Vintage Book Cuff

I'm sure by now most of you know that I'm a thrift store junkie and that I love finding ways to re-purpose some of my thrifty finds into jewelry.

One of the things I'm always picking up at the thrift stores are vintage hardcover books. Many of them have beautiful artwork on the covers and along the spine. I decided instead of just displaying them on a shelf, it would be fun to wear some of that beauty. A cuff seemed to be the perfect way to do just that!

 

Some recycled suede, used jewelry and a few easy steps was all it took to create these unique cuffs.

supplies:
vintage book
recycled suede
heavy duty snaps
used piece of jewelry
fabric glue
wire
wire cutters
scissors
bead reamer

Rip the cover away from the pages.

Carefully rip the spine from the cover.

Apply a layer of glue to the front of the spine. I used my finger to spread it out evenly. It gets tacky very quickly so work fast.

Let dry completely.

Tear a piece of suede that is slightly larger than the spine.

My wrists are small so I did not need to add any extra length.

I suggest you measure your wrist and add extra length

to the suede piece if necessary.

Apply glue to the back of the spine and lay it over the suede piece.

Let dry completely.

Decide where you want the piece of jewelry.

Attach it to the cuff with wire. I used a bead reamer to poke the holes.

Trim and secure the wire at the back.

Cut a piece of suede a little smaller than the one used for the cuff

and glue it to the back of the cuff.

Follow the manufacturers instructions to

add the snap to one end of the cuff.

Wrap the cuff around your wrist to line up the placement for the other half of the snap and follow the manufacturers instructions to add it.

That's all there is to it!

Your finished cuff should look something like this.

 

Happy Creating!
 
 Sharing with: I Gotta Create!: Wildly Original link party, Funky Junk Interiors: Party Junk, Craft-O-Maniac: Craft-O-Maniac Monday

the Value of a Postage Stamp

What is the value of a postage stamp?

My dad is a philatelist which is just a fancy word for stamp collector. He has been collecting stamps for almost his entire life. Our local newspaper even wrote an article about him and his hobby. Here is the photo from that article.

Over the years my dad has acquired many stamps that vary in value. Lucky for me, I get the ones that he deems worthless. When I asked him what makes them worthless, he said it is because they are torn, bent, creased or just too common to be of any value at all. This may be true in the world of a philatelist but in my world...not so! The colors and designs of most stamps are beautiful and as for the creases...well...that just adds character!

I finally got around to making a necklace with a few of

my not-so-worthless stamps and wanted to share it with you.

I made the frames from brass washers that I purchased at a hardware store.

I hammered them for texture and then used E600 to glue handmade

copper rings and brass escutcheon pins to them.

I chose to use numbers because I have a thing for them...they're graphic and they just look cool! Besides, they were about the only area on the stamps that would be recognizable once placed inside the tiny frames. I lined the back of the frames with clear packing tape, used Modge Podge to glue the numbers into place and covered them with ICE resin.  I love how the resin magnifies the numbers! I wrapped copper wire around the escutcheon pins and wired each frame onto a strip of reclaimed green suede and then finished off the necklace with a copper chain and a handmade hook clasp.

What is the value of a postage stamp? I guess it depends on who you ask; but if you ask me, the value of these stamps are priceless because every time I wear this necklace it reminds me of my dad!

Linked to Funky Junk Interiors and some of these other link parties.

a Girl and her SHOES!

What is it about a girl and her shoes? We want them! We need them!! We have to have them!!! But what do we do when we find that perfect pair at a garage sale or thrift store (only a dollar or two) and, darn! wrong size? Pass up a cute pair of shoes?...I think not!

My solution...make them into a necklace!

A little crazy? Maybe! And yet, I've created some designs that I would never have imagined otherwise and they are completely unique!

 This design called Autumn Leaves began with these sandals that I found at a thrift store.

I painted the suede leaves to up the luxury value

and embellished them with lustrous pearls.

 I finished the piece off with a copper chain and a handmade hook clasp.

Over the next couple of days I will be sharing more of my shoe-licious leather creations. I hope you will return and check them out!

Sharing with: Not Just A Housewife: Show Me What Ya Got

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