Simple Yet Beautiful Wood Necklace (one Hour)

So, you want to make some money on Etsy, or, like me, give your mother a nice and simple heart necklace which she will cherish forever. You could go to a store and get her something that costs an arm and a leg or make her a nice handmade necklace (which do you think would mean more to her a mass produced necklace or a handmade one?). This project can easily be completed if you are an experienced carver in an hour, or ten minutes if you have a scroll saw. If you see any mistakes in my instructible or have tips or questions please leave a comment. Also, please take two seconds to vote for me in the contest. Happy making!

-square piece of wood about 1x1 inch big (try your local carpentry shop they might give you some for free) I suggest soft wood it is easier to carve than hard wood

-carving knife

-sandpaper 100 120 150 220 grit

-crayon (they are better than a pencil especially on dark wood

-food grade mineral oil or finish of you choice (optional)

-imagination.

-one hour (about)

-something that can drill holes I used a Dremel tool

-fishing swivel and snap

-leather cord that is thin enough to fit through the swivel

note: almost all my links are for Canadian stores

Ok, you need a small square of wood. Now, draw on it a heart or use the the template or just look up heart- template on google and find one you like. Print it off, cut it out, and use a glue stick to stick it to your wood.

Now you need to rough out your wooden heart, and when I mean rough it out, I mean rough it out. In the photos the edges of the heart looks smooth because I sanded the edges so the pictures would be clearer. Once you have roughed out the sides of the heart, you need to start the V shape in the middle. You need to be very careful when doing it otherwise if the V is not well done you will make the whole heart look funny. Also you should leave enough wood so that you can sand it down to refine the shape more exactly.

You now need to finish shaping and sanding the wooden heart to your desired size, shape, and look. Then get your drill bits out, find one that matches the size of your swivel, and carefully drill a hole just deep enough to fit the wire loop at one end of the swivel. Now take out your swivel and fill the hole with super glue and then carefully shove your swivel into the hole filled with super glue and be careful not get it on the swivel or the surrounding wood. Once the glue has dried go to the next step.

Okay, if everything went well and you followed the steps, your heart should look like the first photo. Take your leather cord and and hold a piece around your neck. When you cut it, leave an cm or two extra (you will see why later). Now, thread the leather through the swivel on the wooden heart. Then get your fishing snap (if you are using a different way of securing the necklace you can skip to the next step) as you can see in the fourth picture and feed the leather cord through the smaller end of the snap so there is about one cm poking through. Then get your waxed cord and sandwich it between the leather. Wrap it around from snap to the end of the loop. Leave about a mm space between where cord is wrapped so it can move near the snap. Tie off the cord using a half hitch. Make a loop the same size on the other end of the cord, wrap i, sandwich the string between, and wrap it around the same way. Admire your handy work. Before you get too amazed at what you have made, get a paper towel, put a bit of mineral oil on it (or preferred finish). For the mineral oil, wait at least thirty minutes before you or the person you are giving it to puts it on. After you have waited the thirty minutes, unclip the big end of the fishing snap get someone to put it around your neck, (or if it is for your wife, mother, or girlfriend stick it around their neck) and know that if you feel it is not perfect that is great. It is what sets it apart from other mass-produced jewelry. Oh, and if you do make one, please post it in the I made it section.

These are some photos I took of the necklace. The girl in the photos is my younger sister I agreed that if she took photos when I needed both hands for it. I would put her photo into it. PS. don't forget to vote for me please and and if you make the project post a photo in I made it