Personalized Jewelry | Family Economics

By Cathe

With the materials and technology now available to most of us at a household level, it is so easy to create unique custom gifts. One of my favorites is creating personalized jewelry.

Small photo frame charms are easily available online or in most craft stores. But don’t just limit yourself to dropping only photographs into the charms; consider other images and items as well.

Here are a few fun ideas:

• Photograph, resize and frame sections of Grandma’s vintage quilt to create an heirloom charm bracelet

• Scan and reduce a wedding invitation for an anniversary pendant

• Copy a birth announcement to frame into a pendant necklace for a mother

• Find images of favorite books and frame into charms for a bookworm’s birthday bracelet

• Print out various meaningful words to add to a chain to encourage a friend

• Frame a tiny version of a cherished love letter

You can also create personalized jewelry with a lighter style using sheets of printable shrink plastic also found in stores and online. Following manufacturer instructions, print off images three times as large as you want your final piece to be.  Don’t forget to punch your hole for stringing before baking.

Lockets can also hold special mementos. In lieu of a photograph, use a liquid resin to encase a snippet of a child’s first hair-cut, or glue in a small button from the shirt of someone very special to be remembered.

The holidays are not so far away, so begin collecting your supplies and ideas to craft some very thoughtful gifts. Just don’t forget to make a few for yourself.