Literary Jewelry

Did you go to an 80s party once (or did you live through the 80s?) and still have those horrible, tacky, thick bracelets? Or maybe you have a headband that's a bit worse for wear? Never fear, your favorite book is near!

I saw this book bracelet by larking on Etsy and thought, "If I could make one, it could be a great holiday gift!" Yes, it's time to start thinking about winter shopping, I hate to admit it. Instead of spending $25, though, this was a cheap and fun project and straight from the heart. The hardest part? Finding the right book.

Before shot

So since I don't have that many thick bracelets hangin' around, I decided to buy the cheapest one I could find on Amazon, since I knew I'd be covering it up anyway. Our lucky contestant? A pink and black/brown/orange zebra print 1.25" wide felt bracelet. Eww.

Next, the text to cover it up! Since my sister Betsy Bird just recently came out with a children's book (do you have a kid and do they love to dance??), I thought that a bracelet made with her own words might be something unique.


SUPPLIES NEEDED:

1. Bracelet/Headband/whatever it is you're decorating
2. Paper (printer paper, cardstock, parchment, etc.)
3. Scissors
4. Mod Podge
5. Foam brush (optional)

Now here's a list of mistakes I did so you don't follow in my footsteps:

#1 - Don't try to cover up felt. Make sure your bracelet/headband/whatever it is you're covering is something non-porous - plastic, wood, etc. I learned this the hard way - I tried to cover up felt and not only did the paper rip but showed pink through. Bad plan.

#2 - Print out your text in Word single-spaced and cut out each line of text before doing any gluing. Since I used a 1.25" wide bracelet, I had my text only be 2.75" long so I could wrap the text around to the bracelet. The bracelet was 10" long, which equaled to a page and a quarter of text (Times New Roman, Size 11). You can use regular printer paper but I went with Southworth Parchment Paper so it looked a bit more like the original posting.

#3 - Use Mod Podge and either a foam applicator to apply or use your finger but wear gloves. I used my finger to rub Mod Podge on top of and underneath the strips of text, but halfway through, my fingers were very sticky and it took a while to eventually get it off my nails. When you're adding the text, remember to not leave any spaces showing! And don't worry about the inside not being perfect, no one is going to be seeing that once it's worn.

After shot

TOTAL COSTS: About $11
$1.99 for the bracelet from Amazon
$8.99 for 16 oz. of Mod Podge from Michael's (I used maybe 2 Tablespoon's worth)
$.99 for 2" foam brush from Michael's (that I ended up not using)

TOTAL AMOUNT OF TIME: 2 hours, 15 minutes
1hr. 15 minutes to print out text, cut it up, and glue to bracelet
1hr. to dry

EASY-PEASY SCALE: 2 out of 5
Not hard at all, just a bit time consuming (especially if you have to type out the text yourself) but overall, half the price of what's being offered on Etsy and more personal too!