutorial

Time for another tutorial in my "Charmed Halloween" series.

POTION No. 9

Supplies and Tools Needed:

Small plastic vial with lid

Apothecary images (I found mine at The Graphics Fairy)

Resin (I used ICE Resin)

24 gauge dark annealed steel wire 

5-6 tiny clear beads 

Brown ink pad (I used Staz-On)

Green glitter

Green food coloring

Round-nose pliers

Flat-nose pliers

Wire cutters

Modge Podge

Paint brush

Scissors

Needle tool

1. Size the graphic to fit the vial and print. I added the words "Potion No. 9" and "drink if you dare".

 2. Cut the label and words out. Use the Modge Podge to glue the words onto the label so that the skull still shows. Let dry. Rub the label with the brown ink to age it. Wrap the label around the vial and glue into place.

3. Use the round-nose pliers to make a tiny loop at one end of a piece of wire. Add a bead and then use the pliers to make a curvy bend into the wire above the bead. Repeat with 4-5 more beads. Use the needle tool to poke a hole in the lid.

 4. Insert the beaded end of the wire into the vial. Place the cap back on with the wire end extending up through the hole in the lid. Make a wrapped loop at the top. (Find out how to make a wrapped loop here)

 

5. Remove the lid from the vial.

 

6. Mix the resin according to the manufacturer's instructions. Add a drop of food coloring and some glitter and stir.

7. Pour the resin into the vial to fill (make sure to leave a little space at the top so it doesn't overflow once the lid is replaced). Replace the lid. Let cure.

 For the Tag:

Remove the string from a small mailing tag. Use Modge Podge to glue an image collage to one side of it. Let dry. Repeat for the other side. Once dried, rub with brown ink to age the images. Use the string to tie the charm onto the tag.

 Front of Tag

Back of Tag

I hope you enjoyed this tutorial.

Be sure to return in a couple of days for the next tutorial

in my "Charmed Halloween" series!

More tutorials from the Charmed Halloween series:

"Watching Eye"

"Mummy"

"Spider 

"Caged Skull"

Sharing With: I Gotta Create!: Wildly Original Party , Funky Junk Interiors: SNS 155 & 159

Thanks for stopping by!