Twinkling Necklace

I have been going through a lot of jewelry and sewing supplies I've kept over the years and found a LilyPad set from Sparkfun that I bought years ago. I thought it would be fun to incorporate the twinkling lights into a necklace to have it really sparkle.

LilyPad is a wearable e-textile technology. You use conductive thread to sew the components together to complete the circuits. You can use Arduino to program some components, but the LilyTwinkle is already programmed to twinkle-fade like fireflies. 

I have a LilyTwinkle, several LEDs, a coin cell battery holder and an on/off switch. Apparently the battery holder has been discontinued and now you can buy one with the on/off switch directly on it. I bought one of those for this project so anyone can follow along.

There are several challenges I will need to tackle in the design for this necklace. I have to make sure I can connect all the parts without short circuiting anything. I have to make sure I can sew the parts together so the necklace will need to include fabric or some material that I can pierce a needle through. I can’t just drape the thread or it could short circuit the lights. I need to create a way to make the necklace comfortable to wear (without those metal components scratching my neck) and develop a way to change the battery when needed. And, I want the design to be stylish while also accomplishing all those other tasks.

But I love a good design challenge, so let’s get started!

LilyPad components

• LilyTwinkle
• LilyPad Coin Cell Battery Holder - Switched
• Conductive Thread
• LilyPad LEDs (I have white, but they come in many colors)
• 3V coin cell battery

Necklace materials

• Fabric that won't fray when cut like leather, vegan leather, or vinyl
• Felt sheet (one that won't stretch)
• A lining fabric to cover the components in back (something comfortable to wear against your skin)
• Thread to match
• Chalk, chalk marker, or paint marker to mark LilyPad components layout on fabric
• Mod Podge Fabric or other fabric glue
• Focal piece (I'll discuss how to find these in Step 3)
• 5 head pins
• 22 gauge wire
• Beads to match focal piece (amounts and sizes will be discussed in Step 6)
• Jewelry chain
• Two 15-20mm open rounds
• 34 6mm jump rings
• Two 10mm jump rings
• One 8mm jump ring
• Bead cones
• Aleene's Tacky Glue
• Toggle clasp

Tools

• Sketchbook or design software if you want to create a different design from mine (alternative pendant shapes are offered in Step 2)
• Fabric scissors
• Laser cutter
• Masking or painter's tape 
• Sewing machine 
• Sewing needle and needle threader
• Chain nose jewelry pliers (two of them to open jump rings)
• Round nose jewelry pliers
• Flush or side cutter for wire
• Small paint brush

Before we can even begin designing the necklace, we need to know how to connect all the Lilypad components.

On the Sparkfun website there's a tutorial for connecting the LilyTwinkle to the components they used to sell. However, because the battery holder different now, I need to test how to connect this component to the Twinkle and the LEDs. Also, the LilyTwinkle has 4 LED connection points, but the LEDs come in 5 packs, so I want to use that last LED if I can. I think I can connect it to one set of the positive and negative terminals on the battery holder to keep it from twinkling and the rest can connect to the LilyTwinkle to have that fade in and out light show. I have plenty of conductive thread, so I test this hypothesis.

What we can’t do is cross the thread connecting all positive ends with the thread connecting all negative ends. We also need to make sure the thread is taut and that there are no thread tails that could possibly touch the stitching and short circuit the whole set. 

NOTE: If you plan to run similar tests on your own, make sure you don't install the battery until after you've sewn everything together.

Testing, testing Part I

I used a long scrap of light colored fabric I had so I could see my stitches. For my first test, I just put the battery holder at the top, one light to the left side, and connect those to see what happens.

The conductive thread works and sews just like regular thread except it's a little rough (feels like hemp cord). I was able to tie a knot in the end just like I do regular thread. It was a little harder to cut with my scissors that really need to be sharpened, so make sure your scissors are sharp. It splays itself out like embroidery thread, so I had to use a needle threader.

The Sparkfun tutorials suggest making three loops through the holes on each part, so I start with the positive terminal on the battery holder, make three loops, and do a running stitch to the LED. After connecting the positive terminals on them, I tie a knot, and clip the thread short. Then I connect the negative terminals, put a battery in, and flip the switch.

It lit right up! Now, to connect the Twinkle and other LEDs. 

Testing, testing Part II

I put the Twinkle just below the battery holder on the right side and fan the other four LEDs away from it, with the positive terminals facing the numbered holes on the Twinkle.

As far as connecting all the other parts, the tutorial says to connect the positive terminal of the battery to the positive terminal on the Twinkle, tie a knot, cut the thread, and start a new thread for each LED to each of the numbered holes on the Twinkle. 

Then I can use one really long thread to connect all the negative terminals of the LEDs together, then to the negative terminal on the Twinkle, and then the negative terminal on the battery holder. By the way, it is OK to cross threads when they are both connected to the same terminals. You just don't want to cross negative with positive.

One thing I was noticing when I was conducting this test is that my initial thought of having the one non-blinking light right in the middle might not work with the tight space I am trying to design in. A necklace does not have a very large space to be threading conductive thread all over to avoid other thread. I will have to keep this in mind when I create the actual necklace design.

The second test with the LilyTwinkle worked! Now I draw out a schematic of how these parts should be connected so I can keep this next to me as I design my necklace. I measured each part to make sure I design something that will work for those sizes. I also tried to keep it tight (within a 4" square) as I know I won't have a massive space to work with. I've included this layout below as a PDF.

Now that I know how the components should connect, I can start considering some necklace pendant shapes that will accommodate the layout. I keep my sketch of the electronics layout on the artboard of the Illustrator file I use to create a few basic shapes.

In a most simplistic way, a necklace is really just a wide, curved triangle under the neck. For the pendant, I consider a fanned-out shape, a more modern off-center design with a large curved triangle on one side (which would host the components) and a smaller one on the other to balance it, an oval, a scalloped tail, a gem shape, and an arrow. For some of these, I redesigned the lights to be closer together. 

As I drew these out, I was also wondering "How do I add the flair?" By this I mean the extra beads, chain, and other components that make it a stunning necklace that people ooh and ahh over. I don't want to just create a pendant and stick a chain on it. I want pizzazz. 

Settling in

It was the pizzazz thought that helped me land on the arrow design as my favorite option. It's long, but tight. I could fan out some cord or chain and beads from the sides, and I can put a lovely centerpiece on the front of the pendant to maybe bring attention to the non-blinking light, and maybe some dangling charms or a lace design at the bottom. The basic design I came up with is included as a PDF below. I'm also including some of the other pendant shapes I created.

After settling on the design, I needed to think about how I will incorporate the LilyPad components without showing on the front (let's face it, they aren't pretty). The little LEDs won't shine through a thick fabric. And I needed to figure out how to access the on/off switch and change the battery when necessary.

I decided I could punch holes in the front fabric for the lights to shine through. A layer behind that would host the components, but I'll have to face the battery holder with the on/off switch backwards, which means I will flip it vertically from the way I originally set up the layout. However, that means there's a metal thing poking me in the neck. So then I decided I'd add a third layer to cover that but make it like a flap so it's easy to get to when needed.

The focal piece of the necklace is what all the lights will be shining around and what I'll base my other materials and bead colors on. 

I have several pendants that I have kept over the years that just came on a simple chain and I figured one day I'd show them off like the stars they are. Some I found at thrift stores, some I bought at conventions or in boutiques. A couple I actually found on the ground (true found objects). Some were never meant to be necklace pendants, but if there's a way I can attach them to a chain, ribbon or a string of beads, I'm going to try my best to make something lovely out of them. 

When you're looking for your focal piece, keep in mind:

• You'll want something about about 1.5" to 2" long and about 1.5" wide. Smaller is fine if you'd like more of the background fabric to show. Make sure it won't block the LED holes on your fabric pendant. My focal piece has a loop on top, but I can put that right over the top hole on the fabric and the light will still shine through (those holes are 3/32" in diameter).
• Don't be afraid to think differently about everyday objects. An old skeleton key or even a modern house key could be a lovely pendant. A lot of those "found objects" meant for scrapbooking, handmade cards, or mixed media art that you find in craft stores could make wonderful focal pieces. Silk flowers, old coins or small medals, wood shapes, large gems, and more could be glued to the front fabric to create the centerpiece. You could also string some beads across the front.
• Earrings could be turned into focal pieces by removing the loops or studs (remove studs by using a flush cutter).
• If you want to look for ready-made items, you can search "focal piece" or "pendant" in most jewelry outlets to find some interesting pieces you'll like. Here's some interesting focal pieces I found on Fire Mountain Gems and Beads.
• The three main sites I go to are Fire Mountain Gems and Beads, Shipwreck Beads, and Potomac Beads.
• You can also search for bezel cups to hold cabochons or cameos.

Sometimes pendants have front facing loops but have a bail attached (like mine did). You can usually remove those with your pliers. If you find something you love with a side-facing loop, you could attach a 10mm jump ring to it, thread a ribbon through, or find another way to attach it (like glue). The goal is to have this focal piece lay flat against the fabric and not block the light from the LED.

If the loop on the focal piece is too small, you could sew the focal piece to the fabric just below the LED hole. You could also use your flush or side cutters to remove the loop completely and then use glue to attach it to your fabric. If the focal piece doesn't have a loop or other way to sew it on, you can glue it to the fabric. We'll go into this in more detail in Step 8.

This was honestly the hardest part for me. I have A LOT of supplies and materials. Boxes, buckets, and bags of fabric and beads fill my work room. 

For the main front-facing fabric, I was thinking a soft and pliable leather, suede, or leather-like cloth. This kind of fabric wouldn't fray when I punch holes in it for the lights to shine through. I also want to cut this piece with my laser cutter so I need it to be thin. I have various colored leather squares, black and red faux snakeskin-looking fabric, and faux suede fabric that will work. 

I have several denim and duck cloth options, but I would need to figure out a way to keep them from fraying. I could coat them with Mod Podge Fabric or Mod Podge Stiffy which not only keeps the fabric from fraying but also makes it more rigid. 

I laid my options out on my work table and set about matching each with chains, beads, and other decorations. 

At this point I'm not worried about what I'll use as my middle and background fabrics because those won't be prevalent. I have so much felt and fabric to choose from that will match all my options, so I figured I'm set there when I am ready to choose.

Open to change

I did a lot of testing during this phase as I wondered if my thick quilting needles will leave big ugly holes in the leather and leather-like materials. I also tested threading those big needles with hemp cord and embroidery thread to see if I could not only get those into the eye of the needle, but also sew them into the various fabrics I had. I discovered it was really quite difficult to put most of my needles into the leather options I had. Since my plan is to sew on my centerpiece, the leather just won't do.

In the end, I decided to go with the black faux snakeskin fabric, seafoam green, turquoise, and silver beads, and silver chain, jump rings, toggle clasp, and other decorations.

I've provided a PDF below for the actual size fabric pieces to use as a pattern for cutting. I'm also including an SVG to cut the pieces with a laser cutter or other cutting machine like a Cricut. If you don't have access to a laser cutter, the holes for the LEDs to show through can be punched with a leather hole punch or an awl. You'll need a sharp craft knife to cut the holes for the dangles and chain pieces to attach. You could also use eyelets and an eyelet setter to create the holes you need (and make them stronger).

Because my faux snakeskin fabric is thin, I decided to cut 2 pieces and use Mod Podge Fabric to glue them together so the front piece is a little sturdier. 

I used that same fabric to be my back layer since it's soft. I cut that piece with the laser cutter, as well. I was also able to cut the middle felt layer with the laser cutter. I stood right next to the machine ready to switch it off, a little nervous the felt might melt into a puddle but it worked wonderfully.

If you're using fabric that frays for the inside two layers, you'll want to seal the edges with a zigzag or overlock stitch with your sewing machine, or use Mod Podge Fabric or other fabric glue to paint along the edges. You won't want to use a fabric that frays with the front layer unless you want to try to find another way to attach the chains on the upper part and the dangles on the lower part. You could add a seam allowance, cut two layers to sew together, and stitch ribbon into loops in the sides and bottom. Make sure to sew two rows around the edges to ensure the loops are secure. I've provided a front-piece pattern without the loops on the sides and bottom (and including a seam allowance of 1/4") if you want to try this.

If you think you will be gluing your focal piece or other elements to the front, save some fabric scraps to test the glue on later (in Step 8).

Because I can't write on the felt with regular chalk, I use a thin-tipped paint marker in silver to map out the LilyPad components layout on the front and back as a guide for later. First, I laid the front piece with the holes on top of the felt piece to mark where the LEDs will need to go, then used my pattern piece for the middle layer as a guide to draw out all the rest.

We have to create 5 dangles for the bottom of the fabric pendant, 8 sections for the chain, and 2 cone end pieces. 

To choose your bead arrangements, keep these thoughts in mind:

• Don't let the beads outshine your star. These are much smaller and should help accentuate your focal piece. There are a lot of beads out there that have so much going on (vibrant colors, mixed in designs, outlined in filigree, etc.). These are wonderful when you have a large gem in the center but isn't otherwise ornamental. If your centerpiece has a whole Monet painted on it, you'll want the dangle and chain beads to be solid colors that complement that centerpiece. 
• Size matters! You don't want to load up a 2" long string of beads for your dangles and chain sections for several reasons. First, head pins aren't that long, and you need room to put a loop at the top to hang the dangles from the fabric. Also, the longer you make your chain sections, the longer your chain will be. Your fabric pendant is large in order to host all the electronics. You won't want it to hang too low on your chest or the light show might get lost. Finally, beads get heavy when you pile them on. Too many will put pressure on the fabric piece holding them and it could lose integrity. 
• Consider a mix of metal and colored beads to allow the colored ones to be more bold. I used thin silver metal spacer beads on my chain sections and slightly larger silver beads on the dangles to put a divide between the teal and darker turquoise beads surrounding them. When I didn't have that divide, those beads blended into one big blob of color. 
• Make sure all your beads are uniform in size. Seed beads especially can vary wildly. It's important they are all about the same height so your necklace won't hang off-kilter when you're done making it.

Doing the dangles

For the dangles we'll need 5 head pins, your beads of choice (4 sets for the outside dangles and one with a larger decorative bead for the center dangle), side or flush cutters, and round-nose pliers.

You'll see in Diagram 1 (second photo above) how to go about doing these. First, use a soft cloth (I use an eyeglass cleaning cloth) and pull down along the wire on the head pin to smooth it out so it's as straight as it can be, then load the beads. For these dangles, I'm putting a seed bead on bottom (to keep the bigger bead above it from falling off), the ceramic bead, a silver bead, and a triangle bead at top. Hold the beads down with your finger, and push the wire close to the top bead to a 90-degree angle. It helps to hold the beads with a few of your fingers, while pushing the bottom of the head pin against your thumb. This can keep the wire from arcing while you bend the top. 

Then use a wire cutter to clip the wire, leaving about 10mm to form the loop with. Use your round-nose pliers to begin curling the end of the wire toward the beads, forming a J shape. Then grasp the middle of that curve and keep rolling the wire to form your loop. Finally, tuck the end of the wire as closely as you can to the bead. 

Getting loopy

Now the chain sections. These aren't hard, there's just 8 of them. For these you need 22 gauge wire, 8 sets of your beads of choice, side or flush cutters, and round-nose pliers.

To figure out how long to cut the wire for these sections, thread your beads the way you want them onto a piece of wire still on the spool. Push them close together and measure the length (see 8th photo above). Now add 20mm (or slightly more than 0.75") to that length. Cut 8 strips of 22 gauge wire that length with wire cutters. Line up all of your wires side by side to make sure they are all the same length and trim any that are longer than the rest. You want all your bead sections to be the same length so the chain hangs properly.

You want a loop at both ends, so bend one end of the wire about 10mm long at a 90-degree angle. Then follow the steps in Diagram 1 to make loops. Next add your beads and form the other loop on top. If you were connecting several of these sections together, you'd want to leave one loop open slightly so you can hook the next section on before closing it. But, we're attaching jump rings, so we don't have to worry about that.

Cone end sections

For these you'll need 2 cone ends, 22 gauge wire, two sets of your beads of choice, 10 6mm jump rings, 2 10mm jump rings, 2 open rounds, chain, side or flush cutters, 2 pairs of chain-nose pliers, and round-nose pliers.

For these cone end sections, I mimicked the bead selection for the 8 chain sections but chose larger dark turquoise beads at the ends so they wouldn't get swallowed by the cone ends. 

To measure the correct length of wire, I again threaded the beads onto the wire while it was still on the spool and threaded the cone on top. I pushed them all together, measured that length and added 20mm to it. I cut two sections of wire that length. 

I formed a loop on one end of the wire, and fed the other end of the wire through the cone. Then I loaded my beads and formed a loop on the other end. 

Next I cut chain link sections about 2" long using my side cutters. After I measure out the length and cut the first section, I count the actual number of links in it to be certain the rest of the chain pieces are exactly the same. I cut 8 of these (4 for each side). 

Then I attach 4 each with 6mm jump rings to the open rounds. To see how to properly open a jump ring, refer to Diagram 2 above (third photo). You want to open them like a spiral instead of out like a cuff because this helps it keep its shape and strength. Use chain nose pliers to grasp each side of the split on the ring to open and close them. To close them, just reverse the spiral. 

After I hang four lengths of chain to a round, I tear off thin strips of painter's tape to hold the chain to one side. It makes it easier to work with this section when those aren't rolling around all over the place. I will keep the tape on until I'm completely done attaching all the piece of chain to the pendant. 

Next we want to attach the beaded cone end sections to the chain sections. I open a 6mm jump ring to attach to the loop at the end of the beads. I close that. Then I open a 10mm jump ring. I loop it through the 6mm jump ring and the round, then I close it.

Sew the three layers together

In the patterns I provided in Step 5, you can see I redrew the sewing lines to be closer to the top, making them go only across the top instead of down the sides as well. I also drew two stitching lines, to provide extra durability. 

I line up all three pieces and use a straight stitch on my sewing machine to sew both lines as close to the top as I can, making sure to do a backstitch at the beginning and end of each line. I also sew them more closely together than what I show on the pattern just to give myself extra room to work with.

Then I flip back the front piece so I can get the LilyPad components into position and sew them on.

Lining everything up

Sparkfun suggests gluing the LilyPad pieces down before connecting them with the conductive thread. This will help make sure they land exactly where you need them to, not only to prevent short circuiting, but also to make sure the LEDs shine through the holes in the front layer. I will use Tacky Glue to hold them in place.

NOTE: If you did the test like I did in the very beginning, you'll need to cut all the pieces apart to use again. Make sure to remove the battery from the holder before stitching everything together again. 

First I want to place the LEDs to make certain they line up. The other parts have a little more wiggle room for movement, but proper LED placement is essential to the whole project.

I have the diagram in front of me to make sure I place all the parts in the correct orientation so that positive and negative terminals line up properly. 

I did a test with the Tacky Glue on the felt to make sure it didn't leak through the other side. Tacky Glue is pretty thick, but felt is very porous, so I figured I should test it first. I glued a plastic bead to a little triangle of felt with the Tacky Glue. The glue stayed on top for the most part, but when I pressed the bead down, the glue did seep into the bottom. But the glue held the plastic in place, so I will just be sure not to press too hard when I work on my necklace, and I will put a layer of wax paper under the felt as an extra precaution. 

Before I put any glue down, I place an LED on the felt where I've marked its location, lower the top fabric to make sure it shows through the hole. I nudge it to put it exactly where I want it, then lift the front piece carefully. I recheck to make sure the positive and negative terminals are where I want them. Then I lift the LED up on one side, making sure not to remove it completely, and put a dot of Tacky Glue under it. I press the LED down, then lower the front piece again to make sure it's in the correct location still. I can still nudge it while the glue is wet. When it's where I want it, I press and hold the LED, counting to 20 to make sure it won't move. I let it dry about 5 minutes before moving to the next one.

I repeat this for the other 4 LEDs, constantly checking their placement as I continue. Then I place a couple drops in the blank areas on the back of the LilyTwinkle and press that down in the center of the 4 lower LEDs where I marked its location. Exact placement isn't as important for that or the battery holder. As long as I have room to keep my positive and negative stitches apart, I'm good. I let the LilyTwinkle dry about 5 minutes, and then flip the fabric over and glue the battery holder to the back. I make sure the ON side of the switch is facing up and the positive terminals are on the left. I let everything dry about 20 minutes before I start stitching.

In stitches

Now I thread my sewing needle with conductive thread and retrace the steps of my initial test. I make three loops through the positive terminal of the battery holder and do a running stitch to the positive terminal of the top LED, make three loops, tie a knot, and clip the thread. Then I do the negative terminals. 

Next I sew from the lower positive terminal on the battery holder to the LilyTwinkle positive terminal. Then individually connect all the numbered holes on the Twinkle to the positive terminals of the lower LEDs. Then I start a longer thread from the negative terminal of the far right lower LED, connecting all the negative terminals of the lower LEDs, then the negative terminal of the LilyTwinkle (giving a lot of space to the positive thread nearby), and finally to the negative terminal on the battery holder. I tie a knot and clip that thread. I pop the 3V battery in, flip the switch to ON, and it works! Then I remove the battery again because we still have more to do.

Protecting my work

Sparkfun's tutorial on the basics of using the LilyPad suggests once you're finished connecting everything, you should paint over the thread with a fabric glue or paint as an extra precaution against short circuits. 

So, I place the wax paper under the felt again and use my small paint brush to paint Mod Podge Fabric over the thread on the back. I let that dry about 20 minutes (until it's not tacky anymore), flip the felt over and paint glue on the thread on the front. I let that dry about an hour before trying to attach the focal piece to the front.

I flip the back two layers away from the front. Then I thread black thread onto a sewing needle and knot the end. I position the loop on my focal piece over the top hole on the front fabric piece to sew it into place. I push my needle from under the fabric at the bottom right outside of the loop, then over the loop and back down through the hole. I sew several rings around the loop to make it secure, ending at the bottom left outside of the loop. I tie a knot and trim the thread.

If the loop on your focal piece is too small and crowds out the LED hole, you can sew it down just below. The same goes for if it doesn't have a loop at top but has holes around the sides (like filigree) that you can sew the thread into.

Gluing and which glue to use

If you want to remove the loop or if your focal piece doesn't have any other way to sew it on (or you just don't want to sew it on), you can glue it to the fabric. However, you'll want to test your glue to make sure it doesn't ruin the fabric and actually works well.

Fabric glue or leather glue works great for attaching two pieces of cloth or leather together, but does absolutely nothing to keep metal, plastic, glass, or other materials on. My go-to glue for most things is Super Glue, but I've never tried it on suede, and I know with softer fabrics like satin, it creates a very stiff patch that you probably won't want on your necklace. It can also permanently stain some fabrics and will dull gems, glass surfaces and plastic, so be careful with its use.

Most jewelers go with E-6000. It works wonderfully, but I hate using it because it seems half the tube shoots out of the top before you have a chance to put any to good use. If you want to try it, make sure you don't open it over your fabric and have a paper towel ready to clean up the mess. Use a toothpick to dab very small amounts under gems and the like. You'll also want to use a toothpick to clean up any that squirts out of the sides of the elements you are trying to glue down. It won't soak into your fabric for the most part, so a hard glue ball will form if you don't clean it away while it's still wet. 

There's plenty of other glues out there meant to be all-purpose or multi-surface. I like using LocTite Vinyl, Fabric & Plastic Flexible Adhesive for many projects that I can't use Super Glue with. It's flexible but does still leave a shiny patch after it dries, so it's best used in an area where it will be hidden (under gems, for example). You can use a toothpick to apply it to small elements.

The best way to test any glue you find is to use a piece of scrap from your fabric and something you're willing to sacrifice that matches the backing of your focal piece. If you have a metal bezel, then use a piece of wire from your spool. If you are using gems, use one in a color you have plenty of or just don't like. Follow the instructions on use and drying times. 

If your fabric is soft or thin, place a few layers of tissue paper or newspaper underneath just in case the glue bleeds through. If the glue works, you can use a damp cloth to scrub away the paper on your actual pendant (being mindful not to drip water on the electronic components, of course).

With the focal piece firmly attached, it's time to make absolutely certain the lights shine through the holes in front. Because the front can move about away from the middle layer, I want to secure those two layers together.

First, I fold up some cloth about the thickness of the LilyPad battery holder and tuck it under the felt layer just below the battery holder. This will make it easier to smooth down the top two layers. I then place my piece of wax paper under the felt layer, as well.

I paint Mod Podge Fabric around the outside of the holes on the back of the front layer. Then I lower the front from the top, aligning the holes over the LEDs, and press and smooth the fabric around the hole where I've painted the glue on the back. I smooth it out over the whole felt layer and press it firmly for about a minute. Then I paint more glue on the back of the front layer around the outside edges (avoiding the loops where we'll hang the chains and dangles later), and smooth the sides over on top of the felt layer. I let that dry about 2 hours before starting the next step.

For this step, we'll need the remaining 24 6mm jump rings, the 8mm jump ring, more chain link to go behind the neck, side cutters, and two chain-nose pliers.

Let's start with the dangles

I put Diagram 2 above (second photo) as a reminder on how to open jump rings. With the dangles, all we're doing is opening a 6mm jump ring for the 4 outside dangles and an 8mm jump ring for the center one. We'll thread those through the loops at the bottom of the front fabric piece, then hook a dangle on, and close them. That's it!

Ch-ch-ch-chain-ges

In my initial design (way back in Step 2), I had some chain coming from the fabric loops, then the bead sections, and then more chain. But when I held the fabric pendant up to my neck and measured with a cloth tape measure how long the chain needs to be from the pendant to my shoulders, I realized I only had 6 inches of room (I'm a small person). Plus those cone end sections ended up being much more elaborate than in my initial design. Those together with the bead section are just about 6 inches long. So the plan now is to attach the bead sections directly to the fabric pendant using 6mm jump rings. Then I attach the 4 chains from the cone end pieces to each of the bead sections using 4 more 6mm jump rings on each side.

Behind the scenes

Now I use a cloth tape measure to get the length from the middle of the back of my neck to my shoulder where I want the cone end to be. If you want your necklace to hang a little lower, you can add a little more length to this part of the chain.

I cut the chain using my side cutters, cutting two identical lengths. Then I attach each section to each cone end using a 6mm jump ring. Next, I attach one side of the toggle clasp to the other end of one chain using a 6mm jump ring and the other toggle piece to the other chain end. 

It's time to show off! This necklace is fabulous in the daylight, but a real showstopper in the evening. Let's light up the night!