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Tuesday, December 1, 2015

How to Make a Personalized Glass Bead Necklace


Turn glass stones from Dollar Tree into a personalized pendant necklace, perfect for gift giving!


I don't know about you, but I love making personalized gifts for Christmas and other special occasions. There's just nothing more personal and meaningful than giving a thoughtful handmade gift.  Every year for Christmas, I like to make my mother and mother-in-law a personalized gift of our kids. I've made calendars, photo books and coasters in the past, but this year I decided to make something different.  I bought glass stones from Dollar Tree and made personalized glass bead necklaces. 


DIY personalized glass bead pendant necklace using Dollar Tree stones


SUPPLIES NEEDED TO MAKE A PERSONALIZED GLASS BEAD PENDANT
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-  Decorative Glass Beads (Buy them at the Dollar Store, they are much cheaper!)
-  182.8 cm Chain (I used Silver)
-  Jump Rings
-  Lobster Clasps
-  Glue on Bails
-  Mod Podge and Gorilla Glue
- Printer
- Scissors
- Needle nose pliers
- Scrapbook paper


HOW TO MAKE A PERSONALIZED GLASS BEAD PENDANT

First, find a picture that you want to use and resize it to fit your bead.  I used PicMonkey to size my picture down to 75 x 109 and also change it from color to black and white.  Make sure you have the "Keep Proportions" option checked.

Resizing photo in picmonkey for glass bead necklace

Supplies for personalized glass pendant necklace

Cut your picture down to size then paint a thin coat of Mod Podge onto the back of a glass stone. Place picture on Mod Podge and press firmly to get rid of any bubbles and extra glue.

 Gluing picture onto glass stone using Mod Podge

Cut a piece of scrapbook paper and apply it the same way over top your picture.  This finishes the back and also helps to avoid the gorilla glue from bleeding through your picture.  Do not skip this step!
Jewelry supplies needed for personalized glass bead necklace
Now that your bead is done you'll need to cut your chain to whatever length you desire.  Using needle nose pliers pull apart two jump rings and add them to each end of your chain.
using pliers to add jump rings and lobster clasps to silver chain
Add a lobster clasp to one of the jump rings. 
Adding clasp to personalized glass bead pendant
 Then glue on a bail using gorilla glue and you're done!
Back of personalized glass bead pendant necklace

Front of personalized glass bead pendant

Personalized glass bead pendant

This personalized glass bead pendant necklace is not only the perfect handmade gift, but it's also super affordable too! 

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 DIY personalized glass bead pendant necklace


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Would you like to comment?

  1. I just LOVE this, Katie! I didn't know you could get those hook things that were flat so you could glue them on. I have a bajillion of these glass beads in my craft stash and now I can finally use them! Thanks girl.

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  2. I absolutely adore this Katie!!! SO creative!

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  3. This is so cute Katie!! Would be so perfect for a stocking stuffer :)

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  5. So adorable! What a special gift :) I have a load of glass beads lying around too so now I know what to do!

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  6. So cute!! I love this idea, and I love that it's a necklace! Such a fun gift idea. :) Thanks for the giveaway, too!

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  7. This is such a unique idea! I love it!!! Great tutorial and your pictures rock!

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  8. Yes, this is a perfect DIY gift! It's amazing all the different uses for those glass beads. Thanks for sharing!

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  9. Love this idea! I know some Grandma's that would be giddy to get something like this!

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  10. Katie, what a sweet gift idea! There are so many people who'd love to get something handmade like this. It's so special.

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  11. This is such a cute idea, Katie! Your kids are adorable too.

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  12. So, so sweet, Katie! I love it! I know so many people who would absolutely adore this as a gift. Thanks for the idea, friend!

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  13. I received one of these recently & love it! Thanks for sharing your process.

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  14. Hi! Do you use a circle punch for quicker crafting? If so, what size is best for the dollar tree glass beads? Thanks!

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  15. Thanks so much for this sweet and personal gift idea! I included your post in a Mother's Day inspiration board I created. https://lagunalane.com/mothers-day-inspiration-board/

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  16. What did you use to print the photos on? Will the mod Podge work with photo paper or professional printed photos?

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    Replies
    1. I printed the photos on regular white paper using my inkjet printer. I've also used regular professional printed photos with no problem.

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