Charms, old and new

From time-to-time we have to update our charm selection. These new, tiny, pennies arrived just today. They are solid copper and cost more than a real, actual penny. There was a lot of 'oh!' and 'cute!' when we unpacked them.

There are charms that are going away, though. It has to happen. I can't fall in love with anything...

First Friday in May-make a nest charm

Our First Friday project for May is this Nest Pendant. Come make one for free*, 6-8 on First Friday. We'll also have beer and wine for donations to the Wake SPCA. After you make your pendant, you can make one of our other great Make-N-Takes or check out the newest beads and supplies we have just put out!

*we'll give you a free instruction sheet to take home, too! additional pendants are $4 each, or you can purchase the wire and beads yourself to make MANY for around $10!

Penny for your thoughts...a great charm project

This sweet penny pendant project is from Cathe Holden's Just Something I Made blog. Cathe creates lovely craft projects and the most amazing free printable labels, stickers and other goodies. If you don't already subscribe to her blog, you should do so.

This project uses a penny and one of my favorite quick-craft ingredients; Amazing Glaze.
You can punch holes in the penny with any kind of metal punch...and I love Cathe's great idea for a 'riser' to lift the penny up while baking it.

Check out the project directions here.

New Tutorial - Magnetic Charm Bracelet Instructions

This project first appeared as one of our Try-It-Tuesdays. The table was SUPER BUSY all day. A mix of two strands of leather and a few simple charms turns into a hip bracelet in just a few minutes.

Check out the full instructions for this project here.

If you want to have free projects like this emailed directly to you just subscribe to our Dispatch by clicking this link.

Charming Inspiration - Makin' Charms

 

I've been working on my swap charms. They are tiny baskets. The ones for the swap are sort of like that top one-with linen and silver wire. The bird-cagey one below it is an attempt to make a, well, a bird cage. It ended up turning into a regular basket. My swap baskets are a bit more colorful that the ones shown here-I'm adding linen so I have quite the rainbow to work with. 

See more Charming Inspiration here.

Are your charms done? 

And here's a basket tutorial for you:

click the picture to see the wire basket how-to

Charming Inspiration - Celebrity Swapper!

Diana from Suburban Girl Studios is joining our swap...I love her porcelain beads and charms.

These packages are going to be SO exciting to open!

You can visit Diane's etsy site here...she sells finished jewelry using her beads and charms.
You can get more swap information or pay for your swap shipping here.

Charm Swap Ideas

If you are thinking about participating in our Lucky Charm Swap you are probably already working on your charms procrastinating until the last minute. That's what I often do. I can't help it.

I spend a lot of time deciding on just the right thing to make.

And then I change my mind. This year, however, I decided right away.

The charm swap rules are here and it's pretty easy to participate, even if you don't live in our area. You can download the registration form and, if you'll need it, pay for the shipping package. Make sure your charms arrive here by February 29th and you can pick them up on March 2nd or we'll ship them to you. I'm really looking forward to the swap this year as there are several 'celebrity swappers' who are participating. You never know who's charms you'll get in the swap, so it's a always fun to open up your package!

This year, I've already started on my teeny-weeny woven wire baskets. I have 3 1/2 done, which is pretty good. If you need inspiration, you can check out Amber Dawn's site, Inventive Soul, for tons of charming inspiration. You can also get some information about International Charm Day, April 28th.

You can read here about how I participate each year.

Try It Tuesday with Wee Bird Nest Charm

Back by popular demand, we are doing the little bird nest charms this week for Try It Tuesday.  They make a cute pendant or you can do two and make them into earrings!  Just $2.00 a piece folks.